kzseattle
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Posts posted by kzseattle
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I'm sorry if I offended you. My query was to find out why people who have chosen to live in the woodlands do not spend a lot of time checking out other areas in Houston, but seem to zero in on the woodlands. How do they find out about the woodlands, and not find out or even bother to check out surrounding areas? I would suspect it's due in part to good marketing techniques, and just wanted to know if this was in any way true. Again, I'm happy for you that you love the woodlands, and didn't mean to step on your toes or your loyal feelings towards the woodlands, or mean in any way to insinuate that there secret agents as you call them implanted anywhere. Anyone else care to comment or just rant?
Sorry, I didn
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... and the roads are smooth
hmmm.. if our roads are smooth, I am afraid to drive on those in Boston
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Kinda OT - sorry...
People who are ignorant of the Houston area seem to arrive here with a rabid desire to live in the woodlands. They don't even consider other areas for some reason. Is it because of the Realtors who work these RELO's are pushing the woodlands in rewards for some kickbacks or incentive program? Is it because the woodlands is spending "X" amount of big dollars advertising their community, especially to northeasterners? I see this time and time again, and since I don't watch a lot of television when I'm travelling around the country, I'm not privy to the ad campaigns of such "master-planned communities". I would welcome any comments on this issue, particularly from those in the real estate and advertising communities, as well as anyone who might know the ballpark figures of what the woodlands spends on these types of ads. Is it ignorance or incentives?
Are you implying that if someone wants to live in Woodlands, its only because of ignorance or incentive to realtors? Is it hard to accept that some people do appreciate Woodlands for what it is?
I am rather new in Houston but I wanted to check it out even before I landed here. In the plane, I met a banker who was traveling to Woodlands for his bank to finance millions of dollars of new, multi-year projects. He remarked how impressed he was with the level of commitment he perceived at Woodlands and, indeed, it is hard to ignore that commitment. While we are only talking about having trolley service, Baffalo Bayou improvements and pedestrain-friendly shopping/dining venues in Houston, Woodlands has already implemented these concepts. In the next leg of the flight, the passenger sitting next to me also raved about Woodlands all the way. Now, I highly doubt that Woodlands has implanted secret agents in the planes to spread the word
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Such a sad way to flame out. Thankfully, he left us with so much great work, among which is the most elegant, most accurate, and most poignant single sentence ever composed about our beloved burg.
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Right. This sentence does reflect the state of mind of a depressed, suicidal man! Sad indeed.
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One of the best subway systems in the country.
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Actually, alot of people are commenting on how "clean" the city is compared to others from around the world.
I guess in OUR eyes it's dirty, but to everyone else, it isn't.
Ricco
In my eyes, it is a bit dirty but then I came from Seattle, which happens to be really clean. And it doesn
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isnt L&T leaving Houston?
I thought it was going out of business. Maybe it's just leaving Houston. I dont know.
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I hate that Hyatt Hotel is closing if many of you have not heard,
If I understood it correctly, Hyatt is staying and only the ownership of the property has changed (as it is back to the lender due to foreclosure).
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I saw this delevlopment yesterday, my first time in The Woodlands, I have been to Conroe before but not to The Woodlands, nice area!
I was in Woodlands today and checked out Market Street. That area is shaping up very nicely. I can
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That is usually how it goes. There are tons of Macy's stores in the Bay Area in California, so a lot of the stores are not as high end as the one in the Galleria. I'm not saying that the one in the Galleria is high end, but it is on a higher lebel than the ones in the San Franciso area, except for the one in downtown SF. Same goes for Nordstrom in Seattle, the flagship store in downtown is nice, but it seems like the other ones are on a lower tier. The less stores you have in an area the more high end that one store will be in the city. Kind of like the Flagship Foley's in Houston at the Galleria compared to the rest of them. Now I'm getting off subject. lol.
By the way, I forgot there are two Lord & Taylor. I am surprised it is higher on the list than Dillards or Foleys. There is something about its atmosphere that every time I go there I feel like I am in JC Penny. But may be that's just me. Or may be because its going out of business!
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I thought about starting a new thread but since we were talking about the mall, I took this opportunity. But hey, after all, how many threads stay on the original topic
I thought Foley's was a higher end store than Dillard's. So we got only one each of the first three and they are all in Galleria (Lord & Taylor is shutting down though). Every other mall is anchored by Dillards and Foleys. In Seattle, every mall is anchored by Nordstrom and Macy so when I first came here I thought Foleys and Dillards were on par with Nordstrom and Macy. Of course, since Nordstrom is based in Seattle, it isn't unusual that it has a larger presence in that city.
