Houston Pavilions Almost Ready For its Close-Up

There are some strange new lights piercing the night downtown near where Dallas intersects with Fannin and San Jacinto.

They're the "sky rings" that are to be a signature of the new Houston Pavilions development, which will begin opening next Thursday.

The lights were supposed to be unveiled in a grand-opening ceremony that night, but things didn't turn out that way.

"We had this big idea that it was supposed to happen with a big ceremony, and then the construction crews said 'What about the fact that we have to burn those lights in?'" says Pavilions spokesman Phil Hudson.

So in order for the lights to be fully operational on the opening night, they have to be lit up a bit in advance.

Not all the stores and restaurants will open on October 11, by the way; it's a "soft opening."

But soon enough we'll have some idea of how big a gamble this project is.

-- Richard Connelly