I love this. Firm sues city over Compaq Center lease deal By RACHEL GRAVES Copyright 2001 Houston Chronicle Just days after losing its bid to acquire the Compaq Center, Crescent Real Estate Equities is suing the city of Houston in federal court over the building. City Council voted Tuesday to begin negotiations with Lakewood Church to lease the arena for 30 years. The current tenants, the Houston Rockets and Comets, will move to a new downtown arena when it is completed in 2003. Crescent proposed the city give it Compaq Center for a piece of Crescent-owned green space the city wants in front of the George R. Brown Convention Center downtown. Crescent officials say using the building as a church does not comply with the 30-year-old deed restrictions on the property. Those list possible uses of the site as an arena, offices, library, post office, retail stores or banks. Crescent says the site can only be used for those things. Jordy Tollett, Mayor Lee Brown's chief of staff, says the use is not limited in that way. He says the church services and religious conferences that Lakewood plans will bring less traffic to the Greenway Plaza neighborhood than using the building as a sports facility. ------------------ How the hell should I know why God would allow the Holocaust. I don't even know how the electric can opener works. - from Hannah and Her Sisters
Why wouldn't they sue? If the deed restrictions prohibit the church leasing the facilities, then why shouldn't they protect their business interests? We can't let Lee Brown and his governmental cronyism run our lives! (I don't know the particulars of the Compaq Center situation, but I wanted to insert at least one inflamatory statement to spur discussion. One question- how long is the advertising contract between Compaq and the stadium? Will the church have to be renamed the Compaq Lakewood Church? Will this be a corporate fellowship of love? ------------------
The naming rights deal ends in 2003, which would also be the time that the Rockets would leave and the church takes over. ------------------ Why not visit MovieForums.com
