Houston Museum of Natural Science The Woodlands

[Trae]

anadarko

lexicon genetics

baker hughes

chicago bridge and iron

hewitt

huntsman corporation

american financial

us oncology

chevronphillips

just to name a few.

And you think this is unique to the Woodlands? Sugar Land is right there with you, and the Energy Corridor is right next to Katy (companies relocate there to be close to their many employees in Katy).

[wxman]

The Woodlands tried to break off and become its own school district years ago, but at the time The Woodlands didn't have the power nor the population to justify it. Today, it would be different I presume if they tried it again. When The Woodlands becomes its own city, I'd imagine it will replace Sugar Land as one of the best places to live.

[Trae]

They are both similar to me. The only difference is Sugar Land started off as a town/city and actually has some history and not a master-planned community.

[bachanon]

the history of the woodlands is a grand idea that embraced nature in ways that few other communities have done while still being profitable. more than 7500 acres are preserved as an homage to nature. it is uncanny how surreal the tall pine forest can be during different seasons. it's undeniable.......the difference.

it seems only natural that a museum of natural science would be a success here.

[Trae]

the history of the woodlands is a grand idea that embraced nature in ways that few other communities have done while still being profitable. more than 7500 acres are preserved as an homage to nature. it is uncanny how surreal the tall pine forest can be during different seasons. it's undeniable.......the difference.

it seems only natural that a museum of natural science would be a success here.

You should write for brochures .

[TheNiche]

They are both similar to me. The only difference is Sugar Land started off as a town/city and actually has some history and not a master-planned community.

Sugar Land goes further back, but The Woodlands has undoubtedly made the greater mark in history. I don't really care when, specificaly, great things are done. Just that they are done.

[woody_hawkeye]

They are both similar to me. The only difference is Sugar Land started off as a town/city and actually has some history and not a master-planned community.

I searched all over the Southeast Texas area before I settled on The Woodlands as a place to live. It is the most incredible place I have ever seen or lived. I owned property in a large planned community in Tennessee and it does not come close to comparing with this place. I think you have to live here to appreciate it. Otherwise it is transparent to the normal observer. I gained more appreciation for the place after I moved here. Sugarland is suburbia, a nice place in Houston, but it is not The Woodlands by far. I lived in southwest Houston for many years. It was the city and had no natural conservation nor any planned means to be a part of nature. It was part of the city. The Woodlands is a township aptly named, which grew out of, around and consists of the forest. It was carved out of vision. The 1960 area mnight be called a satellite of Houston. It grew up hap-hazard with isolated little suibdivisions merging into a hodgepodge of city confusion. I do not consider Pasadena a satellite, nor Pearland, nor La Port. Remember when the airport was built? It wmight be called a satellite of Houston, but in reality it was built as a regional service area far away from the city. Part of the forest of East Texas was grabbed by the city in an effort to keep the airport away. Absolutely nothing in Houston caused The Woodlands to be built. That city was born of commerce and resources to its south. It was created far enough from the coast to protect it from storms but it was put there as a port. Some businesses started in The Wodolands and eventually got caught up in mergers and moving to the big city. Some people came to The Woodlands to be work in Houston and live in the tranquility of the forest. It is made up of so many types of people that one cannot characterize it in any way but in its own terms. The Woodlands is as Conroe or as Tomball but planned to the hilt with each village having the same demographics as much as possible. There are not pockets of race nor economic zones. It is an amazing place with a lot of thought and vision going into its plan.

[RedScare]

I searched all over the Southeast Texas area before I settled on The Woodlands as a place to live. It is the most incredible place I have ever seen or lived. I owned property in a large planned community in Tennessee and it does not come close to comparing with this place. I think you have to live here to appreciate it. Otherwise it is transparent to the normal observer. I gained more appreciation for the place after I moved here. Sugarland is suburbia, a nice place in Houston, but it is not The Woodlands by far. I lived in southwest Houston for many years. It was the city and had no natural conservation nor any planned means to be a part of nature. It was part of the city. The Woodlands is a township aptly named, which grew out of, around and consists of the forest. It was carved out of vision. The 1960 area mnight be called a satellite of Houston. It grew up hap-hazard with isolated little suibdivisions merging into a hodgepodge of city confusion. I do not consider Pasadena a satellite, nor Pearland, nor La Port. Remember when the airport was built? It wmight be called a satellite of Houston, but in reality it was built as a regional service area far away from the city. Part of the forest of East Texas was grabbed by the city in an effort to keep the airport away. Absolutely nothing in Houston caused The Woodlands to be built. That city was born of commerce and resources to its south. It was created far enough from the coast to protect it from storms but it was put there as a port. Some businesses started in The Wodolands and eventually got caught up in mergers and moving to the big city. Some people came to The Woodlands to be work in Houston and live in the tranquility of the forest. It is made up of so many types of people that one cannot characterize it in any way but in its own terms. The Woodlands is as Conroe or as Tomball but planned to the hilt with each village having the same demographics as much as possible. There are not pockets of race nor economic zones. It is an amazing place with a lot of thought and vision going into its plan.

