Last Chance To See 600 sq mi: Hidden
Missed Connections: Gefilte Fish...and "Chain Connections"
H-Town Rock
Rock Talk, Vol. IX
What is the deal with the building off of the east side of 45 in downtown across from the post office (bounded by Franklin and Bagby)? It looks like it was constructed (or renovated) recently and yet it sits there half-finished with broken glass. — Chris
Chris, the building you're wondering about is the old Tennison Hotel at the corner of Bagby and Franklin, and you're right: It was renovated in the last few years, but it was only half-finished, and every day it seems to get a little shabbier.
The Tennison opened around 1922 to serve travelers from Grand Central Station, which was located where the downtown post office stands today. The building's architect was Joseph Finger, who also designed the DeGeorge, Plaza, Ben Milam, William Penn, Texas State (now Club Quarters) and Auditorium (now Lancaster) hotels. The Tennison was one of three hotels that served the station: the Macatee stood on the east side of the station and the Brazos — which was one of the most famous hotels in turn-of-the-century Houston — was directly across the street from Grand Central, but it was demolished in 1931 when Franklin Avenue was extended. In 1961, Grand Central Station was torn down to make way for the new post office and the train station was moved to the crappy little building where it remains today, and that kind of removed the Tennison's purpose; it limped along for a while, but finally closed in 1972. The building was used for offices by a day-labor agency for a few years, but closed for good in the late '70s. (One bit of Tennison trivia: The hotel was once featured in "Ripley's Believe It or Not" because its builders reportedly ordered exactly 10,000 bricks to build the hotel, but the job took 10,001 bricks to complete. So close ... )
After it closed, the building was purchased by Eller Media, which used it as a stand for billboards overlooking I-45 — a function it's still serving. In December 1997, with downtown revitalization taking off, developer Ray Ferguson bought the Tennison and announced plans to turn it into upscale apartments and offices. Ferguson built a parking garage, extended the west side of the hotel building toward I-45 — that's the stone wall that faces the freeway today — and added a curved glass wall to the south side of the building. 
The project was supposed to be finished in 1999, but Ferguson changed his mind somewhere along the way, saying there wasn't enough demand for office space in the building. So, in 2000, he announced a new plan to convert the building into an upscale boutique hotel. After an $8 million renovation, the old Tennison would become the Theater Hotel, which would have 46 rooms renting for anywhere from $185 to $1,000 a night.
The hotel plan apparently didn't work out too well, either, and seven months later Ferguson switched back to the loft idea. The project, One Bayou Park, would have had 15 furnished units (apparently furnished with pieces intended to be used in the hotel) and 12 unfurnished units, each priced not by size, but by the view it commanded. Two years later, Southwest Bank of Texas — which had made the initial construction loan on the redevelopment project — foreclosed on the building, saying Ferguson's development group was in default. And that pretty much brings us up to speed: No work was done for years, the parking garage was fenced off and windows started being broken out.
But that may be changing: Yesterday, we were driving past the Tennison and noticed that some of the broken windows had been replaced and workmen were inside the building doing ... well, something. According to county records, the building is owned by Yazdcorp Funds V, a group led by developer Bob Yazdani (and the same group that sold Town & Country Mall). We couldn't get a comment on what's happening now, but we imagine the Tennison's prime location and fantastic skyline view is still quite a draw, even in spite of the nearly constant parade of postal trucks passing in front of the building. Stay tuned.
Curious about all things local? Check into Houstonist's hotel of knowledge: ask (at) houstonist (dot) com.
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Historic photo courtesy of Story Sloane's Gallery
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