Houston City Council considers new historic landmark designations for seven buildings – Houston Public Media

Screenshot from Houston TV

The Houston City Council is considering designating seven properties across the city as historic landmarks, and that status would regulate and limit future construction of the buildings.

Jennifer Ostlind, interim director of the city’s Planning and Development Department, noted the historical and architectural significance of the City Hall properties during Wednesday’s meeting.

Here are the properties considered for monument status:

• Alexander Z. and Julia C. Hester House at 1703 West Street
• Braswell Building at 5613 Almeda Road
• Knapp Chevrolet Building at 1230 Houston Avenue
• Concord Missionary Baptist Church at 7506 North Main Street
• Humble-Exxon building and garage at 800 Bell Street and 1616 Milam Street
• The Menil house at 3363 San Felipe street
• Frank A. Watts House at 2529 Stanmore Drive

Two properties stood out at the meeting: the Humble-Exxon Building and Garage and the Braswell Building.

The owners of the Humble-Exxon building are asking the City Council to designate it as both a protected landmark and a significant structure. Protected landmark status would protect it from “demolition due to inappropriate alterations,” Jennifer Ostlind, interim director of the city’s Department of Planning and Development, told the City Council. In addition, the designation of a significant structure allows tax exemptions.

While most of the properties are homes of deceased community leaders, Humble-Exxon is a 45-story downtown building and Mayor John Whitmire said he was wary of limiting potential renovations there.

“I understand historic residences, I think everyone would applaud that,” Whitmire said. “But a viable business structure in the central part of Houston — I think we have to be careful.”

Ostlind said the building and its garage were sought to become a landmark because they are “a distinctive part of the Houston skyline,” adding that it was the tallest building west of the Mississippi in the early 1960s.

But Whitmire stressed that he would carefully review the designation.

“I just think it’s not apples to apples with the other structures that you’ve presented this morning,” he said.

Controversy has also arisen regarding the Braswell Building because of its alleged historical ties to the Confederacy. It is also unclear whether the building’s owner, Mike Pittman, is the sole owner of the property.

The building is a one-story concrete commercial building attached to a two-story apartment building. It was built in 1950 as a local flower shop.

“The building is a rare surviving example of the small commercial buildings that made up Almeda Road from the late 1920s to the 1960s,” Ostlind said. “After serving as a flower shop, the building remained a local destination, serving as a bar, arts and culture hub, bookstore and hair salon.”

But Malcolm Lee told the City Council that his sister, Karen Lee, partially owns the building and was not involved in the designation application process.

“When this application was submitted to the Archaeological and Historical Commission, my sister was informed of it just days before the hearing,” Lee said, adding that “they were told this was only the first stage of the process and that we would receive several notices for subsequent hearings Yet here it is before you today.

He said he was opposed to the designation because “both partners have strong ties to a dark history that looms over the history of this property.”

Lee alleges that the building’s former owners have ties to Confederate military general Robert E. Lee and the German Nazi Party.

“My sister just thinks that in this day and age, when we’re trying to correct our history, or at least we don’t want to celebrate those kinds of things,” Lee said.

Pittman defended himself and said he owned the property and purchased it in October 2023.

Council member Fred Flickinger asked Ostlind to ensure landowner research is part of the process before moving forward with requests for historic designation.