Save the River Oaks center petition

Houstonist has never been much of one to mess with petitions, but we figured the possible demolition of the River Oaks Shopping Center (and the Alabama Theater) was as good a reason as any — better than most, in our book — to get started. So we're sponsoring a petition opposing Weingarten Realty Investors' plans to tear down the River Oaks center.

If you missed the news this weekend, check out the Chronicle article. Here's a brief rundown: Several tenants in the section of the River Oaks center closest to Shepherd Drive — the part with the double curving wings and the River Oaks Theater — have been told that Weingarten plans to demolish their buildings to make way for a Barnes & Noble (on the north side of West Gray) and a high-rise residential building (on the south side). Not only does that mean that Houston would lose the theater, but we'd also lose an important part of local and national architectural history: The River Oaks center, which dates to 1937, is one of the country's earliest shopping centers and is a significant example of 1930s retail architecture. What's more, Greater Houston Preservation Alliance is worried that the former Alabama Theater at Shepherd and West Alabama — now Bookstop — will be the next thing to go if B&N, which owns Bookstop, builds a few blocks away. (Read more from Off the Kuff, Jeff Balke, blogHouston and Bayou City History.)

So what can you do? Sign the petition and pass it around to everyone you know who will oppose losing the River Oaks center and the Alabama Theater. We plan to present the petition to Weingarten by the end of the year — the more signatures, the better. (You can also contact Weingarten if you want to take a more direct approach.)