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Bridgeland And Cypress Creek Lakes


mrfootball

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Once again, another dumb quote from you rambling on about an area you know very little about.

There are no billboards. No retail. No gas stations. Nothing but really nice neighbhorhoods, schools and golf courses on the Fry Rd. Corridor which stretches for miles South of 290 and will eventually reach up towards 529. There are no lights or stop signs either...It's like the autobahn.

That isn't an edge city though. An edge city would probably be the Energy Corridor/I-10 Corridor.

Will the Fry Road Corridor really only have high-end developers though? It doesn't seem to be slowing down though.

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As far as being an 'edge city', the whole of unincorporated NW Harris County is an edge city with numerous submarkets. It's a damn big edge city with over a million people. It's got great demographics and relatively low crime. If it were a city in and of itself it'd be one of the largest in Texas, bigger than Austin with the best income demographics of all of the major Texas cities.

It's a big internet.

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Will the Fry Road Corridor really only have high-end developers though? It doesn't seem to be slowing down though.

I'm amazed to. That's the part of the market that's still going strong. The sub-prime credit crunch has little effect on people building $300K+ homes. Oil & Gas pays well and the overall economy in Houston is strong. Lots of people making lots of money. Lots of people moving up to bigger, nicer homes.

I think the area that they're saving (Longenbaugh Ranch) along 290 between Bridgeland and Fairfield will be a pretty significant development commercially as well as residentially. It's where the Grand Parkway & 290 intersect. It's a rather large parcel.

Here's a glimpse into the future with the new neighborhoods planned for that area and the number of homes expected:

CFISD District Growth Presentation (PowerPoint)

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Is the Woodlands really an edge city? I thought one of the requirements of being an edge city was to have more businesses than homes, ie. population growth during the day. As well as being a destination. Does the Woodlands have any retail or entertainment that people go there as a destination?

If not isn't it just a masterplanned community too?

found this:

from the book "edge city" by Joel Garreu.

an edge city is...

--5 million square feet or more of office space

--600,000 square feet or more of retail space

--more jobs than bedrooms

--perceived as one place by the population

--developed within the last 30 years

the woodlands is...

--8 million square feet of commercial and retail space

--3+ million square feet of office space

--42,000 jobs, 35,000 homes

--founded in 1974

--perceived as "the woodlands"

link to woodlands commercial website

link to tcid fact sheet

definitely not a bedroom community.

to stay on topic.........i like the idea of bridgelands; however, it looks like the same cookie cutter houses they are building in many neighborhoods here in the woodlands, and in sugarland, and in kingwood, and in spring. too bad some builders aren't ready to break the mold.

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We all need to do a search on Wikipedia and learn what an edge city is before making comments.

MrFootball- you DID say that the entire unincorporated NW Harris County was an edge city, which it is not even close to being. The Woodlands is a perfect example of what an edge city is. It is focused on commercial development and a centralized area of activity. The main difference between an edge city and a traditional city is that an edge city needs a traditional city to exist, and the edge city is master planned throughout. NW Harris County is just an area that has grown tremendously over the last 2 decades because people don't want to live in the actual city of Houston and perceive it as nicer and a better place to raise kids and send them to quality schools. It's a mixed bag. You've got well designed areas like the JV area, Willowbrook, Lakewood, Champions, and Longwood, and then you've got the filler, which is all the sprawl that connects everything in this huge area. All you can really call it is "The County", and it's where everyone wants to live now. At least the older folks. The kids who were raised in the suburbs want to move into the city. I'm really not sure why they keep building so much out on 290, because in 10 years, when all the boomers are retired, the demand is going to plummet. Furthermore, Houston's economy won't support that much middle class growth. We're past the industrial revolution. The middle class will be smaller in this century. I guess places like Blackhorse Ranch will make for nice retirement neighborhoods, but the overbuilding will hurt the values of all the lower end homes built out in this area, for instance, the cheap neighborhoods along 529 around Cy-Springs HS.

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We all need to do a search on Wikipedia of what an edge city is before making comments.

Wikipedia is not a 100% fact base site to quote from anybody can go on there and post BS.

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Ah, yes. It will be called The Cove. There will also be an elementary school site just a little further down NBLP.

They'd better start building that elementary school soon. Warner Elementary (where Bridgeland is now now zoned) opens in a few days and it already has 4 portable buildings! I've heard it is already 200 students over capacity. Unbelievable.

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Wikipedia is not a 100% fact base site to quote from anybody can go on there and post BS.

True, but for a concept like an "edge city", Wikipedia is a suitable place to look for accurate information. I'm sure there aren't urban sociologists hanging out on the net trying to make up bogus stuff up about edge cities.

