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if you are working downtown, Kingwood and the Woodlands are both quite a hike. I commuted from Katy to downtown everyday and it was pretty terrible. You probably want to look at the Memorial area or maybe the Heights. (less house but closer in). Memorial Park is right inside the Loop (610) and is quite the mecca for all-things-outdoors in Houston.
As far as weather goes, I think you are spot-on. With the tropical storms and hurricanes, you have warning. I feel like in Dallas, we get a lot of wind storms that occasionally spin up tornado activity and you get very little warning for that. With the tropical stuff coming out of the Gulf, you have advance warning, sometimes several days or a week. Living north of Clear Lake/ Friendswood also helps as you are atleast 50 miles inland at that point. As a native Houstonian, I only remember a few really really bad storms that wrecked houses as far north as downtown. Just make sure you have renters insurance!
if you are working downtown, Kingwood and the Woodlands are both quite a hike. I commuted from Katy to downtown everyday and it was pretty terrible. You probably want to look at the Memorial area or maybe the Heights. (less house but closer in). Memorial Park is right inside the Loop (610) and is quite the mecca for all-things-outdoors in Houston.
As far as weather goes, I think you are spot-on. With the tropical storms and hurricanes, you have warning. I feel like in Dallas, we get a lot of wind storms that occasionally spin up tornado activity and you get very little warning for that. With the tropical stuff coming out of the Gulf, you have advance warning, sometimes several days or a week. Living north of Clear Lake/ Friendswood also helps as you are atleast 50 miles inland at that point. As a native Houstonian, I only remember a few really really bad storms that wrecked houses as far north as downtown. Just make sure you have renters insurance!
Good luck with your decision.
With the widening of the Katy Freeway this commute has gone from terrible to bearable.
Friendliness has to go to Houston in my opinion. Just in general people seem to be more down to earth, Dallas is a bit more on the snobby side in general. Houston probably wins on the bohemian front if thats important to you.
That might seem true to some who don't live in town. People who only see those areas often complain that Dallas is all freeways, big box stores, malls and that there are no trees.
The 'snob crowd' is generally found on either side of Preston from HP all the way north to the exurbs. That is only a small part of "Dallas". East Dallas is extremely friendly and the folks in Oak Cliff seem to me to be even more friendly. South Dallas is very friendly to those who don't immediately shun them. Oak Lawn is generally friendly but you tend to have some of that "Golden Corridor" crowd mixed in - same for Uptown. Areas with the most natives are friendly because that's the way we were raised. It was THE most important thing to remember about being a Texan.
I would agree that Montrose might feel a little more urban because I think Houston is way ahead on innovative town homes. However, if you think about it, Oak Lawn and Turtle Creek have some of those with mid-rises in the middle.
Dallas is very bohemian in parts of Old East Dallas, Oak Lawn, Design District, North Oak Cliff, Southside/Cedars (Lee Harvey's being the headquarters), Deep Ellum/Expo Park, Little Forest Hills - quite a few areas. It's really astounding how this crowd sort of morphs together. I didn't realize it so much until I got on Facebook and saw who gets invited to what and who is friends with whom...many less than six degrees of separation! Bands, artists, foodies and literary types are the glue.
The worst part about the weather in Houston - except the humidity of course, is the street flooding that happens during rainstorms. I got stuck in several horrible traffic jams when I lived there. Once I rolled down my window because I was afraid the car was going to overheat just sitting there. A jeep came from the opposite direction and thoroughly splashed me sitting in my car seat...
That might seem true to some who don't live in town. People who only see those areas often complain that Dallas is all freeways, big box stores, malls and that there are no trees.
The 'snob crowd' is generally found on either side of Preston from HP all the way north to the exurbs. That is only a small part of "Dallas". East Dallas is extremely friendly and the folks in Oak Cliff seem to me to be even more friendly. South Dallas is very friendly to those who don't immediately shun them. Oak Lawn is generally friendly but you tend to have some of that "Golden Corridor" crowd mixed in - same for Uptown. Areas with the most natives are friendly because that's the way we were raised. It was THE most important thing to remember about being a Texan.
I would agree that Montrose might feel a little more urban because I think Houston is way ahead on innovative town homes. However, if you think about it, Oak Lawn and Turtle Creek have some of those with mid-rises in the middle.
Dallas is very bohemian in parts of Old East Dallas, Oak Lawn, Design District, North Oak Cliff, Southside/Cedars (Lee Harvey's being the headquarters), Deep Ellum/Expo Park, Little Forest Hills - quite a few areas. It's really astounding how this crowd sort of morphs together. I didn't realize it so much until I got on Facebook and saw who gets invited to what and who is friends with whom...many less than six degrees of separation!
The worst part about the weather in Houston - except the humidity of course, is the street flooding that happens during rainstorms. I got stuck in several horrible traffic jams when I lived there. Once I rolled down my window because I was afraid the car was going to overheat just sitting there. A jeep came from the opposite direction and thoroughly splashed me sitting in my car seat...
Over heat because of streets flooding? Your car might stall, but not overheat. Being in a Jeep though its high enough off the ground not to get anything in the engine bay drenched in water to where it would stall in the first place.
As you said, Houston ranks 3rd only to NYC & Chicago in number of skyscrapers.
I think you're likely right, but define your evaluation criteria.
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I will say this & that is Uptown Dallas is starting to look quite amazing on the density side, but its no Uptown Houston when it comes to height. The Texas Medical Center skyline to Uptown Dallas is a better comparison in both density & height.
That's quite an impressively stupid comment since the tallest building in the TMC is 32 stories, and the tallest one in downtown Dallas is more than twice that.
