Help! Writing a novel with Houston as a setting. Need some input on the downtown tunnel system.
I appreciate this is probably an unusual post for this forum, but I’m writing a novel which opens in Houston. I’ve been to the city, but don’t know it well, and obviously can’t travel right now (and I live on the other side of the world), and want to ensure I have a good degree of authenticity in case any of you good folks ever end up reading it and feel like throwing the book across the room in disgust. I’ve been walking around the streets of downtown in VR (thanks, Wander) but can’t get a good feel for the tunnels.
My sense is that today they are mostly “mall-like”, with some eating/coffee zones but mostly just connectors. Air-conditioned, apart from a few patches.
The timing of my story is a few decades from now, and my characters are using the tunnel system to try and get to City Hall. I’m imagining that due to repeated flooding (potentially sea floods) the tunnels are now disused. They are pumped out, but it’s now crazy hot and dark down there.
I essentially have the characters entering from street level down the stairs at Wells Fargo into the Downtown Tunnel, and then finding their way into W. Walker to get to City Hall. The exit is initially locked.
What I can’t tell from desktop research is what the City Hall exit essentially opens into. Is it directly into the building, or the grounds? Is it at a basement level?
Any help, advice or authentic details would be really appreciated.
submitted by /u/flyingnomad
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