by Georgia Duncan (edited by Ceci Duncan)

Forget everything you know about strip center dining; Bistro 829 has emerged as the refreshing alternative to all the cookie-cutter franchises and the fly-by-night start-ups in Katy’s flourishing culinary scene.

Dictionary definitions of Bistro describe “a small, informal or unpretentious restaurant serving wine; a tavern, “; Bistro 829 redefines the concept with a trendy menu accented by superior wines and spirits. (more…)

August 2007 Sales

Broader Local Housing Market Continues to Outperform Rest of Nation

HOUSTON — (September 20, 2007) — While it may sound like a broken record saying the foreclosure and subprime crisis has largely remained contained within the $80,000 to $150,000 price band, August 2007 home sales once again reflect just that for the Houston real estate market. Within that price range, single-family home sales dropped 12.6 percent, versus a rise of 8.3 percent for the rest of the market. The luxury home segment of properties, which sold for more than $500,000, actually saw a 26.0 percent increase in sales, showing that the hardest hit by the lending industry’s woes is definitely the lower-income population. (more…)

Cross Creek Ranch will have 7,000 homes; rustic feel

By HELEN ERIKSEN
Chronicle Correspondent

A new 3,200-acre housing development in the Katy area called Cross Creek Ranch is a prime example of the area’s resistance to the real estate slumps being reported across the rest of the nation.

The community is being developed by Trendmaker Homes near FM 1093 and FM 1463, about five miles west of the Grand Parkway and Westpark Tollway intersection.

Trendmaker project manager Collin Pier described the project as having a rustic southeast Texas theme at a Katy Area Economic Development Council meeting Tuesday.

The new community, which will have about 7,000 homes at build out, is projected to open Labor Day of 2008, Pier said. (more…)