The flattening of the historic 130-year-old Kirby Mansion in Houston stirred fury among locals, as the $9.3 million buy has been linked to convenience store and gas station empire Brake Time Corner Market.
Omair Bashir, president and co-owner of the company alongside his brother Usman Bashir, was linked to OB Texas Properties LLC which bought the landmark around October 1, according to public records.
Then in late October, the 36-room mansion at 200 Smith Street, one of the last remaining Tudor Revival homes in the city, was demolished.
The Bashir brothers' business began in 2004 after their father had opened his first convenience store in Houston.
Omair joined the business before his brother, who joined on in 2014, at which point the company held around five stores, according to the Houston Chronicle.
Since then, the company expanded to around 300 locations, including 48 CEFCO and 62 EG America locations through acquisitions, the outlet reported.
Brake Time announced plans for some 35 new convenience stores by the end of the year in September 2025, three of which would be in Houston.
June plans filed with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation revealed a $2 million project from the company, which would see 'Braketime Smith Road' within the mansion's property boundaries, public records showed.
Omair Bashir, president and co-owner of the company alongside his brother Usman Bashir, was linked to OB Texas Properties LLC which bought the landmark around October 1
June plans filed with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation revealed a $2 million project from the company, which would see 'Braketime Smith Road' within the mansion's property boundaries
In late October, the 36-room mansion at 200 Smith Street, one of the last remaining Tudor Revival homes in the city seen above, was demolished
Of the mansion's 13,254 square feet property, the plans call for a one-story 6,143-square-foot convenience store, according to the Chronicle.
The plans were filed by Hi Tech Auto Reality LLC, with Omair listed as a contact, and projects the plans to be finished by October 2028.
However, representatives for Omair had suggested that the mansion space was intended to be leased to law firms and office spaces, Perseveration Houston told the outlet.
'We wish the owner had been transparent and honest about the plans for this property and willing to discuss preservation options,' Preservation Houston Executive Director Jennifer Kapral told the Daily Mail.
'We offered to explore ways to give this building a future. We also asked for the opportunity to document it and discuss salvaging irreplaceable materials if demolition went ahead. We received no response. Houston deserves better than this.'
Jim Parsons of the non-profit told the Chronicle that the mansion only occupied around a quarter of the property land, and hoped development 'could have been built alongside the mansion.'
'But apparently not,' he added.
Krapal told Houston Public Media that the property is more than likely going to be transformed into a gas station.
Representatives for Omair had suggested that the mansion space was intended to be leased to law firms and office spaces, Perseveration Houston said
The home was owned by John Henry Kirby (pictured), a lumber mogul
'We're losing it to a gas station and convenience store, from what we can tell from all the permits,' she told the outlet.
Parsons told the Chronicle that the mansion being demolished for a gas station is 'salt in the wound.'
The original home was built in 1894 by JS Price, who later sold it to lumber mogul John Henry Kirby. Kirby then rebuilt the property into the home that is currently being destroyed, Houston Public Media said.
It stood as one of the last remaining remnants of the old South End neighborhood.
The Daily Mail has reached out to Brake Time Corner Market for comment.
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