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MICHAEL SILVA 713.725.8748

Inside Today: Flu season and holiday shopping, hand-in-hand • 1B

Houston Business Journal Top 25 Residential Real Estate Professional

Established 1967

michaels@johndaugherty.com johndaugherty.com

Covering the Heights, Garden Oaks, Oak Forest & the neighborhoods of North Houston

s ’ e n e l r a D

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Saturday, November 8, 2014 • Vol. 60 • No. 53

A GREEN Evolution?

Who’s moving in, what’s going up around the area

ABOUT US 3500 East T.C. Jester Blvd Suite A (713) 686-8494 news@theleadernews.com www.theleadernews.com Facebook/THE LEADER.

AREA SPECIALIST

Photo by Betsy Denson The future Studemont Junction announces itself as a mixed use development with restaurant and retail space available.

By Betsy Denson betsy@theleadernews.com

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FIND IT. HANDYMAN SAVES YOU MONEY: Plumbing, electrical, carpentry. 281-660-0350. I WOULD LIKE TO SIT WITH YOUR LOVED ONE: Available 24/7. References. Call Trudy, 713-791-8477. FOR SALE - TOYOTA AVALON XLS: 1995 Model. $1,400. Reliable. 713-805-2580. GARAGE SALE: 939 W. 31st, Friday/Saturday, open 8 a.m. Handmade craft items, electric oven roaster, blue willow, miscellaneous.

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������������� janetschmidt58@yahoo.com PREMIER PROPERTIES

LOOK INSIDE. Five ways to jump start your fall fitness routine

The weather is cooler and the holiday season, with all its attendant stresses, approaches. There’s no better time to get active and maybe get a two month jump on those New Year’s Resolutions. Find some ideas from Leader readers who recently chimed in on social media with their favorite fall fitness activities.

Find our story on page 2B

How Houston’s One-Bin For All program might lead to a cleaner future By Jonathan Garris jgarris@theleadernews.com For Laura Spanjian, Sustainability Director for the City of Houston, tackling the city’s abysmal recycling and waste diversion rates is a gargantuan challenge. According to the city, about 81 percent of waste is diverted to landfills across the region versus the national average of about 66 percent. Of the 19 remaining percent diverted from landfills, only 6 percent comes from recycling, leaving 13 percent from the city’s mandatory yard waste compostable bag program. It’s something city officials like Spanjian hope to address with the potential adoption of its One Bin for All program, which aims to collect waste from residents in a unified bin which would then be diverted to facilities focused on sorting and recycling a multitude of different materials. “Clearly, the low recycling rate has been the biggest driving force behind this project,” Spanjian said. “The other big driver has been innovation and new technologies. Throughout many sectors, Houston has been trying to be innovative, but for waste we obviously haven’t been.” The One Bin for All program seeks to innovate recycling by allowing Houston residents to place all trash, recyclables and

compostables into one collection bin, Spanjian said. In 2013, the concept for the program received attention from the Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Mayors Challenge, where it was selected as winner out of a large pool of applicant cities and resulted in the city receiving $1 million to help pursue the idea. “We’re trying very hard to change our image as a city and improve the quality of life when it comes to things like air quality and pollution in general,” Spanjian said. “This is going to be a big step forward for us.

What numbers we could see after 1 year with One Bin For All

New Potential

In 2011, Spanjian and other officials traveled to parts of Europe as part of a research initiative to help improve waste diversion. “In many parts of Europe, cities are so land constrained so they have to be creative with what they do with their waste,” Spanjian said. The group also turned to other parts of the nation for inspiration, including Montgomery, AL, which has a one-bin system and a corresponding facility which has helped divert 60 percent of waste from local landfills since opening, Spanjian said. “We’ve been there several times now and it looks like a big

What we could see after 2 years

See One-bin, P. 5A

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Classifieds

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Coupons

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Food/Drink/Art Obituaries

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Opinion

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Public Information Puzzles Pets

2A 4A 7A

See Development, P. 10A

American Legion Post 560 Chili Cook-off, back at it again By Kim Hogstrom For The Leader

THE INDEX. Church

Waste Diversion Rates

It’s been two years since the 153,000square-foot Walmart Supercenter opened inside the 610 Loop at Yale and Koehler streets, but that hasn’t been the last of big retail and residential developments along the I-10/Washington Corridor – a fact that causes many nearby residents no small amount of unease. The 150,000 square foot Yale Street Market, 195 Yale St, which will occupy the site of the former San Jacinto Stone Company, is currently under construction. The plans from the Retail Connection, the leasing agent, show an eight acre development with rooftop parking. Signed tenants include LA Fitness, Sprouts Farmers Market, Guitar Center, and World Market. And then there’s the 15-acre mixed use development Studemont Junction, at I-10 and Studemont, which is replacing the Grocers Supply distribution center. According to the leasing agent’s web site, phase one of the development will bring a mix of retail, dining, and amenities, while phase two is a 400 unit multifamily housing development that will “reinforce the urban character of the site and will encourage heavy pedestrian activity along the corridor.” Now comes word of the approaching sale of the 21 acre Tarkett site at 2728 Summer, between Studemont and Sawyer streets south of 1-10, behind the Target. Texas Tile Manufacturing, which has occupied the location since the 1930s, is relocating to Alabama. According to the Harris County Appraisal District, the value of the manufacturing and warehouse space is $14 million. But the land, so close to the Heights and downtown, might go for more. There is no asking price attached to the parcel. Conrad Bernard of Boyd Commercial, said that potential buyers have until noon on November 14 to submit an offer. “It’s pretty commonplace to let the market decide,” said Bernard, who said that although there’s been interest from those looking to do retail and multifamily housing, there are no offers in yet. “That’s pretty typical two weeks out.” He noted there was a possibility that the owner would get financial assistance from the City of Houston for sewer upgrades and traffic alleviation. Bernard also said the highest offer may not be the winning one. Since Texas Tile Manufacturing has a move date, the ability for the bidder to close the deal is

“My favorite part of the cook-off, is seeing how diverse our community really is,” American Legion Post Commander Tony Moreno said. “The event is also a great way for people who are new to the area, to get to meet their neighbors.” Moreno is referring to the American Legion Post 560 Chili Cook-off held each year to celebrate Veterans Day at 3720 Alba St. in Garden Oaks. The Sons of the American Legion, or SAL, hosts the wildly successful event in honor of American veterans, and it generally turns out to be the block party of the season.

File photo by Michael Sudhalter Ret. U.S. Army. Capt. Marcos Garcia, left, and friend, Mark Rosenfelder, enjoy barbecuing outside Garcia’s apartment last year. Garcia, a member of American Legion Post 560 in Garden Oaks, served as a platoon leader in Mosul, Iraq in 2007-08.

Starting at noon on Saturday, Nov. 15, the two acres on which Post 560 sits will be occupied by more than 100 competitors in chili-cooking, beanmaking, Bloody Mary-blending “and a few surprises,” stated Moreno, laughing. Tasting cups of each recipe are available for $1, so attendees can graze all day if they wish. In addition, visitors will find pulled pork sandwiches, tee-shits, games, raffles, a live Veteran’s band, and all kinds of activities. The party is open to all and there is no admission charge. And the best part? It’s a fully volunteer event with all proceeds benefiting the DeBakey VA Medical Center, Breast See Veterans P. 2A


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