I live in Houston, Texas in a neighborhood called the Heights. Over the last 4-6 weeks, I've seen the following, which you should consider as nothing more than anecdotal information in a limited geographic area:
1.) An old apartment building (as in at least 40 years old) that sat on five residential lots just down the street has been torn down.
2.) An entire row of other row houses has been cleared and there is a rumor in the neighborhood that the area has been set for some kind of retail development.
3.) There are at least 4 other houses going up in the neighborhood.
4.) Over Christmas, as I drove by malls, it looked like the parking lots were packed. The day after Christmas, I saw the same thing. And IKEA was literally overflowing with people. I have no idea if they purchased anything, mind you, but they were there.
5.) There is a four story multi-use building going up in the neighborhood.
6.) A lot on San Felipe (a fairly major street near the Galleria in Houston) has been cleared and major construction equipment is moving on site.
Again -- this is anecdotal, non-fact based observation. But it sure seems like more is going on in the city.