Matt - nobody was moving much - a foot or two at a time - and I mean for almost an hour or more..also was afraid of running out of gas. That time I finally turned around and went back to the Ninfa's by Greenway Plaza. I found that several people I knew had also given up and turned around. We had a fine time with those margaritas!
That's quite an impressively stupid comment since the tallest building in the TMC is 32 stories, and the tallest one in downtown Dallas is more than twice that.
Did I say downtown?
Your comment was flat out stupid because where you quoted me clearly says UPTOWN Dallas.
BTW the W Hotel is pretty close in height to Houston's 2nd & 3rd tallest buildings in the Med Center. Both areas density is quite similar that's why I was comparing them.
Houston is 3rd only to NYC & Chicago in total number of building over 400 ft.
Houston has added more buildings over 600 feet tall in 10 years than Dallas has added in over 20 years. The number of 300, 400, & 500 footers Houston has added in 10 years is also incredible.
Dallas is just now after 20 some odd years building something over 500 feet tall.
Last edited by Metro Matt; 01-24-2011 at 12:19 PM..
Jennifer kind of summed it up well. Someone earlier stated that Houston's buildings were taller, but Dallas has more, thats just not true. Houston is third in number of high rises behind New York and Chicago.
Weather, as has been metioned above, is much different. Four seasons are more pronounced here in DFW, though some who move here from up north would question that.
Agreed, DFW seems to have more seasons than Houston, though the Fall in DFW is short (Houston's even shorter). Houston's winter is more tolerable, IMO. Both cities summers suck. In Houston, you'll sweat by walking out to check your mail. In Dallas, if you are outside for too long, the heat will just wear you down.
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Houston has Kemah, which is more of a boardwalk fair kind of environment, with a bunch of restaurants, carnival rides and a ferris wheel.
DFW has Six Flags, Texas State Fair in the fall, Great Wolf Lodge, so it definately has the edge in that area.
Houston also has Schlitterbahn and Moody Gardens. There is a Splashtown Waterpark in the Spring area. Plus, there are plans for a new theme park in Houston called Earth Quest Adventures. And the Houston Rodeo is about to start up soon (a month long with A-list performers).
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Friendliness has to go to Houston in my opinion. Just in general people seem to be more down to earth, Dallas is a bit more on the snobby side in general. Houston's actually quite pronounced on the friendliness part, I think anyone who has spent a decent amount of time in both would admit as much. Even the River Oaks area of Houston, which is the richest area of town, tends to be a little more urban to me and less in your face with affluency than Highland Park.
Houston probably wins on the bohemian front if thats important to you. Montrose area, and Rice University area tend to feel alot more urban to me than most areas of Dallas. In the end I prefer DFW, but in all honestly i have to admit the above at least.
Where Dallas wins is cleanliness, great suburbs with great schools, and a more diverse job market imho. If you're into Shopping Dallas has a big edge there, outside of the Houston Galleria which is huge, there isn't much in Houston that competes with Dallas on the shopping front. I would put the restaraunts at a dead heat.
For shopping, The Woodlands and Memorial City areas are becoming more upscale. I wouldn't say Houston can't compete with Dallas shopping. Dallas just has more normal regional malls, due to a larger trade area.
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Originally Posted by Lakewooder
That might seem true to some who don't live in town. People who only see those areas often complain that Dallas is all freeways, big box stores, malls and that there are no trees.
The 'snob crowd' is generally found on either side of Preston from HP all the way north to the exurbs. That is only a small part of "Dallas". East Dallas is extremely friendly and the folks in Oak Cliff seem to me to be even more friendly. South Dallas is very friendly to those who don't immediately shun them. Oak Lawn is generally friendly but you tend to have some of that "Golden Corridor" crowd mixed in - same for Uptown. Areas with the most natives are friendly because that's the way we were raised. It was THE most important thing to remember about being a Texan.
I would agree that Montrose might feel a little more urban because I think Houston is way ahead on innovative town homes. However, if you think about it, Oak Lawn and Turtle Creek have some of those with mid-rises in the middle.
Dallas is very bohemian in parts of Old East Dallas, Oak Lawn, Design District, North Oak Cliff, Southside/Cedars (Lee Harvey's being the headquarters), Deep Ellum/Expo Park, Little Forest Hills - quite a few areas. It's really astounding how this crowd sort of morphs together. I didn't realize it so much until I got on Facebook and saw who gets invited to what and who is friends with whom...many less than six degrees of separation! Bands, artists, foodies and literary types are the glue.
The worst part about the weather in Houston - except the humidity of course, is the street flooding that happens during rainstorms. I got stuck in several horrible traffic jams when I lived there. Once I rolled down my window because I was afraid the car was going to overheat just sitting there. A jeep came from the opposite direction and thoroughly splashed me sitting in my car seat...
With Dallas being zoned, it seems a lot less bohemian than Houston, IMO. DFW has a whole looks sterile, due to all the zoning. Some people like the clean, put together look. Others like the more vibrant/colorful look.
For sure. Unfortunately for Houston, the # of highrises doesn't always translate into active street life. I'll take more people on the street over a bunch of towering skyscrapers anyday. Although having both would be ideal, it seems to me like the most active, pedestrian parts of Dallas have low to mid-rise buildings. Not sure why/how this is the case.
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Originally Posted by Metro Matt
I never compared those two jackass.
If I was going to compare Downtown Dallas to anything in Houston it would be Uptown Houston.
Downtown Houston literally trumps Downtown Dallas. It covers almost twice the area & has double the number of buildings.
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