3 Best/Worst Things About Houston? (Dallas, San Antonio: high crime, neighborhood, theater)

[houguy1087]

GOOD
1) Cost of Living
2) Amount of Big City Amenities
3) Diversity/Friendliness

BAD
1) Traffic/Transportation
2) Lack of architectural respect for historic buildings
3) Minimally recognized for it's positives/Forgotten status

Not gonna lie, crime would be 4 for bad, but that's just a given for any large city.

[houstonman]

3 BEST

1. Diversity (large White, large Black, large Hispanic, large Asian populations plus lots of liberals and lots of conservatives)
2. Food (Kosher, Meditarranean, Mexican, Paki-Indi, etc.... even suprise to find an Afghan restaurant)
3. High School Football The best in the Country

3 WORST

1. Mass Transportation along with those dreaded HOV lanes
2. Development (its bad enough when large tracts of lands are purchased for quick returns and big bucks, but atleast developers can maintain some of the natural beauty like keep some of the trees. Houston is not all that scenic nor is it hilly or mountainous neither. Remember, it doesnt snow; everthing just turns brown in the winter. So, saving a few trees could help some.) Also, kinda of related; the ugly telephone poles and billboard signs and LACK OF SIDEWALKS: Houston lacks conservation and is not very GreenHouse friendly. Notice those utility poles (or lack of) near Richmond and the Galleria; looks nice. Sure could improve the property values down MLK Blvd or Telephone Rd
3. Lack of Support for Local Institutions and Sites. Too much attention to professional sports and chamber of commerce sponsored venues. For example, UH is the 3rd largest university in the state and TSU is the 2nd largest black university in the country. Otherwords, this is roughly 50,000 students. I know both are considered commuting campuses, but Scott Street and Elgin should be booming with businesses. Atleast a corridor of cafes and shops galore around there or extended to the Rice Village/Med Center. Doesnt seem too much like a college or an intellectual community around there. Also, visitors to the city might likely be given a pamphlet for the Downtown Aquarium rather than the San Jacinto Monument (which is more historical, more natural, and plus you get a FREE ferry ride).

[texanborn]

Originally Posted by ayannaaaliyah

Best
Cheap land/housing
Cost of Living
Diversity of neighborhoods

Worst
Traffic
Summer months
Cost of Energy
Antiquated Dept. Motor Vehicles
Drivers
Illegals

I'd think those illegals would give your neighborhood more diversity!

[texanborn]

Originally Posted by knowledgedropper

Houston is not close to the beach. It's the equivalent of saying Palmdale,Ca or Riverside,Ca are close to the beaches in Socal--they're not!!! just like Houston isn't close to the Gulf.

Question of the day, why are Houstonians always seemingly worried about Hurricanes?? I would think that having a 50-60mile buffer from the gulf would be a sufficient barrier. Why doesn't Houston attempt to fix it's drainage system, it seems to flood there constantly--induced by the slightest bit of rain.

Finally, STOP acting as if Houston were a coastal town. It's a flat inland city--always wishing it were Galveston! LOL

You must not live here. Because your lack of knowledge of the area shows . I do agree with you on the drainage tho.....

[Vicman]

Scott has several businesses catering to UH university students such as restaurants (There are Vietnamese restaurants in the area around UH). However, TSU does not have much around its campus.

Originally Posted by houstonman

3 BEST
3. Lack of Support for Local Institutions and Sites. Too much attention to professional sports and chamber of commerce sponsored venues. For example, UH is the 3rd largest university in the state and TSU is the 2nd largest black university in the country. Otherwords, this is roughly 50,000 students. I know both are considered commuting campuses, but Scott Street and Elgin should be booming with businesses. Atleast a corridor of cafes and shops galore around there or extended to the Rice Village/Med Center. Doesnt seem too much like a college or an intellectual community around there. Also, visitors to the city might likely be given a pamphlet for the Downtown Aquarium rather than the San Jacinto Monument (which is more historical, more natural, and plus you get a FREE ferry ride).

[bostoner]

Originally Posted by Vicman

Scott has several businesses catering to UH university students such as restaurants (There are Vietnamese restaurants in the area around UH). However, TSU does not have much around its campus.

Yeah, but you have to admit, it's mostly fast food that is *visible* immediately surrounding the area, with a few mom and pops and ratty businesses near TSU thrown in; there is something lacking around there... it would be nice to see some cafes and bookstores and veg/vegan restaurants (there used to be that veggie soul food taco cart-esque place on a patch of grass near the HPL branch years ago!) instead of fast food joints. On the plus side, downtown and its immediate environs, the Museum District/Rice Village, the Montrose, etc. is bursting with college students. U of H and TSU could use a Rice Village-type development, only less chi-chi. The University Line will hopefully encourage the type of growth houstonman is talking about and change all that... and for better or worse, encroaching gentrification probably will, too. As long as they keep the Frenchy's!

[bostoner]

Originally Posted by knowledgedropper

Finally, STOP acting as if Houston were a coastal town. It's a flat inland city--always wishing it were Galveston! LOL

That's a first. I've never heard of any Houstonians pining to be Galvestonians! I think if you live here long enough, you'll begin to understand why. For most, the island falls into the "nice place to visit, but you wouldn't want to live there" category because it's economically depressed (compared to Houston) with too much crime and poor schools, not to mention the threat of hurricanes... and it's tiny, very small town... I mean, I just don't see what's to envy. The architecture is great, it's historical and has beaches. That's pretty much ALL Galveston has going for it. That makes for a great day trip, not a great place to live.

Houston is roughly a 45-minute drive to Galveston, more or less depending on what part of town you're coming from. Again, considering the threat of hurricanes six months out of the year, that's plenty close enough for me! Anyway, it's part of our metro area so we don't need to BE it.

[I LOVE NORTH CAROLINA]

The Good
Shopping
Places to eat
Low cost of homes

The Bad
Humidity
Humidity
Humidity

[jfre81]

Originally Posted by I LOVE NORTH CAROLINA

The Bad
Humidity
Humidity
Humidity

Where in NC did you grow up?

Raleigh-Durham area southward to the coast is rather humid too...I really did not sense much of a difference from here and there in the heart of summertime.

[bostoner]

Originally Posted by I LOVE NORTH CAROLINA

The Bad
Humidity
Humidity
Humidity

You're nothing if not consistent.