Texas City / Bay Area (Houston, Baytown: crime rate, house, to buy)

[texasmove]

I'll be moving to the Houston area next month and am wondering about the Bay area. Is Texas City a good place to buy a house? Looking in the 100K range. What about the pollution - is it really as bad as some sites say? Any other areas you could recommend? Would like small-town/country atmosphere, but at the same time need to be driving to La Porte and/or League City for work, so kind of in a pickle. I don't mind driving if it means living in better area. Any help or advice would be appreciated.

[tstone]

Texas city is basically a blue collar, industrial town centered around the plants. Therefore there is a lot of pollution there. Driving from La Porte to League City, I'd suggest Kemah or Seabrook if you don't mind living by the water. Not really a country feel there, more coastal suburban. For "country," I'd look at Dickinson or Santa Fe. Some parts of south League City are pretty "country" as well. (Attitudes and all.)

[jfre81]

Santa Fe is as country as it gets over there, and it's growing up too. It's probably going to become a happening place once Pearland/Silverlake/Shadow Creek Ranch areas get built up, although they may never get as pricy as SCR. Santa Fe isn't as polluted as Texas City but it's still just 15 miles or so from those plants and about the same distance from a smaller refinery complex off FM 2004 in Brazoria County (Liverpool). There is also a landfill along the Galveston/Brazoria line on Highway 6 and another in between Santa Fe and La Marque city limits off FM 1764. You have three Wal-Mart Supercenters in either direction out of Santa Fe now (1764, 646, 6), several Walgreens, every fast food joint you can think of, a near-dead mall in Texas City (Mall of the Mainland) and a whole new shopping center area north of Dickinson on 646.

I grew up primarily in Texas City, just a mile or so downwind from the refineries. It is as bad as you've heard, whatever you've heard. That said, 100K will get you a pretty sweet house there, and if you live on the far north side of town (or west toward I-45 where the refinery pollution is not usually as much a factor) you can still get into something good without being right next to the plants. Traffic is horrible for a city that size because most people who work there do not live there. There are at least 100K people in Texas City during the middle of the workday. It can take you >15 minutes to get from Bay Street to Highway 146 (to get to La Porte) even in non-peak traffic because of the red lights. The 146 freeway extension over Loop 197 helps out if you are going through there to get toward La Porte, Baytown etc.

[texas7]

Some areas of La Porte are fairly nice and small town feel without -- you might check it out, particularly if you are going to work there in that area. The price of homes will probably get you a fairly nice home too.

[LC124]

Is the crime rate as high as indicated on city data? It seems high for a small population. If so, what areas are the worst? Also, is the Pelican Inn still there? Thanks for any information.

[Poltracker]

I would look at the Lomax area of LaPorte. Kind of an agricultural area with a nice city park and arena and homes with big lots. Also convenient to the bay, Hwy 225, hwy 146.

[jfre81]

Originally Posted by LC124

Is the crime rate as high as indicated on city data? It seems high for a small population. If so, what areas are the worst? Also, is the Pelican Inn still there? Thanks for any information.

It is high for its population.

The Pelican Inn is still there, just called something else now.

[LC124]

Originally Posted by jfre81

It is high for its population.

The Pelican Inn is still there, just called something else now.

What areas are the best to live in? Is there gang activity anywhere? If so, what area?Thanks

[texas7]

Would probably be best to find a realtor on the area of town you are looking at who really knows the area. He or she could probably steer you out of the bad areas. If you are talking about La Porte - I would look at the communities along Fairmont Parkway or in Deer Park.

[LC124]

Thanks for the information. I'll look into it.