Glenbrook Valley Continues to Garner Media Attention

Glenbrook Valley has drawn even more media attention as it moves closer to becoming Texas' first post war Historic District.   Just in the month of August we have seen print, radio and TV media sit up and take notice of our historic community!  Early in the month KUHF radio, a local NPR affiliate, did a great piece on the preservation efforts in Glenbrook.  The Great Day Houston Show hosted by Debra Duncan interviewed me about Glenbrook Valley's history and our efforts to preserve it's fabulous mid-century architecture.  On the same day a blog in the Houston Press came out with their "Top 5 Most Under Rated Neighborhoods in Houston."  Glenbrook Valley was one of the picks and was noted for being "resolute" in preserving it's past. 

It is obvious that the increased attention is a direct by-product of the Historic District efforts and those efforts haven't even come to full fruition yet!  Even so, it is already starting to effect a real change.  In the past I always had to explain to people where Glenbrook Valley is, and then had to explain that yes, there is a nice neighborhood over there.  More and more people are finding out about Glenbrook Valley and what a great place it is.  The preservation efforts will continue to go a long way in helping to raise our neighborhood's profile and image, in addition to preserving it's great history and architectural heritage. 

The city is looking at making the Historic District designation more meaningful.  Currently the ordinance amounts to nothing more than a 90 day delay for demolitions and inappropriate alterations.  If someone's plans for demolition or extensive renovation are not approved, they just wait 90 days and they can do whatever they want.  The Mayor wants to remove the 90 day provision.  Because of this change the city hosted a community meeting in Glenbrook to get input as to whether the community would like to move forward or not as a Historic District with the newer, more meaningful ordinance changes.  The city sent out letters about the meeting, it was in the newsletter and the civic club mailed notices as well.  Many residents turned out and overwhelmingly the opinion of the majority was to proceed with the designation. A decision I personally feel very strongly was the  right one for our neighborhood.

Working in conjunction with preservation groups like Houston Mod has allowed me to be successful in promoting the neighborhood and attract great neighbors.  The historical aspects of Glenbrook have been an instrumental component in it's recent gentrification.   There are other components to this issue besides property values, but on that one topic I am very optimistic that the designation will be very helpful to the neighborhood. There are going to be additional restrictions, of course, that come with being a Historic District but the boost to our neighborhood and the positive aspects that come from these protections far outweigh any inconveniences.

Others feel differently.

Despite the overwhelming support for this important designation there is a small amount of opposition.  Recently a small group of about three households grouped together to oppose the designation.   The effort to make Glenbrook Valley a Historic District has been driven by many resident volunteers eager to improve their community,  the "opposition", however, appears unable to garner the same level of support within the neighborhood.  Unfortunatley they instead brought in non-residents from so-called property rights groups to help pass out flyers.  Flyers with scare tactics  passed out mostly by people who were not a part of the community.  Some of them were so unfamiliar with what is & is not Glenbrook Valley that they were off wandering into a neighboring subdivision that is not a part of any of the district efforts, merrily passing out their flyers like they knew what they were doing. 

The major scare tactic in the flyer involved trying to exploit fears on the fine structure for unresolved violations.  Whenever you have an ordinance then you have to have some mechanism for enforcement, some fine if you don't comply.  If you didn't then the ordinance would be meaningless. That is why most all of the various ordinances typically have some fines. This one has the standard $50 to $500 a day fines for people that refuse to comply.  This is a standard fine structure that many, many other ordinances also have.  No fines, however, have EVER been  levied against anyone in regards to preservation ordinances since they were put into place in 1992.   Other ordinances, like the pooper-scooper ordinance for example,  have a similar fine structure.  According to the opponents logic, since there is a fine structure involved with ordinances regarding pets, I guess everyone should get rid of their pets for fear they become "vulnerable" to $500 a day fines!  Is this type of scare tactics, (blowing out of proportion a fine structure that has never been leveled since 1992), the best argument this small group has to go against the Historic District designation?  Apparently so. 

The small band of naysayers also aligned themselves with a Heights organization that opposes a more meaningful preservation ordinance. The organization was formed by three Realtors with companies heavily involved with builders of new construction in that area. If they do or don't want it in the Heights, fine, that is a discussion for the residents and property owners of that community.   I wonder, however,  if our trio in Glenbrook really thinks these Realtors from another area care about Glenbrook Valley and what happens here?  They certainly have not cared enough about our neighborhood to support it's resurgence by bringing buyers here.  I certainly haven't done any deals in Glenbrook with any of them, and I have done a lot of deals in there!  I can't recall any of them even showing any of my listings in the neighborhood.  But now they have interjected themselves into the discussion of Glenbrook via this organization.  A few, a very few, of their signs have appeared protesting the ordinance.  Signs, by the way, which are in violation of the deed restrictions in Glenbrook Valley, but I doubt that matters to those folks from other parts of town that have chosen to get involved in our neighborhood's designation process. 

Glenbrook Valley has come a long way in the last few years. I don't foresee the majority of Glenbrook residents letting it be stalled or brought backwards by a few alarmists and their band of outsiders, outsiders who will not be involved in this community once this is all over.  As for me, when this project draws to a conclusion I'll still be here fighting the good fight for my neighborhood.  The fight against the campaign of fear and misinformation by these people is just one more battle on the list, and another one I fully expect to be winning on behalf of Glenbrook Valley.