I lived in the Woodlands for three years, and it bored the hell out of me. While there are certainly some nice people there, I found the majority to be self-sbsorbed, self important people who literally thought they were special because they happened to live in the Woodlands. My first and only attendance at the Chamber of Commerce nearly made me break out in hives. I moved into the City in 1999 and wouldn't move back to the Woodlands if they made me mayor. I'll agree that the Woodlands is better than Katy or Sugrland, but that's like saying the Toronto Raptors are a good Eastern Conference basketball team.

There was one good thing. Since the Woodlands is full of married guys or dweebs who are trying to get married, the singles scene for a decent looking straight guy was stellar, even though the bars sucked. Never had so many 23 year olds chasing me in my life...including when I was 23. In the end, even THAT wasn't enough to keep me there.

...the other side of the coin.

[TheNiche]

My first and only attendance at the Chamber of Commerce nearly made me break out in hives.

In all fairness, all Chamber of Commerce meetings are like that, anywhere on the planet. I attended an East End Chamber of Commerce meeting at Brady's Landing not long ago, and it sucked pretty bad.

I blame Lockmat, Woodlander. He was responsible for tipping me off to the meeting. The bastard.

[pineda]

Woody-

Is that your own blog that you list as your signature? If so, it's loaded with information, thank you!

[wxman]

Now this museum is supposed to be built on the left side of the waterway (looking west). Where is this supposed to go exactly? Across from 24 Waterway? I mean 200k sq.ft. isn't small potatoes. Not to mention, its supposed to be what 5 stories and have an observation tower. I can't wait. What a great ammenity for the Spring/Woodlands area.

[Labyrinth]

Now this museum is supposed to be built on the left side of the waterway (looking west). Where is this supposed to go exactly? Across from 24 Waterway? I mean 200k sq.ft. isn't small potatoes. Not to mention, its supposed to be what 5 stories and have an observation tower. I can't wait. What a great ammenity for the Spring/Woodlands area.

The area they are discussing for location is the southwest corner of Timberloch and the Waterway...this is directly across the Waterway from the Town Center garage which is connected via skywalk to the Marriott Hotel...the parcel was originally slated for an indoor performance venue affiliated with the outdoor Pavilion but that idea was scratched some time ago

[swtsig]

Besides, I highly doubt this project is solely concerned with educating more people. If that were the case, they would have built a satellite location in South Park.

the Museum of Tolerance seemed to be hit in South Park.

[swtsig]

sorry trae, the woodlands is not like sugarland, pearland or katy. the woodlands is recognized internationally as one of the most successful experimental communities in the world. do any of the areas you list have 30-40 thousand jobs and multiple international headquarters? don't think so. are sugarland, pearland and katy recognized by the united nations as ecologically sensitive communities? nope. are people from the east coast and mexico moving to the woodlands because they want to be near houston. no.

before you make unsubstantial comments on the woodlands you should take time to read the following:

the woodlands

communities in bloom

a museum in the woodlands was inevitable.

that's cute, really it is... but you're drunk on woodland wine if you think the woodlands would - in any capacity - be what it is today w/o houston. and i lived in the area for 20 years.

whether you want to admit it or not, the woodlands is a part of houston.... what's the word.... oh yeah.... SUBURB of houston.

[wxman]

that's cute, really it is... but you're drunk on woodland wine if you think the woodlands would - in any capacity - be what it is today w/o houston. and i lived in the area for 20 years.

whether you want to admit it or not, the woodlands is a part of houston.... what's the word.... oh yeah.... SUBURB of houston.

Yeah, I agree. Mitchell originally bought land off of 1960, but couldn't find enough of it. So he moved a couple miles further north to start the community. Its sole purpose was to help combate white flight. Now today, The Woodlands is more than just another community. Like Bachanon said, it is recognized around the world as one of the most successful communites. Personally, I don't believe The Woodlands would exist without Houston. The same goes for Sugar Land, Katy, Pearland, Friendswood, Clear Lake City and Kingwood. And EVEN IF it were to be started without Houston, there's no way in hell it would have close to 100,000 people living in it and growing ever more and faster with each passing day.

[Trae]

The Woodlands was started because of Houston. Katy and Sugar Land (not sure about the others) were already city/towns before (1800s).

[wxman]

The Woodlands was started because of Houston. Katy and Sugar Land (not sure about the others) were already city/towns before (1800s).

I'm sure they owe something to Houston. Houston's been in existence since August 1836.

[Trae]

I guess Houston owes Harrisburg, Texas something?

[wxman]

I guess Houston owes Harrisburg, Texas something?

