Today, Preservation Texas named five Houston-area sites to its list of 2007's Most Endangered Places in the state: the River Oaks Shopping Center, River Oaks and Alabama theaters, the West Mansion in Clear Lake, the Capitan Theater in Pasadena and unprotected neighborhoods in Galveston. This year's list focuses on historic movie theaters, but all the sites made it for a reason — unfortunately: All of them are in imminent danger of being lost through demolition or neglect. We figured this would be a good time to introduce you to the local endangered sites you don't know about and update you on the ones you do:
River Oaks Shopping Center
You might remember from way back in the summer that Weingarten Realty Investors plans to demolish the River Oaks Shopping Center (West Gray at South Shepherd), the oldest section of which opened in 1937, making it one of the oldest shopping centers in the U.S. The reason for the demolition? So Weingarten can build a chain bookstore, a high-rise residential building, a parking garage and some other shops and restaurants. Weingarten still hasn't 'fessed up to its plans, though it made a pretty stupid move back in October when it met with people who live behind the center and told them that they could soon have a parking garage at their back fence — and then told them not to tell anyone. Demolition of the shopping center could begin this year.
River Oaks and Alabama theaters
Demolition of the River Oaks Shopping Center would include the 1939 River Oaks Theater (2009 W. Gray), Houston's oldest still-operating movie theater; it would also probably mean that the nearby Alabama Theater (2922 S. Shepherd, which also opened in 1939 and was expertly converted into a bookstore in the 1980s) would also fall: Barnes & Noble, which leases the Alabama space, is one of the tenants that's supposed to be included in the redeveloped River Oaks center. In September, Weingarten President and CEO Drew Alexander told the Chronicle that the Alabama could be saved if someone was willing to put up the money — but, of course, Weingarten would be the one setting the price. (Greater Houston Preservation Alliance and arch-ive.org have more about the shopping center and theaters if you want to get caught up.)
West Mansion
As we noted back in October, the James Marion West Jr. mansion on the shore of Clear Lake (NASA Parkway at Space Center Boulevard, shown above) is also in danger: Former Houston Rocket Hakeem Olajuwon bought the property last year and is trying to sell it off in parcels for development, which wouldn't leave any room for the 17,000-square-foot house. The house itself was designed in 1930 by noted architect Joseph Finger; though it's a little worse for wear and its original furnishings have been removed, the interiors — mostly Italian Renaissance with some Zigzag Moderne thrown in for good measure — are surprisingly intact. Increased development around Clear Lake and the lack of protection from the city of Pasadena mean the mansion may not stand much longer. GHPA has more information in its Endangered Buildings list.
Capitan Theater
Not too far away from the West mansion, the 1949 Capitan Theater (1001 Shaw Ave. in Pasadena) also has an uncertain future — not because of development, but because its interior is deteriorating (check out these photos to see what we mean). 
The Capitan was built for the Isley theater chain, which operated theaters in Texas and Oklahoma and was run by actress Jennifer Jones's dad; its twin, the Granada, still stands (also empty) at 9231 Jensen Drive in Houston. Though the Capitan's exterior has been restored, the city of Pasadena has shelved plans to bring the interior back to its former glory, so the Capitan continues to deteriorate.
Galveston's unprotected neighborhoods
Galveston has managed to retain a lot of its historic fabric over the years because of its economic conditions, but now that the city is experiencing something of a development boom, many historic neighborhoods — which are unprotected — are now in danger. Several high-rise condominiums and hotels are being planned for the waterfront, which could cut off Galveston's charming neighborhoods from the Gulf and wipe out some really interesting architecture along the Seawall (like the 1941 Mayflower Inn, a hotel that was designed to resemble a ship). The area of unprotected neighborhoods is a big one, stretching from the harbor to the Gulf between 6th and 103rd streets.
So what can you do to help save these — and other — endangered sites? Lots of things: Tell your friends about them. Keep an eye out for development that threatens historic buildings. Call or write the companies or people who want to tear these places down (or let them fall down). Sign a petition. In short, raise some hell.
It's also a good idea to join a group that's fighting to save these places, like Greater Houston Preservation Alliance. It all comes down to this: If no one speaks up when historic buildings and places are being destroyed, there will be no reason for anyone to stop destroying them. That's what has been happening in Houston for too long, and we hope you'll agree that it's time for a change.
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West Mansion photo courtesy of GHPA
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