Southgate Secrets

Old school meets avant-garde at Rice Design Alliance architecture tour

The kitchen at 2045 University
Photo by Eric Hester
The pool at 2201 Southgate
Photo by Paul Hester/Hester + Hardaway
An exterior shot of the residence at 2145 Southgate
Photo by Paul Hester/Hester + Hardaway

At once utopian, elitist and architecturally progressive, the Inner Loop neighborhood of Southgate reveals its secrets this Saturday and Sunday, 1 to 6 p.m, at the Rice Design Alliance 2010 Architecture Tour — Southgate: An Urban Oasis.

The eight houses featured in the tour range from renovated 1930s cottages to hyper-mod manses. Highlights include the high-drama kitchen at 2045 University Blvd., architect Charles B. Thomsen's courtyard-studded mid-century abode, and the crystaline waters of the pool at 2201 Southgate Blvd. — the site of many a fashion photo shoot.

Bounded by Rice University and the Texas Medical Center, the subdivision is notable for its mandate that all home plans be approved by an architectural committee.

Following the example of River Oaks, whose developers enlisted noted architects to design their elaborate country houses, Southgate's original investors maintained that "homemakers appreciate the superiority of architect-designed homes".

Cut through the red tape yourself this weekend to judge the pretty streets' pedigree. Many of the contemporary homes' architects will be on site to elaborate upon their design visions.

This is the 34th annual architecture tour, which has previously bestowed inside views on such urban pockets as Tiel Way, Riverside and the buildings of John Staub.

Last year's event attracted a record 1,900 architectural enthusiasts and urban voyeurs.

READER CAVEAT: The tour is open only to RDA members, but anyone can join for $45 and get one tour ticket for free. Additional tickets for member's guests are $25 each. A household membership of $75 earns you two home tour tickets. Student membership is available for $15 and includes one ticket. Visit www.ricedesignalliance.org for details on membership and to get a look at the old and new Southgate.

unspecified

Thanks, Queen Bey

Pop icon Beyoncé donates $100,000 to University of Houston Law School

Photo by Erza Shaw Getty Images

undefined

Pop megastar Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has donated $100,000 to the University of Houston Law Center Criminal Justice Clinic through her BeyGOOD Foundation. The gift will allow the clinic to hire fill-time faculty to head it, benefiting the students who study there.

“I am delighted that the BeyGOOD Foundation has made this very generous gift to the UH Law Center,” said Leonard Baynes, dean of the UH Law Center. “Not only will this funding help establish a full-time criminal justice clinic that provides pro bono legal services in our community, but it will also supercharge our already excellent criminal law and justice programming.”

The clinic is one of nine at UHLC. It helps students learn to navigate the criminal justice system, especially on behalf of clients that are underserved by skilled attorneys. People of color are affected disproportionately by a lack of good, ethical representation.

Beyoncé, the most decorated artist in Grammy history and easily the biggest musical star native to Houston, has a long history of advocating for criminal justice reform. She was a staunch supporter of the police reform following the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, asking law enforcement to “stop killing us” in a web post. In 2020, she penned an open letter to the Kentucky attorney general asking for justice in the death of Breonna Taylor.

Through her BeyGOOD Foundation, established in 2013, Beyoncé has focused mostly on expanding the prospects of Black-owned business and offering education opportunities to students. Forwarding the cause of legal representation in Texas while also helping out marginalized communities compliments her other philanthropic work.

“At UH Law, we envision a legal profession where ‘everyone has the opportunity to prosper,’ as BeyGOOD envisions, and we will achieve this vision by providing access to strong and effective legal representation in criminal proceedings,” Baynes said. “And together, through this gift, the BeyGOOD Foundation and UHLC will shepherd the next generation of criminal justice attorneys in the city of Houston, the state of Texas and the nation.”