Pretty sure you nailed it. It even has the public parking lot for Hermann Park
in this view.
Looks pretty clear to me that we’re talking about the undeveloped 9 ac between Ben Taub Loop and MacGregor.
Harris Health CEO says that COH would get the 11 ac parcel where Ben Taub currently sits… after completion of the new Ben Taub. That 11ac would include the Ben Taub parking garage, which I assume would be very attractive to the Hermann Park Conservancy. Parking is a HUGE issue at Hermann Park today.
All in all, I agree with Harris Health CEO, it’s a “win-win-win” situation. If the Warneke heirs are really that upset with the loss of the park land, they’re welcome to either turn down the County money, donate it to Hermann Park, or use it to create a new park somewhere else. 
What would they do with the land Ben Taub sits on. It’s an odd shape inside the med center. Not park like at all.
If it included the little triangle area with trees along Cambridge it might
could be utilized by the Zoo and not be the odd “L” shape. Of course Cambridge would need to be closed to be useful. Not sure that’s possible ?
I’m less opposed after hearing about the 11 acre swap, but the terms of the
donation should be honored and the family has the first say in the matter.
They might just take the money and run or be open to making a new donation.
That 9 acres may be worth 19-20 million if it’s $50/sq ft. ( just a guess)
Edit - nevermind …Daughters of the Republic of Texas are in that tree triangle.
They have a free log cabin you can tour as well. Didn’t know that was there.
Cambridge is super busy. It’s the road to the main entrance of Ben Taub.
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Not really. If eminent domain is already part of the plan, their only choices are to lose it by agreement or lose it by court order, unless they’re able to find a way to beat the government in a takings case.
What the city is trying to do violates the deal that was made. They took the land on the condition that they would return it to the donors if the planned park use ever changed. The donors gave up the right to develop what became prime real estate in the interest of creating a park.
I suspect people would take a different view if it was the donors who changed their minds and now wanted to turn park space into high density development. And that effort would fail because that’s not the deal they made. The city should be held to the same standard.
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Side note but related, Houston has 4 Level 1 Trauma centers.
In summary, Houston is fortunate to have multiple Level 1 Trauma Centers that provide a high level of specialized care to critically injured patients. These centers have the necessary resources, expertise, and infrastructure to handle a wide range of traumatic injuries. Whether it’s Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center, Texas Children’s Hospital, Ben Taub Hospital, or Houston Methodist Hospital, each facility plays a crucial role in saving lives and improving outcomes for trauma patients.
The Number Of Level 1 Trauma Centers In Houston: A Comprehensive Overview | MedShun
You’re a lawyer, right ?
I’m dealing with the state now on road right of way issues for road expansion. The first offer was made and it was low. Out of my league, so I handed it over to lawyer and the current offer is now about 3x the original offer. He has advised me to accept it. If I didnt accept, the next step would be to go to trial and hire an expert
witness ( $10,000-20,000 !) and I might lose in court, as I understand it. Unfortunately, some neighbors bit at the original offers as presented.
When you say “lose it by agreement”, does that mean original owners agreeing
to a sale, in layman terms ?
I haven’t seen the actual deed, but these types of conditional grants typically have language providing that the gift was made for a specific use (park, school, hospital, etc.) and that if the recipient ever decided to change that use, then the conveyance automatically reverts to the original owner.
So yes, when I say “lose it by agreement”, I’m assuming that the family had those reversionary rights, that the city made an offer to buy them out, and that they accepted that offer. If they don’t accept, as you well know, condemnation (pursuant to eminent domain powers) proceedings will likely be initiated, and those almost always end up with the landowner losing the land.
When it comes to land valuation, one of the things that will drive that up in this case is the “highest and best use” factor. In other cases where they’re taking some or all of your land to build a road or whatever, there are other factors related to damages to any remaining land you have that can add to that price (i.e., a road cuts off a portion of your land and limits access, disrupts drainage, leaves an unusable configuration, or creates other impacts).
You definitely made the right move rejecting the initial offer and hiring an attorney who has handled these. The risk of pushing forward is that any additional gains you make in establishing a higher value get eaten up by trial costs. You won’t “lose” in the sense that you’re still going to be compensated, but there’s no guarantee that you’ll get more than what’s been offered. I think most of them do end up getting resolved without trial because of this.
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Oh it could come likely when it came time to pay for the clean up the hazardous hospital waste leached into the ground under Ben Taub. Harris Health would flee.
Parkland should stay parkland as it was gifted.
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Johnny only the grass was replaced with white stone matching the WH. The roses and other greenery remain in the garden. The grass was always being trampled and the area muddied from all the briefings and events there. I don’t mean for this to be political, just to clarify any misunderstanding from the previous posting.
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Guys can we avoid veering into discussions of a WH rose motel patio / rose food truck court?
Fine with me. Guess you didn’t see the earlier posting that I was clarifying.
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He said guys, seems like it was directed to all.
Let’s end that side topic.
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It’s currently unused (or at least underutilized) Park land.
Ben Taub needs to expand but is out of space. I expect it’s possible to go vertical, but not easy. Much easier/cheaper/more efficient to build brand new on that unused piece of land. The old Ben Taub can be demolished and turned into green space afterwards.
That triangle piece is already part of Hermann Park. So the “L” would just make it a more useable piece of land.
Based on HCAD maps, the Zoo is part of Hermann Park… I don’t know if there are some kind of easements that delineate it separately from the rest of the Park. Again, I think a big plus is the Park and Zoo getting an existing parking garage.
As for access, you can’t close Cambridge, it’s a major entrance to TMC for emergency vehicles and patients alike. You can cross at grade (pedestrian signals), go under with a tunnel (there’s a similar tunnel crossing under MacGregor nearby), or go over with a bridge.
You are against free health care for the poor Johnny? That’s what Ben Taub is for. And that’s why they want to expand it, to serve the growing uninsured in Houston. For the greater good. Why are you opposed to taking care of the people?
How do you determine if some land that is part of a park is under or over utilized? Is there some sort of formula or is it just a matter of opinion?
There are poor people all over the metro that need health care and I believe could be better served in a part of the metro underserved. It could be much more cost effective with easier access for them. I think these is much more about Harris Health and interim finance fees than it is about any patient.
The decision should be the family’s to make and the government and financials should stand aside until they make it.
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There is no reason to get so personal so often since no one on this board is the topic.