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I got this from the Sugarland website:
AGENDA REQUEST
BUSINESS OF THE SUGAR LAND 4B CORPORATION
CITY OF SUGAR LAND, TEXAS
AGENDA OF: 02/10/05 DEPARTMENT OF ORIGIN: Econ. Development REQ. NO. IV D
DATE SUBMITTED: 02/08/05
PREPARED BY: Joseph Esch, Economic Development Director
SUBJECT: First Colony Mall
PROCEEDING: Review and discussion on First Colony Mall Expansion Project
CLEARANCES: Director of Finance
EXHIBITS:
APPROVED FOR SUBMITTAL: Joseph Esch, Economic Development Director*
EXPENDITURE REQUIRED: $_______________
AMOUNT BUDGETED: $____________________
APPROPRIATION REQUIRED: $_____________
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
The First Colony Mall was one of the first and most successful large economic development initiatives for the City of Sugar Land. The project was a result of efforts by the City, the Sugar Land Development Corporation and the Sugar Land 4B Corporation to work with Planned Community Developers, and other players to construct a major retail venture. The City
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Among kings, for sure, yet KZSeattle still remains to be my favorite poster here.
Many thanks! However, in most cases, I basically repeat what has already been said by other posters. For instance, I know you have stated the above fact many times before me.
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Are feeders a Houston thing or a Texan thing?
I don't think zoning matters with that. But it does matter if you are talking about the ugly strip malls etc.. that are along the feeder roads.
If I remember correctly, I think Austin has feeder roads too.
As Houston19514 has pointed out, I also don
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The point I was making was to correct this notion that the Houston metro area was somehow on par, in terms of land area, with Los Angeles. It is nowhere near it. I understand that the city limits of Houston are larger than Los Angeles. That is a very simple concept to get. All of the LA basin, Sanfernando Valley, Inland Empire and Orange County runs together,
I think he was talking strictly about the area within city limits, which, because of aggressive annexation policy, is larger in Houston than LA. You are right that if we combine the contiguous populous regions outside city limit then greater LA area is much larger than Houston. However, then the question becomes how does one define the boundaries of a city? Should all connected populous regions be considered one city? Does the entire region between NY and DC, heck, between Boston and DC where one town or city runs into other make up one city?
I guess the original question asked by marc was whether Houston has enough land for growth. As we know and you pointed out as well, there is a lot of empty land within Houston's city limit and outside it limits there are no physical barrier to stop the sprawl (except for the water on the East). So yes there is a lot of empty land around and yes sprawl is going to get worse.
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ROFLMAO You kinda stepped on your point there... You are "proving" Dallas has money and refinement vs. Houston's money and brashness, by pointing out that Dallas has a National HOCKEY League team???? That's too rich for words.
I think people often use this term when they mean "urban" or "modern" or even "refined" which may be what those people who originally made this remark meant.
Even if we use that meaning, it is hard to deny that Houston is cosmopolitan. Houston has a modern and impressive skyline, and a large DT area. It has world-class educational and health care institutions, and sports facilities. Its theatres, museums and arts venues are first rate. It offers an extensive array of dining and shopping options. Housing choices are tremendous: lofts, town homes, high-rise condos, mansions, century old homes and brand new ones. Finally, how can we forget NASA, the epitome of modernity and scientific progress! In summary, Houston does offer many of the things expected from a cosmopolitan city, and then some. Yet, it sometime fails to make that impression on a casual visitor.
It all goes back to the same basic issue discussed many times before. Houston has a problem with presentation. Its urban amenities are obscured by rural elements such as open ditches, lack of mass transit system, bumpy roads, hand-made billboards and free-for-all type of strip malls along some of its major roads making them look like country roads. Its gems are wrapped in a brown bag instead of a shiny gift wrapper. Unfortunately, it doesn
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Dallas is, indeed, the pinnacle of cosmopolitan cities to many people from Louisiana, Oklahoma and Arkansas...a fact that many outside this region either find very funny or ignore completely.
I'm not trying to offend you and hope that I am not, but the notion that a sporting event, especially one as silly and base as the Superbowl, might gain "cosmopolitan" points for a city is quite a Louisiana world view...not that there's anything wrong with that.
The reason I got curious about this is that if we look up the meaning of "cosmopolitan" it means "multi-ethnic", "international" or "open-minded". From what I know about the two cities, Houston is apparently a bit more diverse and open-minded (towards different ethnic groups, races, lifestyles etc) than Dallas. In that sense, Houston would be more cosmopolitan yet people seem to think otherwise which is what I find confusing. As you said, perhaps it
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Before I moved to Houston, I asked a couple of people what they thought of Dallas and Houston. One used to live in Dallas and had visited Houston a few times. The other had just visited the two cities. One thing common to their opinions was the remark that Dallas is more cosmopolitan than Houston. I have now seen Houston but have never been to Dallas. I am just curious what makes a city more or less cosmopolitan? I do not intend to initiate Dallas vs Houston debate but am only wondering why is Dallas more cosmopolitan than Houston and what would it take for Houston to be as or more cosmopolitan?