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I'm amazed to. That's the part of the market that's still going strong. The sub-prime credit crunch has little effect on people building $300K+ homes. Oil & Gas pays well and the overall economy in Houston is strong. Lots of people making lots of money. Lots of people moving up to bigger, nicer homes.

I think the area that they're saving (Longenbaugh Ranch) along 290 between Bridgeland and Fairfield will be a pretty significant development commercially as well as residentially. It's where the Grand Parkway & 290 intersect. It's a rather large parcel.

Here's a glimpse into the future with the new neighborhoods planned for that area and the number of homes expected:

CFISD District Growth Presentation (PowerPoint)

This is a testament to the power of school districts to raise land value. If it wasn't for the prestige of Cy-Fair ISD, there is no way they'd be building 300k to 500k homes out there around Fry Rd. Based purely on the geography/terrain "laws" of land value, that land should be dirt cheap. It's really far out of Houston, and it's on the treeless side of 290. It's extremely flat and void of natural tree growth. Maybe there's something else like anticipated urbanization in that area, but based on the geography alone, this area shouldn't be worth very much. I drove down Fry Rd from 529 to 290 in January of last year. I nearly had a panic attack, because the lack of trees and geographical definition was giving me feelings of anxiety. I was expecting 290 to be a lot closer to 529, but I felt like I was driving for an eternity.

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Around Cypress Creek (runs between Bridgeland and Blackhorse and CC Lakes) there are a lot of really nice trees. They've done a terrific job accentuating them. They've also sculpted the land throughout Bridgeland with lakes running throughout and a 'rolling' terrain. There are nice older live oaks and post oaks throughout but they've literally planted thousands of trees thus far. Upon the backdrop of the area running along the preserve it looks quite nice. They've created the template for how to develop that land. Even I, and I love the woods, like what they're doing out there. There's a different character to it that's equally as nice, active and outdoorsy, more wide-open. Good Chi.

Here's another shot from the other night:

1218745004_4ab3c326e5_b.jpg

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The kids who were raised in the suburbs want to move into the city. I'm really not sure why they keep building so much out on 290,

You know why they keep building so much out on 290? Because the first sentence above is laughable.

I was raised in the suburbs and I can only think of one person I went to school with who actually lives in the city. Everyone else lives in the suburbs.

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You know why they keep building so much out on 290? Because the first sentence above is laughable.

I was raised in the suburbs and I can only think of one person I went to school with who actually lives in the city. Everyone else lives in the suburbs.

ditto.

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Grew up in the burbs around Lake Houston (Atascocita), and live in the suburbs now. The only time I lived in an inner city area was my time in college in Austin. We moved to Cypress to start our family after graduation. I know a lot of people that I graduated with that live inside 610, they are all single. Once they get married and want kids, most plan to join me in the burbs.

Back on topic, these lakes are great, but instead of 3-4 small lakes, can we make one Large lake? I mean large enough to boat on. Are people really THAT into paddle boats? I guess I just miss being so close to a lake (Somerville and Conroe are a long haul). It could probably never happen that the state/county would put a couple-thousand acre reservoir anywhere near Cypress.

Bridgelands is turning into a great development, they really went all out. The park that has the "lake" and disc golf course is really, really nice. I am very curious to see the way the street design works once more people are there, it is very confusing to drive through. The other thing that strikes me about the community is the lack of front yard space. I guess they do that for larger backyards, but it is certainly interesting and not like most other neighborhoods. It might give a clostrophobic feel once built out.

On a side note, I am very interested in seeing how Towne Lake develops....

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Back on topic, these lakes are great, but instead of 3-4 small lakes, can we make one Large lake? I mean large enough to boat on. Are people really THAT into paddle boats? I guess I just miss being so close to a lake (Somerville and Conroe are a long haul). It could probably never happen that the state/county would put a couple-thousand acre reservoir anywhere near Cypress.

I don't think there are any plans to put any big resevoirs in anytime soon.

Towne Lake is going to have a big lake that will be navigable with boats and marinas and a waterfront entertainment area.

If you look at the master plan for Bridgeland, you'll see that the next lake in the next village to open will be 2-3 bigger than the biggest one they have now, and the one 'after' that will be several times the size of that one. I imagine that lake will have electric boats like they have in other waterfront comunities.

Aside from that there are water ski neighborhoods in/around Cypress like 'Cypress Hill'.

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If you look at the master plan for Bridgeland, you'll see that the next lake in the next village to open will be 2-3 bigger than the biggest one they have now, and the one 'after' that will be several times the size of that one. I imagine that lake will have electric boats like they have in other waterfront comunities.

I'm curious as to what you are looking at. If you are looking at this, http://bl.vismark.us/DTS/lots/eplats/index_base.asp , from the Bridgeland website, there doesn't appear to be a larger lake coming anytime soon.

