Chron • 22nd December 2022

Houston artists assess the aftermath of a massive fire

A fire that broke out Tuesday morning at Winter Street Studios has damaged countless works of art and left many Houston artists without workspaces or gallery space. The fire, which began around 6:30 a.m., is being investigated as arson, according to the Houston Fire Department and numerous accounts from artists who work at the building. The fire started on the first floor, in the studio for Bohemian Photography, a commercial photography business owned by Jack Potts. A GoFundMe for Potts states

Chron • 25th February 2022

Giant spools fall off truck, snarling Houston traffic yet again

A number of giant industrial spools tangled up traffic in the Bayou City on Thursday, according to tweets from the Houston Police Department. At least two large metal spools fell off a truck on Interstate 10 under the Houston Avenue bridge. Photos from HPD appear to show one spool actually wedged underneath the bridge. Police blocked the two rightmost lanes of traffic as they worked to clear the mess. It's just the latest in a series of incidents dating back to at least 2016 in which such spoo

Chron • 23rd February 2022

Lina Hidalgo urges service industry workers to apply for free childcare program

Houston-area parents who work in the service industry — restaurants, bars, grocery stores, and even arts and entertainment — have just over a month left to apply for a program that could provide them with free childcare for a year, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo announced during a press conference Wednesday. The deadline to apply for the program is March 31. Of 12,000 available slots, only about 1,700 have been filled, according to Harris County Commissioner Rodney Ellis. That leaves more tha

Chron • 22nd February 2022

Houston Heights serial groper identified by police as local resident

Officials have named a suspect in a string of assaults on women that have taken place in the Houston Heights over recent months. In a posting to NextDoor.com, officials with Harris County Constable Precinct 1 said that they had identified David Torres, a Heights resident, as the man suspected of assaulting at least two women in the neighborhood. The identification was based on an anonymous tip after one woman shared home security camera video to NextDoor of a man stalking and then lunging at her

Chron • 17th February 2022

Retirees celebrate 5 years protesting outside John Cornyn's Houston HQ

A group of Houstonians who have been meeting every Tuesday to protest at Republican Senator John Cornyn's Memorial Park-area office just celebrated their five-year anniversary. Consisting of a core group of about a dozen retirees, the protesters meet every Tuesday at around 11:30 a.m. at 5300 Memorial Drive. This week marked their 262nd consecutive protest, a string of demonstrations unbroken save for a short break caused by Hurricane Harvey—and they don't envision themselves stopping anytime s

Eater Houston • 12th November 2021

Food Vendor Alleges Disorganization and Communication Issues in the Lead-Up to Houston’s Fatal Astroworld Festival

A food vendor who took part in rapper Travis Scott’s Astroworld Festival on the weekend of November 5 is speaking out about what she describes as disorganization and chaos in the weeks and days leading up to the event, at which nine people died during a crowd crush, in what is now considered one of the most deadly live music events in U.S. history. Patsy Vivares, co-owner of Sticky’s Chicken and Trill Burgers, worked previous Astroworld festivals (the event also took place in 2018 and 2019, and

Eater Houston • 26th October 2021

EaDo Hangout Truck Yard Faces Blowback After Marquee Message Seen as Insensitive by Local Cycling Groups

Truck Yard, the open-air beer bar and live music venue in Houston’s EaDo neighborhood, is facing backlash after displaying a message on its marquee that some local cyclist groups viewed as insensitive and antagonistic, just weeks after cyclists were assaulted in a highly-publicized Waller County case. A photo of the message, which read “Study shows 90% of bike accidents can be avoided by buying a car like normal people,” was posted to Truck Yard’s Instagram and Facebook accounts on Sunday. It d

Eater Houston • 21st October 2021

Taiwanese Boba Chain Alleges U.S. Franchise Operator Is Misleading Customers

Note: This story has been updated with statements from the CEO of Xing Fu Tang USA. A Taiwanese boba chain is alleging that its U.S. franchises — including one that recently opened in Houston — are operating without authorization and using questionably sourced ingredients to make the chain’s trademarked Brown Sugar Boba Milk drink. The company, Xing Fu Tang, is known as the Hermes of bubble tea due to signature drinks like a gold foil-topped boba milk and the afore-mentioned brown sugar boba m