Don't take it out of context. Sugar Land might have a feed store and a gas station...perhaps a strip mall without Houston. Sugar Land is growing because of the amount of people flocking to HOUSTON for work but don't want to live in the city. The Woodlands would be non-existant without Houston. Places like Conroe, again, they might have a feed store and a strip center...maybe a train depot. That's is...without Houston. Sure, the way The Woodlands stands now, it would be fine without Houston. We have major corporations based here. If Sugar Land stood alone today without Houston, what insentive is there for companies to move there? A sugar factory that is no longer in business? If Houston had never existed, we'd all be centered around Galveston anyway.

[Trae]

TW would be fine without Houston now (a little bit), but it wouldn't be there without Houston. Don't think companies just relocate to be in TW, and they don't see a region of nearly 6 million people.

And Sugar Land can stay alone just like TW. You must not venture much outside of your Woodlands bubble.

[TheNiche]

I guess Houston owes Harrisburg, Texas something?

Funny you say that. I made an argument to a capital lender along those lines yesterday.

The Houston region was destined for growth. That the region's premier business district happened to be in Houston rather than in Harrisburg is essentially attributable to it having briefly been the Republic of Texas capitol and the county seat.

Being the seat of government in the latter-19th century was critical to attracting high-powered office jobs within walking distance of government buildings. Had the seat of government been in Harrisburg, which was incorporated in the same year as Houston and started with merely a street grid (the buildings having been razed by Santa Ana), just as with Houston, then I strongly suspect that Houston would've been swallowed by Harrisburg rather than the other way around. Harrisburg, after all, was the origin of the first railroad, and if you look at a regional railroad map, is still a critical regional hub. It also would've ultimately been more central to the port complex.

The region's growth was predestined on account of oil, and that the largest city would be inland and along Buffalo Bayou was also pretty much in the bag on account of which waterways were navigable and which weren't. Galveston was going to be destroyed at one point or another, too, and whether it would've been 1900 or 1915 wouldn't have mattered much.

I think that the only honest appraisal of the situation is that an inland county seat along a navigable waterway from Galveston Bay would necessarily evolve into a thriving metropolis. It was predestined on account of geography, weather, natural resources, and technological innovations occuring well beyond Texas which would induce the massive consumption of oil and refined products which ramped up through the 20th century. Factors resulting in Houston's growth certainly were not the sweltering heat and humidity in a time before air conditioning, nor were they the mosquitos and mosquito-carried diseases or our natural beauty. Whether the hub of commerce was Houston or Harrisburg, I think, was irrelevent to the market viability of sprawling suburbs.

Therefore, it is my belief that the entirety of our region, including Houston and The Woodlands, owes its growth to factors beyond anybody's willful control, and that it is faulty reasoning to say that one could not exist without the other, or vice versa.

[bachanon]

QUOTE (bachanon @ Sunday, March 9th, 2008 @ 1:25pm) *

sorry trae, the woodlands is not like sugarland, pearland or katy. the woodlands is recognized internationally as one of the most successful experimental communities in the world. do any of the areas you list have 30-40 thousand jobs and multiple international headquarters? don't think so. are sugarland, pearland and katy recognized by the united nations as ecologically sensitive communities? nope. are people from the east coast and mexico moving to the woodlands because they want to be near houston. no.

before you make unsubstantial comments on the woodlands you should take time to read the following:

the woodlands

communities in bloom

a museum in the woodlands was inevitable.

that's cute, really it is... but you're drunk on woodland wine if you think the woodlands would - in any capacity - be what it is today w/o houston. and i lived in the area for 20 years.

whether you want to admit it or not, the woodlands is a part of houston.... what's the word.... oh yeah.... SUBURB of houston.

i never said that the woodlands wouldn't exist or isn't a part of houston. i did say that it is distinctly different. theniche summed it up nicely, "Therefore, it is my belief that the entirety of our region, including Houston and The Woodlands, owes its growth to factors beyond anybody's willful control, and that it is faulty reasoning to say that one could not exist without the other, or vice versa.".

[RedScare]

Woodlands Mall gives museums the boot.

[wxman]

Woodlands Mall gives museums the boot.

Temporarily I might add.

[woody_hawkeye]

Woody-

Is that your own blog that you list as your signature? If so, it's loaded with information, thank you!

Yep. My goal is to give everyone who wants to know, the benefit of what I learn as I learn. When I came here, there were no answers to my questions. Today, there remain lots of questions but it is like going to the eye doctor. You don't know what yo can't see until you put on a pair of glasses and behold! There are strands on the carpet and the trees have leaves! And a deer is not a tree. lol

My discoveries have recently led me into budgets and processes, along with women and children who cry behind closed doors (social things). I tried to open a huge book the past two weeks - how to find edible mushrooms here. I fell on my face on that one but intend to return to it. Never knew how big a subject that would be!

It is unbelievable how much stuff there is to do and how much stuff is being done.

Anyway, you are welcome.