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Around Cypress Creek (runs between Bridgeland and Blackhorse and CC Lakes) there are a lot of really nice trees. They've done a terrific job accentuating them. They've also sculpted the land throughout Bridgeland with lakes running throughout and a 'rolling' terrain. There are nice older live oaks and post oaks throughout but they've literally planted thousands of trees thus far. Upon the backdrop of the area running along the preserve it looks quite nice. They've created the template for how to develop that land. Even I, and I love the woods, like what they're doing out there. There's a different character to it that's equally as nice, active and outdoorsy, more wide-open. Good Chi.

Here's another shot from the other night:

1218745004_4ab3c326e5_b.jpg

What exactly is "rolling" terrain? They try to say that about Firethorne (where I live; David Powers is pure quality). Our neighborhood is much like Bridgelands, but smaller. The cheaper homes start at around 180K. They were going to add in apartments here, but they scraped them off, and now will have expensive housing going in around a lake (really just a detention pond).

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You know why they keep building so much out on 290? Because the first sentence above is laughable.

I was raised in the suburbs and I can only think of one person I went to school with who actually lives in the city. Everyone else lives in the suburbs.

That's because they're still living with their parents, assuming you are in your 20s to early 30s. If not, disregard what I said there. I realize I made a general statement, but there is a trend toward growth back into the city. MANY people in their 20s and early 30s are just not into the suburb thing. They grew up there, and maybe they are tired of it and want out. If you had years of teen angst from a hatred of the suburban life, why would you get your own house there after you're old enough to get out on your own? The main thing that is keeping a lot of the 20 somethings in the suburbs is either that they live with or live in an apartment near their baby boomer parents, or that they feel safe there and would continue to enjoy the safety that they were accustomed to growing up, with notions that the city is dangerous.

We also have to realize that there are two tiers of suburbia in Houston. You have the suburbs that feel more connected to the city, like Willowbrook area, Jersey Village, Copperfield, 1960 area, Champions, Lakewood Forest. These are the established ones. Then you have the ones like Cinco Ranch, Bridgelands, and Gleanloch Farms that are new. Maybe some of the new generation of homeowners will be happy in these new developments while others will move into the city and others will stay close to their parents in the older suburbs. I guess now days there isn't a dominant trend, but the trend toward movement back into the city is growing and the residential development and gentrification reflects that.

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That's because they're still living with their parents, assuming you are in your 20s to early 30s. If not, disregard what I said there. I realize I made a general statement, but there is a trend toward growth back into the city. MANY people in their 20s and early 30s are just not into the suburb thing. They grew up there, and maybe they are tired of it and want out. If you had years of teen angst from a hatred of the suburban life, why would you get your own house there after you're old enough to get out on your own? The main thing that is keeping a lot of the 20 somethings in the suburbs is either that they live with or live in an apartment near their baby boomer parents, or that they feel safe there and would continue to enjoy the safety that they were accustomed to growing up, with notions that the city is dangerous.

We also have to realize that there are two tiers of suburbia in Houston. You have the suburbs that feel more connected to the city, like Willowbrook area, Jersey Village, Copperfield, 1960 area, Champions, Lakewood Forest. These are the established ones. Then you have the ones like Cinco Ranch, Bridgelands, and Gleanloch Farms that are new. Maybe some of the new generation of homeowners will be happy in these new developments while others will move into the city and others will stay close to their parents in the older suburbs. I guess now days there isn't a dominant trend, but the trend toward movement back into the city is growing and the residential development and gentrification reflects that.

The majority of employment growth is taking place in the suburbs. The majority of new multifamily units and nearly all of the new single family units that are affordable to 20- and 30-somethings are built in the suburbs. The 20's and 30's are childbearing years for many people, especially those with lower household incomes that could not afford both good schools and decent housing inside the city, assuming that they consider the city desireable. Don't forget that there are a lot of folks that grew up poor in the inner city, and they want out just as much as the wealthy kids raised in the suburbs want in.

While it is true that the inner city is seeing population growth again, urban population growth is not--I repeat is not--a trend at the regional level. Only one new housing unit in eight is built inside of Beltway 8; only one in 22 gets built inside Loop 610. The headline should not read "People Return to Inner City". It should be qualified as "Wealthy, Well Educated People Return to Inner City".

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That's because they're still living with their parents, assuming you are in your 20s to early 30s

Your assumption about my age is correct, but that's about it. Not a single one of the people I know lives with their parents. They all own their own homes now.

MANY people in their 20s and early 30s are just not into the suburb thing. They grew up there, and maybe they are tired of it and want out. If you had years of teen angst from a hatred of the suburban life, why would you get your own house there after you're old enough to get out on your own?

I don't know anyone living in the suburbs who hates it and wishes they could live in the city.

