As the seemingly never-ending I-45 expansion continues, businesses in Houston’s East End have either relocated or closed outright. For one East End comedy club, however, things are more complicated.
The Secret Group, a comedy and music venue in the East End, sits at the intersection of Polk and St. Emmanuel streets next to I-45. The Texas Department of Transportation broke ground on a massive drainage project along St. Emmanuel St. in October 2024. Businesses directly in the path have subsequently shuttered, and land along that street has been seized by TxDOT via eminent domain. The Secret Group has been left untouched—except for the construction now happening right at their doorstep, majority owner Stephen Brandau told Chron.
“It was a pretty big surprise,” Brandau said. “It’s just ravaged the navigability of the area around us.”…