LA Times Story On California Vietnamese Flocking To Houston

[HarryMoto]

This LA Times story is about Southern California Vietnamese Moving to Houston in Large Numbers. Here's the link and the top few graphs of the story: http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-ho...1,2088008.story

Vietnamese Americans are lured to the Texas city by cheap real estate, a lower cost of living and a burgeoning cultural enclave.

By My-Thuan Tran, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

December 21, 2007

HOUSTON -- Lan Nguyen had dreamed of owning a house since she immigrated to Southern California from Vietnam 11 years ago. But she and her husband could never scrounge up enough money for a down payment, spending most of their paychecks on rent for a cramped Garden Grove apartment.

Now, Nguyen has moved to a suburb of this Gulf Coast city, where the 28-year-old owns a new four-bedroom house with a spacious game room and access to a pool with a water slide -- all for $200,000.

Nguyen is one of many Vietnamese Americans from California who have flocked to Houston, lured by cheap real estate, a lower cost of living, bountiful business opportunities and a thriving, growing Vietnamese community.

Houston offers a slice of the American Dream to Vietnamese Americans who couldn't find it in California.

[Vertigo58]

Can't blame em. I just hope the LA Vietnamese gangs don't follow. They are not wannabe's. It's the real thing. Whole new topic I guess.

[lockmat]

Very interesting.

And take a look at this:

Developer Luu Trankiem is planning to open the New Saigon Shopping Plaza next year, a high-end center on 32 acres near Bellaire Boulevard. The plaza's seven high-rise buildings come at a price of about $300 million.

[sifuwong]

Very interesting.

And take a look at this:

This has been going on for the past 5 yrs in houston. Many are developing those mini shopping strips around Houston.

[lockmat]

This has been going on for the past 5 yrs in houston. Many are developing those mini shopping strips around Houston.

Yeah, but this seems like a huge project, if I read that right. But I'm a bit skeptical. Where is there 32 acres of available land to develop on Bellaire Blvd? Plus, SEVEN high-rises? That quote is talking about Houston, right? Or LA?

[VicMan]

Yeah, but this seems like a huge project, if I read that right. But I'm a bit skeptical. Where is there 32 acres of available land to develop on Bellaire Blvd? Plus, SEVEN high-rises? That quote is talking about Houston, right? Or LA?

There are still undeveloped patches of the Alief area. And, yes, he is talking about Houston.

This is from 2000, but check if this still applies... http://www.houstontx.gov/planning/suprnbhd...use/sn25lu.html

This only covers incorporated areas; unincorporated areas are not mapped here.

[citykid09]

Yeah, but this seems like a huge project, if I read that right. But I'm a bit skeptical. Where is there 32 acres of available land to develop on Bellaire Blvd? Plus, SEVEN high-rises? That quote is talking about Houston, right? Or LA?

Thats Houston. There are or were renderings on HAIF a few a long while back, I don't know if they are still on here. The devlopment looked like a mini downtown with tall building and the area filled with retail, offices and houses.

[lockmat]

Well I wonder since the article mentioned it if it's still being planned? I've only been consistently checking haif for less than a year now, and it's amazing looking back at the first post of a thread, to see how old it is and that the project is just now coming to fruition.

[editor]

The HAIF en Espanol section never went anywhere. I wonder if HAIF in Viet would be worth the effort.

[NewMND]

Well the article says 85K Vietnamese for the Houston population, but the population for Houston and it's suburbs combined is between 160K-180K.

[editor]

If there's any HAIFers out there who speak/read/write Vietnamese, send me a PM.

[houstonmacbro]

Well the article says 85K Vietnamese for the Houston population, but the population for Houston and it's suburbs combined is between 160K-180K.

Vietnamese, by and large, are cool! I have such great respect for many of them.

Edited December 26, 2007 by houstonmacbro