Houston Pavillions 2013 (Until April 04, 2013)

(My apologies in advance of this blog post, why is the new blogger format such a pain to create a post now? I cannot get the text aligned like I was able to in the past.)
As of April 04, 2013 Houston Pavilions will undergo a name change according to the Pavilions website. These photos were taken on a weeknight when most of the entertainment options were closed.

Entertainment options, restaurants, and office developments have taken up most of the space in this center with retail options very limited. Forever 21 and BCBG MaxAzria are the last two retail outlets remaining. 

 






















Macy's is in the background of the Houston Pavilions sign in this photo.

Here are some views of the first level.

Pete's Dueling Piano Bar and Lucky Strike Lanes are a weekend favorite. House of Blues is also here.

BCBGMaxAzria is one of the retailers that opened with the center.

Books A Million closed at the end of 2012. Macy's is rumored to possibly be a candidate to open here to replace the store that is closing across the street. This space is much smaller than what they are leaving behind. The Macy's store that is closing was five stories of shopping and twelve stories total with a basement level connected to the tunnels.

Is Houston's retail economy improving?

I have mixed feelings about the Houston retail economy. Over the past year some developments such as Plazamericas, Almeda Mall, Pasadena Town Square, and The Pavilions of Houston have attracted several new businesses. Other developments such as Greenspoint Mall and Northwest Mall are having a hard time keeping tenants. There have also been several redevelopment projects in former big box locations, but new retail development in Houston seems to have slowed significantly. Post your comment below and get the discussion going.

The Houston Pavilions

Welcome to the Houston Pavilions. This is a three level lifestyle center in the heart of downtown Houston that opened up in late 2008. The center was built to cater to the downtown population and draw traffic from the discovery green park. This center was built just two blocks away from the Houston Center. The Houston Center has a better location in between five office towers and it is only one block away from the park. The Houston Center is also an established mall that has been in business over 25 years. The Pavilions has an advantage in that it is directly off of the downtown light rail line and closer to the bulk of the downtown skyscrapers. The House of Blues is a good draw for the nighttime club hoppers and there are many new restaurants in development at the center on the first floor. The retail seems to be struggling here with only the Books a Million, Forever 21, and Max Azara open for retail sales, but if the clubs keep coming this place will really help out the downtown nightlife.

Here are a few shots from the Wells Fargo Plaza's 59th floor or the center.




Books a Million and Forever 21 are anchors here, but they both are at the same end of the center. The House of Blues is at the other end. One of the issues with the center is that the first floor has a street going through it in two places making it a difficult to cross there. You have to go to a crosswalk or go up to the second floor to cross the street.




The hallways of the upper floors are mainly empty, but the first floor is about 50% full. There is an office tower connected to this center that will bring more lunch traffic to the area when the building is rented out.










New photo update 10/08/2009