The Historic Houston Heights
Holiday Home Tour & Holiday Market:
Christmas Past and Present

Thousands in the Houston area look forward to it every year: The Historic Houston Heights Holiday Home Tour & Holiday Market! Themed “Christmas Past and Present,” this year’s event is set for Friday, November 30 through Sunday, December 2, and it promises to be one of the best yet.

Sponsored by the Houston Heights Association, the much-anticipated annual event takes place in one of Houston’s most historic and unique neighborhoods - Houston Heights - known for its restful tree-lined streets, unique architecture, eclectic boutiques, and cozy cafés.

The Home Tour will highlight three beautifully restored turn-of-the-century homes and two recently constructed homes reflecting traditional Heights architecture. All five homes will be decked out in their holiday best, and docents will be available to point out the rich history, architecture, and unique holiday decorations of each home. [See the home descriptions and pictures below.]

The Holiday Market will feature local artists, crafters, and merchants with fine hand-made wares, gift items, Christmas decorations, and one-of-a-kind accessories. Artist Sue Kerr will be returning with her popular house portraits. Food vendors will offer delicious treats for sale, and street performers will delight and entertain. [See article below.]

The Holiday Market will be at the Heights Fire Station, 107 W. 12th Street at Yale; the homes on tour are in the surrounding area. Shuttles will be available on Saturday and Sunday to go between the homes and can be boarded from the Fire Station.

The tour homes will be open from 6:00 to 9:00 PM on Friday, from Noon to 6:00 PM on Saturday, and from Noon to 5:00 PM on Sunday. The Holiday Market will be open from 6:00 to 9:00 PM Friday, from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM on Saturday, and from Noon to 5:00 PM on Sunday.

Advance tickets are $17. Tickets purchased on tour days are $20 for all five homes or $5 for each home. Tickets can be purchased online at www.houstonheights.org/holidayhometour.htm and picked up at the Fire Station. Advance tickets are available at these local businesses: Another Place in Time, Buchanan’s Native Plants, Eclectic Home, and McCain’s Market. Tickets will be available for purchase on tour days at the Fire Station and at the homes.

Money raised by the Houston Heights Holiday Home Tour and Holiday Market is used by the Houston Heights Association to support neighborhood programs, including maintaining, improving, and beautifying parks, streets, walkways, public buildings, and vacant and underdeveloped areas; sponsoring the rehabilitation and restoration of historically significant homes and buildings; and to promote Houston Heights as the best and most livable historic neighborhood in the Houston metropolitan area.

For more information about The Historic Houston Heights Holiday Home Tour and Holiday Market, go to the web site above or call the Houston Heights Association at 713-861-4002 and select option 7.

Second Annual Houston Heights Holiday Market

by Sharie Beale, Chair, 2007 Holiday Market

We have a wonderful Holiday Market for all of our shoppers this year, with new and returning merchants. This is a great stop before or after the Holiday Home Tour. It’s also where tour tickets are sold and the first trolley stop for the Holiday Home Tour. There is no entrance fee for the Holiday Market.

The merchandise you can expect to see includes Christmas decorations (yes, Venice Holiday Gifts is back, plus some new folks with wonderful decorations), hand-made crèches, and ornaments. In addition, hand-painted gifts, jewelry of all sorts, soft Alpaca clothing (small and large pieces), stylish fur pieces (real and not) such as vests, jackets and scarves, gifts for the home (some wonderful new Polish pottery merchants), and garden decorations (the Round Top garden art has finally come to our Market!) will be available.

The ever-popular Sue Kerr is returning this year and will take a commission to do a portrait of your home. (Sue was busy all last year with orders just from our Market.) Lucia’s Garden is back to entice you with all things herbal and wonderful, and we have a new purveyor of bath and beauty products. For that executive in your life, don’t miss stopping at Wooden Wonders for beautiful handcrafted pens and great wine bottle stoppers (great stocking stuffers or hostess gifts). We also have food gifts and baskets; don’t forget to check them out upstairs in Santa’s Food and Sample Room!

There are lots of things going on, so stop by and see us. Enjoy some shopping and the holiday sprit!

Homes On The 2007 Historic Houston Heights Holiday Home Tour

Sackheim Home, 227 W. 18th St.

Built in 1915 by A.F. Buchanan, this craftsman-style bungalow home has many features classic to the period. Highlights include a high pitched gabled roof, oversized windows, tapered columns, and an extensive wraparound porch. When the homeowner purchased and restored the home in 2001, he lovingly maintained the integrity of both construction and historical setting. The many spacious rooms include a kitchen with frosted maple cabinets and Baltic brown granite counter tops and a huge master bath with a walk-in shower. Amid the delightful interior mix of eclectic contemporary and American Empire furniture, all will be charmed with the owner’s traditional holiday themes. This home won the Houston Heights Association’s Community Improvement Award in 2002.

