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    Hot New Concert Venue Opens

    White Oak Music Hall introduces game-changing amenities hilltop cabanas, uber sound system

    Eric Sandler
    Aug 18, 2016 | 2:34 pm

    When the doors open on White Oak Music Hall this weekend with a four-day celebration of concerts, both concert-goers and entertainers will encounter game-changing elements and amenities that include a state-of-the-art sound system, hilltop cabanas, elevated patios and swank green rooms.

    Located on the near Northside, the locally-owned venue debuted its outdoor space, the Lawn at White Oak Music Hall, back in April. This weekend its two indoor venues open to the public.

    Partners Will Thomas, Will Garwood, Johnny So, and Jagi Katial joined forces on the project, with each drawing on his various experiences in the music industry to create a top notch venue.

    Kaital brings the lessons learned from the time his company Pegstar Concerts booked shows at legendary Heights music venue Fitzgerald’s. That accounts for the 1,300-person main hall’s good sightlines and a second story balcony that allows concert-goers to feel close to the performer.

    The hall also features an all new sound system created by Clair Brothers with sound design by an acoustical engineer. “We’re shooting for the best-sounding room in the state,” Thomas tells CultureMap.

    The 250-person upstairs room will serve as a venue for up-and-coming local acts, comedians, and other performers that are less likely to draw a large crowd. Principle architect Troy Schaum of Schaum & Shieh Architects designed the building. Interior details, including art in the bathroom inspired by famous Houston graffiti, are by the gindesignsgroup (Camerata, Public Services, etc).

    Outside, the Lawn has upgraded its amenities since April, too. “Hilltop cabanas” offer premium seating for groups of 10 to 15 people, and patios built into the music hall offer an elevated place to see a show (for a higher price).

    Prior to joining the White Oak partners, Thomas worked as a criminal defense attorney, but he’s also spent years playing in bands. As such, he has a unique perspective on what artists want from a venue, and White Oak Music Hall incorporates a number of amenities that are designed to make artists want to return.

    For example, the venue includes a manager’s office with a washing machine and a dryer for laundry. Artist green rooms offer comfortable couches, flat screen TVs, and private bathrooms. The headliner’s room even features a private balcony so that acts performing on the Lawn can watch the openers before going onstage (or grab a cigarette).

    Since the April opening, Thomas says the group has been working to address neighborhood concerns about security and traffic by hiring additional police officers and closing side streets on concert nights. People are also starting to take advantage of the venue’s close proximity to a METRORail stop as one way to avoid traffic hassles.

    Recently, a professional sound study conducted by a third party verified that the venue is in compliance with the Memorandum of Understanding it signed with the Northside Village Super Neighborhood.

    That’s good news, considering that the venue plans to host up to 500 shows per year. Unlike Fitzgerald’s, the shows aren’t genre-specific, which means Ghostland Observatory’s funky sound and Morrissey’s sad songs are equally welcome.

    Together with next door bar the Raven Tower, the upcoming second outpost of Nice Slice Pizza Co., and other, rumored arrivals including a brew pub and a restaurant, the area around White Oak Music Hall is emerging as Houston’s newest entertainment destination.

    White Oak Music Hall opens Thursday night.

    White Oak Music Hall exterior
      
    Photo by Eric Sandler
    White Oak Music Hall opens Thursday night.
    openingsmusicconcerts
    news/city-life

    eyes on the road

    5 Houston highways rank among deadliest roads in America, per report

    Amber Heckler
    Jun 12, 2025 | 9:30 am
    I-45 Houston downtown
    Photo courtesy of TXDOT
    I-45 is in the hotseat again.

    Heads up to Houstonians commuting on the city's freeways: Five busy Harris County highways were just deemed among the deadliest roads in the country, with I-45 in Houston ranking as the deadliest road in Texas. That's according to a new study based on the latest National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) data.

    The study, commissioned by Santa Ana, California-based company Future Bail Bonds, compared fatal crash data across 96,000 U.S. roads from 2019-2023. The top 150 "deadliest" roads were ranked by the total number of fatal crashes that occurred during the five-year period.

    The No. 1 deadliest road in America is I-15 in San Bernardino County, California, the study found. The interstate, which runs from Southern California to Las Vegas, experienced the highest rate of deadly car crashes from 2019-2023 with 196 crashes.

    For comparison, I-45 in Houston had 88 fatal vehicle wrecks during the same time period to rank as the 16th deadliest U.S. road and No. 1 deadliest in Texas. Considering that tens of thousands of people drive the road every day, a fatal crash is relatively unlikely, but the data underscores the need for drivers to remain aware of their surroundings at all times.

    The crowded highway stretches from Dallas to Galveston, and the I-45 North Freeway earned its own spot on the list as the 124th deadliest U.S. road. I-45N experienced 44 deadly crashes between 2019 and 2023, the report said. I-45's controversial expansion project between downtown Houston and the north Sam Houston Tollway (and portions of connecting freeways) also earned it a new reputation as a "freeway without a future" by the activist group Congress for the New Urbanism.

    Elsewhere in Harris County, I-10 ranked as the 22nd deadliest U.S. highway on the list with 76 fatal crashes during the five-year span. It was dubbed the third most fatal Texas highway, with I-35 in Austin splitting up the two Houston roads as the second deadliest statewide.

    "From 2019 to 2023, motor vehicle crashes claimed 186,284 lives across 96,257 roads in the United States, underscoring the persistent danger on American roadways," the report said.

    Two more Houston highways ranked much farther down the report, but still remained among the top 150 deadliest U.S. roads: FM 1960 ranked 114th on the list with 45 fatal crashes, and I-610 ranked No. 131 with 43 fatal crashes.

    Nine other Texas roads that were deemed the deadliest in America with the highest rates of fatal vehicle crashes from 2019-2023 include:

    • No. 23 – I-30 in Dallas County (76 crashes)
    • No. 27 – I-410 in Bexar County (73 crashes)
    • No. 32 – I-10 in El Paso County (69 crashes)
    • No. 63 – I-20 in Tarrant County (56 crashes)
    • No. 66 – I-820 in Tarrant County (55 crashes)
    • No. 115 – SR-12 in Dallas County (45 crashes)
    • No. 130 – I-35 in Bexar County (43 crashes)
    • No. 132 – I-635 in Dallas County (43 crashes)
    • No. 141 – I-10 in Jefferson County (42 crashes)
    highwaysfreewayshoustonreportstraffic
    news/city-life
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