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I realize I made a general statement, but there is a trend toward growth back into the city. MANY people in their 20s and early 30s are just not into the suburb thing. They grew up there, and maybe they are tired of it and want out. If you had years of teen angst from a hatred of the suburban life, why would you get your own house there after you're old enough to get out on your own?

Just giving my experience for what it is worth....Many of the people I know that live in the inner city are from out of town and single (many from small towns around texas that moved here after college for jobs). Many people I know that grew up in the suburbs ended up buying in the suburbs, especially if they are married. Also, many people did not end up buying the the suburb they grew up in. I don't think there was ever a feeling of teenage angst against suburbs in my area. American Beauty was just not representative of growing up on my side of Harris County. Again, these are just personal observations.

I love the idea that young families could begin to move into the inner city area. I just think at that age (mid 20's to early 30's), young professionals can afford large new houses in the burbs with great shools for the children they are getting ready to have (or are getting ready to start school); or they can get a smaller living space in the city in a transitioning neighborhood with sketchy schools (whether the state of those schools is a perception or reality I cannot say).

In my experience the dividing line is the family plan, but again, that is just my experience.

Back on Topic, I also talked to someone who recently purchased in the Bridgelands, and he said he had not seen anything with regard to much larger lakes. Does anyone have a link to that information, perhaps they have updated their master plan.

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I concur with CDeb & Cnote.

I grew up in NW Harris County, moved off to college at UT and Tech, had a lot of fun, got my degrees, moved back to Houston got a job, lived in Midtown for about 6 years, got married, had kids....at which time the suburbs looked like a welcome old friend.

You have different priorities at different stages of your life. During my single years I wanted to be downtown in ground zero where the action was, surrounded by other single young professionals.

Having grown up in NW Harris county, I consider it more or less my "hometown". I like the Memorial area as well. We looked at 40+ homes throughout the city from West U to Memorial to the Woodlands to Champions and finally decided on Longwood. We love it here. Of course we loved all of the above areas, but this was the ideal situation for us, with built-in babysitting nearby in Lakewood Forest. It also felt like home, and I found out later that there were a bunch of people from my HS, and other 1st generation FM 1960 kids now in their 30's, living in this area. Likewise, it seems like everyone from my wife's HS (Cy-Creek) all live in Fairfield. While some move away, the majority of people usually settle close to where they grew up. This is not a new phenomena, and you will see NW Harris County and outlying areas continue to boom with each new generation.

...BTW, I learned a new factoid yesterday. Northwest Harris County and Phoenix Arizona are the fastest growing areas in the United States right now.

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Back on topic, these lakes are great, but instead of 3-4 small lakes, can we make one Large lake? I mean large enough to boat on.

Keep in mind that the reason for most of these "lakes" that every new community seems to have is based more on requirements than because they are the latest fad. Every new development requires a certain amount of retention ponds(ugly). Basically someone figured out (genius) that if you make the retention pond a little deeper and add a fountain in the middle then people will pay extra to be next to it. It has the added benefit of actually being a nice addition also.

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Keep in mind that the reason for most of these "lakes" that every new community seems to have is based more on requirements than because they are the latest fad. Every new development requires a certain amount of retention ponds(ugly). Basically someone figured out (genius) that if you make the retention pond a little deeper and add a fountain in the middle then people will pay extra to be next to it. It has the added benefit of actually being a nice addition also.

Most ponds in subdivisions are detention ponds, not retention ponds. The difference being that detention ponds release undeveloped flow and retention ponds do not release any flow. hth

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I doubt it. Bridgelands is just a master-planned neighborhood, like Fairfield, and it will have different sections. It's not quite the same type of development as The Woodlands, which is more of an edge city. We don't even know if this Bridgelands project will be successful, given that it will take 20-30 years to build it out, and who knows what the economy of Houston will be like in that time. This project is completely dependent on the automobile. I'm not sure how the land value is so high over there south of 290, because the area around Cy-Springs HS is showing signs of going downhill. I guess the fact that it's so far out of Houston makes it nicer. Why are the building so much stuff out there anyways? Where are the jobs coming from to support all these transplant residents? These people certainly aren't coming from older Houston. They're mostly coming from other cities and small towns in Texas. Lastly, I heard they were planning 2 more Cy-Fair ISD high schools, in addition to Cy-Woods. One is Cypress Ranch and the other is Cypress Lakes.

MrFootball- the pictures are nice and pretty, but I just can't get into this type of development. It all looks the same to me. I'd rather live in the Willowbrook area or Jersey Village area than out in the "country" suburbs, or the "Sunday morning Homes section" suburbs.

Again, you are full of incorrect information and a total lack of real world knowledge, experience or intelligence.

Did you know that the developer for the Woodlands is the same developer for Bridgeland

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