Broman Cottage, 712 West 15th Street

The best things come in small packages, and this adorable cottage is no exception. Built in the 1920s and targeted for teardown, this home was moved to this location in the 1980s. After renovating many homes in the Heights area, Don & Debbie Broman have continued the quest for preservation by renovating this house. This cozy rental property feels like a cabin in the woods. Though it maintains most of its original design, the kitchen and bath have been updated. Keeping true to the original scale of the house but adding square footage, the homeowners enlarged the master bedroom by a mere five feet. This cottage features reclaimed 60-year old knotty-pine trim and antique furniture throughout. The rustic décor is echoed in the Christmas decorations, which feature old-fashioned popcorn garlands and nostalgic ornaments. Woven paper art by local artist Scott Bodenheimer is featured throughout the house.

Lauden Home, 1425 Harvard St.

This 1903 Queen Anne cottage is truly a reclaimed jewel. This fully restored home boasts many original architectural treasures including hardwood floors, fully functioning interior transom windows, hardware, moldings, and original pocket doors. The recently added designer kitchen and gas lanterns add the finishing touch. The exterior boasts lush landscaping and a stone patio with a fire pit. One of the owners’ Christmas trees is adorned with Bethlehem stars, a reminder of their recent move from Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

Sulser Home, 618 East 8th 1/2 Street

Built in 2005 by Kight Construction on the site of a neglected warehouse, this colonial revival is reminiscent of the New Orleans Garden District and reflects the homeowners’ Louisiana heritage. This gracious home boasts a barrel-vaulted ceiling entrance, double verandas, intricate moldings, reclaimed oak floors, and recycled architectural elements. Inside, experience what Christmas looks like when Papa Noël visits. Here, the holidays are decadently celebrated with several themed Christmas trees and a lavish Christmas table. Outside, the homeowners re-created a New Orleans courtyard with a pool that features custom ironwork and antique brick reclaimed from the remains of a Virginia tobacco warehouse.

Brenner-Dumas Home, 914 Nicholson Street

This beautiful, Charleston inspired, Neo-classical style home was built in 2006 by Sullivan Brothers. The traditional décor is elegant and dramatic, with 10-foot ceilings and detailed custom woodwork throughout the home. The highlight is surely the rustic country kitchen with onyx countertops. For the holidays, an extensive collection of new and vintage Santas adds a warm touch. The homeowners’ collection of ornaments reaches over 2,500 and features antique figural bulbs from the turn of the century.

Heights Bike and Skate Rally Experiment Succeeds

The experiment to find an HHA fundraiser to replace the Heights Festival was a success. On Sunday, October 7, 140 cyclists departed from and returned to the Fire Station after pedaling either the 16-mile or the 24-mile rally route. Every participant said they had fun and would return next year. The rally netted $1,441.00 for the HHA Boulevard Fund.

Rally Highlights

Heights resident Robert Killian won five front row tickets to an Astros game of his choice for finding all the mystery objects in the scavenger hunt on the 16-mile route. The tickets were donated by Allied Waste. Heights resident Jim Bennett won a new high tech adult’s bicycle for finding the most mystery objects in the scavenger hunt on the 24-mile route. The bicycle was donated by Houston Bicycle Company, who also provided emergency road service for the rally. A special hard luck plaque was awarded to Heights resident John Blass, who kept the emergency road service busy with two flats and one crash.

The youngest cyclist award went to 7-year-old Tillman Amstatz [right], who pedaled the 24-mile route with his father. He would have also won the best-dressed award, if there had been one. Sixty-eight-year-old Ted Kowalski won the Senior Cyclist award. William Ralstin won the best-decorated bike award with a sound system on his bicycle that was better than most automobiles.

Our thanks to the prize sponsors, cash donors, and volunteers listed at right. Our thanks also to Platinum Sponsors Allied Waste and San Jacinto Stone Co. and Bronze Sponsors Adams Insurance Service and Suzanne Anderson Realtors for their generous support.

Next year’s rally will be known as the Heights Bicycle Rally. No skaters participated this year. The Bicycle Rally is a new activity for HHA and is a work in progress. Many changes will be made in next year’s event from lessons learned this year. If you were a participant or a volunteer, please send any suggestions you have to TortureT@aol.com. There was a “Dutch Treat” rally volunteer party held on the patio of Berryhill’s on the Tuesday after the rally.

Here are a few photo highlights from the course and the awards party:

A subtle hint on the rally route.

Approaching the first checkpoint.

Along the bikeway.

At the second checkpoint.

On North Main.

