Houston’s newest Apple Store opening March 16: Source

Houston’s newest Apple Store is scheduled to open on March 16, according to a source involved with the store’s opening.

That date may coincide with first-day sales of the company’s newest version of the iPad.

The store, located in the Highland Village Shopping center at Westheimer and Drexel , was originally supposed to open in January, according to the source, but was delayed. March 17 was originally set as the new opening date, but the source said it was moved to the 16th a few weeks ago.

Apple has invited technology journalists and bloggers to an announcement on Wednesday, and it’s expected the new iPad will be unveiled then. With the iPad 2 last year, Apple announced the device on a Wednesday and then began selling it 9 days later, on a Friday.

If that pattern holds this year, the new version could go on sale the same day that the Highland Village store opens.

An Apple spokesperson said Wednesday night that the company has nothing to announce about the store at this time.

Because construction is still ongoing, the date could slip but currently is “pretty firm”, the source said.

Work has been proceeding at a furious pace at the site, which has been draped in black cloth for months. On Wednesday evening, workers swarmed over the building in the dark. Behind the store, crates stamped “Made In Italy” were open and contained floor tiles that were being installed.

Scaffolding that had surrounded the building for months is gone, and the black cloth now covers what appears to be a glass back, front and curved roof. It looks like a smaller version of a store opened in New York City last year. The Swamplot real estate blog has photos of the store showing the door open and an inside view.

When the store opens, it will be Apple’s first Houston-area store that’s not in a mall. There are stores in six malls here: Memorial City Mall, the Galleria, Woodlands Mall, Baybrook Mall, First Colony Mall and Willowbrook Mall.

Apple has not publicly acknowledged the store, but it posted hiring notices for jobs there last year.