URBAN RESERVE AND MATHEWS/NICHOLS

Just heard that the Erin Mathews/David Nichols team at Briggs Freeman is officially handling sales of Diane Cheatham’s Urban Preserve….

WAR OF THE ROSES IN DALLAS

Aurelia Scott’s new book, Otherwise Ordinary People: Inside the Thorny World of Competitive Rose Gardening, has many of the colorful local characters that D magazine staff writer Rod Davis unearthed in a story for D Home last September about two rival international rose organizations–one based in Dallas. Sorry Rod, looks like Scott beat you to the book.

DALLAS ASID TO RE-DO DALLAS WIND OFFICE

The Dallas ASID is really breaking wind these days…doing an extreme makeover on the Dallas Wind Symphony’s office at Fair Park as its annual community service project. The dust starts flying July 9.

(more…)

VICTORY IN THE NEWS AGAIN

In case you missed it, Ernst & Young is moving its regional operations to Victory Park as soon as their current Ross Avenue lease expires. Not only is One Victory Park leasing up–it’s slated to be LEED certified. That’s what I call great news.

RE: THE WOODSON PLACE AND GREEN BUILDING

Laura, glad to see that someone is embracing green building today! I felt like rattling a few cages after reading Steve Brown’s article in the DMN this morning. Even though he spotlighted that gorgeous building in McKinney, it is depressing to hear comments about the scarcity of commercial green building in the Metroplex. I think we’ll all be surprised (pleasantly) in the next couple of years as builders are given serious incentives to get their acts together. And, if the recent list of newly accredited LEED builders is any indication, it’s going to happen sooner than even I expect.

RE: ROAD TRIP

You know, you’re on to something big Laura. I’m told by folks in the know that east Texas is “it” country.  Apparently land in Minneola is being bought up by young couples looking to build a second house for weekend getaways. You know, it’s like our Hamptons–but with more meth.

ROB WRITES FOR ELLE DECOR

Not that I’m promoting another home magazine, but Dallas’ own Rob Brinkley, my favorite competition, has a feature in the June Elle Decor about a great hill country home in Fredricksburg. Word has it that July’s cover of Elle Decor will be graced with the high-rise Houston home of Randy Powers’ mom, also written by Rob. What a two-fer. Way to go, Rob.

POST-MEMORIAL DAY ROAD TRIP: THE WOODSON PLACE

If you didn’t get through your book-on-tape on the long-weekend trip, why not head over to The Woodson Place? It’s about 74 miles east of Dallas, on County Road 2370 just off Highway 69, between Emory and Alba. On Wednesday, May 30, the public is invited to take a tour of this cool community, which has integrated “greenbuilt” homes with conservation development goals of wildlife habitat preservation and native plant wildscaping. (Note: You might want to go down in the Prius rather than the Suburban.)

WINE-OH! FRIDAY

Is there a better way to celebrate Memorial Day weekend than with some premium fruit of the vine? Nope. Didn’t think so.

Flavors From Afar invites you to sip and savor this Saturday, 12-5pm at its Snider Plaza shop.

The Wine Market hosts a Super Memorial Day Wine Sale & Tasting all weekend.

Chateau Wine Market hosts a Wine Fair this Saturday, 1-4pm.

For details, see below. (more…)

RE: OIL TO GAS

Candy, is anyone taking any bets on whether we’ll see a new bank in that spot?  Then it will be oil>gas>dust>dollars. Isn’t there anything that we can do about this infestation of banks?  Worse than fire ants.  And I still don’t really understand why it is happening at such a breakneck speed.

NEW LOOKS FOR LEWIS MITTMAN-EDWARD FERRELL

More showroom news today–if you haven’t visited the Lewis Mittman-Edward Ferrell Showroom lately (now that’s a mouthful), check it out. New products by Roger Thomas and Jamie Drake are much sleeker with more modern finishes than the old look of the collection. Thomas is Stephen Wynn’s designer, of Las Vegas fame, and is partly responsible for the new stylish glamour (no more high tacky) look of many of the casinos in Vegas.