Demo Watch

Nine more structures were lost to demolition or relocation between September 17 and October 15, including a potentially contributing house in the proposed Houston Heights Historic District East. A total of 279 buildings have been demolished or moved out of the Heights area since Demo Watch began in June 2005.

The Houston Heights Association has provided financial assistance and support to the historic district effort as a way to deter demolition and relocation of the neighborhood’s historic architecture. Builders who build compatible, single-family new construction are encouraged to replace only existing “non-contributing” sites that were not compatible when originally built. When this is accomplished, no historic fabric is lost, and new construction is compatible with the historic buildings.

The application for the Houston Heights Historic District West has been approved by the Houston Archeological and Historical Commission and will be considered by the Planning Commission in November. A second application for the Houston Heights Historic District East Phase I was filed shortly before this newsletter was printed.

Additional historic districts, including one that encompasses the Houston Heights commercial area in and around 18th and 19th streets, are being discussed. When Houston Heights was designated as a Multiple Resource Area in 1983, it was recommended by the National Park Service, as well as by the Texas Historical Commission, that multiple historic districts should be established within the boundaries of Houston Heights since it was at one time a city. Several subsequent surveys of the historic resources found in Houston Heights have also recommended that same approach. With the submittal of the first two historic districts, these recommendations are finally being addressed.

More information about the historic districts is available at www.houstonheights.org. Just use the pull down menu under property issues. Below is a list of the most recent demolition permits.

• 1411 Allston
• 1448 Arlington
• 2027 Harvard
• 1017 Herkimer
• 1109 Oxford
• 509 Rutland
• 1500 Studewood
• 601 E. 21st St.
• 442 W. 23rd St.

Around The Heights:
Houston International Folk Dancers

Did you know that there is a folkdancing event in Houston Heights every week? It’s held every Monday night from 7:30 to 10:00 PM in the Odd Fellows Hall at 115 E. 14th Street.

Houston International Folk Dancers (HIFD) is a unique recreational and performance group, dedicated to the preservation and enjoyment of ethnic dances from around the world, and promoting peace and understanding among all ethnicities. The HIFD calendar is filled with fun events throughout the year, such as performances at various ethnic festivals, dance workshops, and multiple dance parties and social events.

HIFD says their events are for anyone who enjoys dancing or would like to learn. No experience necessary. No partner necessary. HIFD dance nights are informal and friendly. Cost $4.00.

They also meet on Friday nights at First Unitarian Universalist Church, 5200 Fannin at Southmore, a few blocks from the Houston Museum of Fine Arts.

For more information, visit the HIFD web site at www.folkdancers.org or contact Klara Lewis at 713-774-5171 or klaralewis@sbcglobal.net.

Incarnate Word Open House

Incarnate Word Academy, a Catholic college preparatory high school for young women, would like to invite all prospective students and their families to their annual Open House on Sunday, November 4 from 2:00 to 4:00 PM.

Join them to learn about their college prep curriculum, meet the staff, and tour their new Fine Arts Center and completely renovated school building. Incarnate Word Academy is located at 609 Crawford Street in downtown Houston across from Minute Maid Park. For more information, visit www.incarnateword.org or call the IWA Admissions Office at 713-227-3637 x 117.

Calendar of Events for November-December 2007

HHA headquarters: The Fire Station is on the corner of Yale and 12th Streets.

Community Calendar

Events planned by other community organizations.

Every Wednesday and Saturday except Thanksgiving week, 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM, Historic Houston’s salvage warehouse is open. Call 713-522-0542 or visit their web site www.historichouston.org.

November 3, Harvard Elementary parents present “Moonlight over Marrakech” silent auction and dinner. Tickets can be purchased at the school or on the website at www.harvardschool.org.

November 4, 2:00 to 4:00 PM, Incarnate Word Academy Open House for prospective students, see article above.

November 8 - 17, Opera in the Heights presents The Marriage of Figaro by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in Lambert Hall, 1703 Heights Blvd. For tickets or more information, visit www.operaintheheights.org or call 713-861-5303.

November 10, 10:00 Am to 4:00 PM, Historic Houston Salvage Warehouse tax-free day, see article above.

December 1, 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM, Heights Presbyterian presents Cookies and Wassail with Santa, see article above.

December 8, Woodland Heights Civic Association presents Lights In The Heights, see www.woodland-heights.org/Events/LITH2007.

December 8 - 23, UpStage Theatre Young Audience Series presents Santa’s Magic Timepiece, an annual Christmas favorite. Saturday and Sunday afternoons, 2:00 PM, Lambert Hall, 1703 Heights Blvd. Visit www.upstagetheatre.org or call 713-838-7191.

Future History

February 24, 2008, Awards Dinner

April 4-6, Spring Home Tour

June 7, Fun Run

October 5, Bicycle Rally

December 5-7, Holiday Home Tour