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Missouri city is nice, but there is a REALLY UGLY PART in the back, and a slightly unsightly part on HW6 (mostly due to the fault of the older communities). You COULD try Riverstone, though, and there may be some homes under 300k. www.riverstonecommunity.com
Isnt Sienna Plantation in Missouri city? Perhaps, you could also look at Lake Olympia. I think HW6 is ok, at least from Sugar Land upto Sienna Plantation. I havnt driven beyond that but I think thats pretty much the end of the city.
Where is that really ugly part? Is it close to BW8?
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aren't mixed income groups represented in a development that includes both $165k units and $450k units? would it be a stretch to have a lower range of available units (say, $85k-$255k)? there is some middle ground here that does not require transient housing in the same building as more stable upper income earners (IMHO).
Every neighborhood is a mixed-income in the sense that no two families in that neighborhood or community earn the exact same income. However, the key is that difference in incomes between such two families is not too large. It is possible for somone earning, say, 40K to live in the same community with someone earning 60K because, despite the difference in income, their education levels, lifestyles, professions etc may be similar. Moreover, somone living in 165K unit maybe making similar income as someone living in 450K unit but may have other reasons or financial obligations. Perhaps, such person doesnt care for the view or granite countertops in the higher-end unit.
However, mixing someone making less than 30K with someone making millions is indeed a stretch.
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zoning would not be the answer for mixed income properties, nor would price controls (VERY anti-capitalism) work. a building code for certain districts or tirz' specifications that required "income specific" units for certain size developments would be more appropriate. it would be similar to home owner's associations or neighborhood regulations that require minimum or maximum square footage per lot.
or, tax incentives or waivers (city, county) of some sort could be established to entice developers to build with low/moderate incomes in mind.
Actually, that
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I just found sometimes out. If Crescent Real Estate Equities(also the owner of bayou place) is in on this project, Pavillion at Houston Center that means it will never get built. For one, Crescent mention PHASE II on the bayou place, did it happen? No. It's been what, 2-3 years now since they talked about PHASE II of bayou place. This will be another bomber to downtown's vibrant entertainment sencery.
If they screw up again, they should be banned from operating in Houston!
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I aggree that houston itself is a great example of mixed income development. Living in the montrose area you have millionaires that right by people who make 30k a year. The lack of zoning has allowed developers to create areas where higher income people will move near lower income.
Look at the large low income housing developments buit on the east and west side of downtown.
Often we hear how inner loop, and particularly Montrose area, has become more expensive for a new homebuyer and it is getting more difficult to find a bargain deal. If that is the case, how is that those who make 30K can afford to live there? Why haven
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What is happening to the area of Westheimer west of Fountainview? It seems north of Westheimer, it appears viable with lots of store-front retail and dining, but south of it it appears a bit run down with shady nightclubs and massage parlors taking over the defunct Richmond Strip...
Are we looking at a future Sharpstown?
As 27 has already explained it, that area is way too far from Westchcase. I have driven on almost every major road in the area between I-10, West Park, West Loop and Highway 6. The only bad parts include the section of Westheimer between Fountainview and Foundren (when I say section, I mean the road itself and not the nearby neighborhoods), section of Westheimer between Kirkwood and Highway 6, section of Richmond from Hillcroft to Gessner and the block bounded by Hillcroft, Richmod, West Park and Fountain View. Those parts look run down primarily because of free-for-all kind of commercial properties. Much of the rest of the region is very solid and include some of the finest neighborhoods in Houston.
As for Westchase, it is roughly bounded by Westheimer, Kirkwood, Gessner and West Park. If anything, this area has actually gotten better in the past and is getting even better. There are many powerful businesses such as Halliburton, BMC Software, Dow Chemical and Microsoft. Indeed, the only part of Westheimer west of Fountainview that is good is the section that runs through Westchase district.
Alore: Entertainment Complex On Woodlands Parkway & I-45
in General Houston Discussions
Posted
Thats no way to discourage sprawl! If the city wants to discourage sprawl, then it needs to create more reasons for people to stay close-in. However, I do not think sprawl can be stopped. At best, it can only be slowed. People are going to live in the suburbs for one reason or other. Perhaps, they want the tranquility of natural setting. Perhaps, they prefer a well-planned and zoned community. Perhaps, they want better schools. There can be any number of reasons for which people choose to stay out there. To think that sprawl in a growing city like Houston can be stopped is wishful thinking.
However, like I said, if the city cannot prevent everyone from living in the burbs, at least it can encourage more people to live closer to its core and attract those out there in a burbs as visitors. I think Houston is now finally but slowly moving in that direction.