The Alabama's Transformation

An early look at the Trader Joe's in the Loop: The "skeleton" neon letters areback — and cleaner

This marks the return of the freshly-restored metal letters on vintage AlabamaTheatre sign.

Photo by Karen Burd
The narrow and hot confines of the vintage metal sign have not made it easy forlighting workers, who hope to complete the project by Friday afternoon.

Photo by Karen Burd
As of Thursday afternoon, new neon was in place at the top of the spire andthroughout the lettering.

Photo by Karen Burd
The vintage letters have a fresh coat of orage and white paint.

Photo by Karen Burd
Each of these small electrical boxes weigh more than 30 pounds — a heavy loadconsidering how high workers need to carry them up the four-story sign. Oh yeah. . . and there are about 40 of them to be installed.

Photo by Karen Burd
Inside, the original Art Deco decorations have been reattached.

Photo by Karen Burd
Fresh neon lights awaiting installation.

Photo by Karen Burd
The main corridor along the south wall has been dry-walled.

Photo by Karen Burd
Sets of pink and turquiose railing are stacked in the rear foyer.

Photo by Karen Burd
A small outdoor shelter is nearing completion.

Photo by Karen Burd
Original neon stands sag at the rear parking lot entrance, waiting to be eitherremoved or replaced.

Photo by Karen Burd

Weingarten Realty lived up to its promise as workers reinstalled the neon letters on the 1939 street sign that once marked the Alabama Theatre — the vintage movie house set to become the first Trader Joe's within the Loop.

CultureMap dropped by the site recently to watch the newly-restored landmark come back to life.

"We've been working on the sign from the top down," said lighting specialist John Otto from Coast Graphics and Signs, the company tasked with the lighting restoration. "Let me tell you, though, it's really hot up there. The sign's shaped like a chimney and all the heat rises right up to the top."

"Let me tell you, though, it's really hot up there,"lighting sp ecialist John Otto said. "The sign's shaped like a chimney and all the heat rises right up to the top."

The workspace inside the tall metal sign is narrow, dark and incredibly warm. A ladder leads to the top of the spire, where workers pieced together the complicated wiring that will light the newly-installed neon..

As the were before, the letters will remain open to reveal the strips of light, a look Otto described as "skeleton neon." The inside surfaces of each letter have been painted bright white, while the exterior sides enjoy a fresh coat of orange.

Inside the old movie theater, dust continues to swirl on a massive interior renovation. The decorative Art Deco pieces that adorned the original cinema have been reattached and the fluted curves of the north wall have a fresh coat of plaster. The long hallway on the Whole Earth side of the space has been dry-walled on both sides, including the row of openings leading to what will be the main food aisles.

Pink and turquoise railings — not sure whether they were made for the theater or the bookstore that replaced it — are stacked in the large open foyer leading to the rear parking lot. At the moment, it remains to be seen how the metal banisters might be repurposed for the new grocery store or if they'll be reused at all.

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Bang for Buck

Surprising suburb unlocks biggest apartments in Houston for $1,500

Photo by Matt Halls on Unsplash

Pasadena has the 6th roomiest apartments on a budget in Texas.

Budget-conscious renters searching for the roomiest apartments in the region should look no further than Pasadena. According to a new study, the east Houston suburb has the biggest apartments on a budget in the metro.

In 2026, Pasadena residents can rent a 1,125-square-foot apartment for $1,500 per month. That's enough space for a two- or three-bedroom unit, and it's four square feet bigger than what renters could get with the same budget last year.

RentCafe's annual report analyzes the places where renters can find the largest apartment sizes across 200 of the most populous U.S. cities for a monthly budget of $1,500. The price per square foot was calculated using the average apartment rent and size per city based on "multifamily properties" containing 50 or more units.

Pasadena offers the 6th most spacious apartments in Texas for $1,500, and Houston ranks 11th statewide.

Renters in Houston proper will net a 976-square-foot apartment for the same price in 2026, a size that has shrunk by more than 20 square feet since 2023.

Apartment sizes across Texas
For the second year in a row, the Rio Grande Valley is the region that has the most spacious apartments for a $1,500 monthly budget, RentCafe found.

McAllen leads the nation with the biggest apartment size – at 1,378 square feet – which is large enough for a three- or four-bedroom unit.

"With rents averaging just $993 and the typical apartment measuring 912 square feet, McAllen renters get a lot more space for their money than most Americans do within that monthly budget," the report said. "Still, that figure is down slightly from last year’s 1,393 square feet — a sign that even the most affordable markets are starting to tighten."

Brownsville, another city on the border located an hour east of McAllen, ranks fourth statewide with apartments spanning 1,213 square feet for the same budget.

These are the top 10 Texas cities that offer the biggest apartments for $1,500 in 2026:

No. 1 – McAllen (1,378 square feet)
No. 2 – Amarillo (1,237 square feet)
No. 3 – Lubbock (1,217 square feet)
No. 4 – Brownsville (1,213 square feet)
No. 5 – El Paso (1,128 square feet)
No. 6 – Pasadena (1,125 square feet)
No. 7 – Corpus Christi (1,115 square feet)
No. 8 – Killeen (1,058 square feet)
No. 9 – San Antonio (1,023 square feet)
No. 10 – Mesquite (988 square feet)

real estate apartments housing rentcafe study houston pasadena