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Hmm, how does Houston blow DC/Baltimore out of the water? I've visited DC, it seemed quite nice, albeit a little too touristy, but nice. DuPont circle was fun,many great clubs and bars, had a blast riding a bike through town, China Town had some good eats, used the public transportation to get anywhere I needed to go, and dont get me started about how awesome Georgetown is, Rice U pales in comparison on that one for sure! I have heard bad things and good things about Baltimore, its pretty run down but has a gorgeous harbor, many great neighborhoods, an amazing harbor, etc. etc. so perhaps you may need to specify what you're actually referring to.
But perhaps you could give me more insight, aside from "its my home now", something more objective, to prove that Houston blows DC/Baltimore out of the water. And try not to use economics; like you said there are more things in life than that.
Ok. You are on. Being that my entire family still lives in the Baltimore and DC area, and I lived there for the first 18 yrs of my life, I can speak to this. Have you ever met the people? OMG. Rude. Now, granted, I grew up in a NW Baltimore suburb, but the people there are fake, judgy, and flat out rude. It is unbelievable. And I admittedly include some of my Baltimore family members in this group. I couldn't wait to get away from Baltimoreans. As for the Harbor. It was gorgeous. I remember riding the light rail down there for the day with friends. No way would I do that now. It is unsafe. Dirty even. It is not the harbor I remember. Now, I give credit to the Orioles, Berger cookies, and crabs. Those things I miss.
The Baltimore beltway is dreadful (way too small for the amount of cars that travel it daily, yet there is no room for it to widen), and as far as traffic goes, try sitting on 495 around DC. You think Houston is bad? 495 and 695 (Baltimore's beltway) are worse. Don't even get me started on crime or schools. The high school I went to, a public school, allowed me to take calculus 3 as a high school senior. The school has gone way, way down since I graduated in the mid 90s. It is a testament to the decay of the area. And I see it when I go back home to visit my family (they still live in the same house I grew up in). You can see the changes on the main road through town, the stores, I can go on.
As far as weather goes, it gets hot and humid in Baltimore too. Now, the summer lasts longer here in Houston, so strike against Houston. But, Baltimore gets the cold winters too. I don't miss that or the snow. My 7th birthday party was canceled because of a three foot snowstorm. That was only one of the major snows. Just ask my sister how much she hates shoveling snow. Same goes for DC.
I agree on Georgetown. It is a fun place. I almost went to college in DC (at George Washington). DC has a lot to offer. But, for me, as a visitor. I would never live in DC with a family. My cousin commutes from Frederick to DC every day for work, and he sits on 270. I can't imagine that either. Here, my husband commutes from Sugar Land to the galleria area for work. His commute is not bad at all.
And for what it is worth, my mom and stepdad are moving from Baltimore to Houston this summer. They want to be closer to their grandkids, and I think they are tired of shoveling snow.
Houston will remain unfavorable to those whose values center on the beauty of a place and the buzz about it in the rich and famous. For those of us who value a strong economy which only comes when you make things which are exported from the local market, Houston is our ideal of a great place to work. For those of us who like the combination of job opportunities and reasonable housing and other living cost, Houston is great. If you like diversity in the population and dining choices, Houston is a global choice!
What Houston has is valued by some not by all so it wont be ruined by being "discovered", it doesn't have the mountains and ocean views or "vibe" (what ever that is) sought by the in crowd. Houston's beauty is in its uniqueness, its simplicity, its variety and its great people. Unfortunately for them, not everyone values those attributes. So its not so much its a secret but that it is a new diverse evolving city that breaks many of the molds of the past yet offers old school values!
I love how you're comparing Northern Virginia to again the FOURTH LARGEST CITY in the country. Besides the weather, topography and natural scenary of that part of the country is quite nice, especially compared to the humid, flat swamp it is down here. So there are many positives in DC.
Come on. Northern Virginia is part of the Washington Metro Area which has almost the exact same number of people as Greater Houston. We're talking entire regions here. We don't stop at the border at Maryland or DC.
There are positives to living here, but there are significant negatives as well. Just like in Houston or anywhere else you would live.
Quote:
Originally Posted by OducksFTW!
You mention remaking Houston in several ways, but the only one that seems to come up is economical related. Which underlies another major mentality of Houstonians, business comes first and society comes second.
Recycling?!?! Is that not something that makes Houston a better place? Investing in renewable energy for the city? Honestly, I feel like you probably don't object to either one of those things. I don't see what's wrong with a city helping the economy.
As far as the society goes, I'm not sure what you mean. What's wrong with Texan society or Houston's society specifically? I mean, Houston has one of the largest, most respected arts districts in the country. The best museums in the south. The best food in the south. The largest rodeo in the State of Texas. If United or Air New Zealand ever gets around to starting this Bush-Auckland route Houston will be one of only 4 places on Earth that have nonstop air service to every inhabited continent. Seems like a lot of people are drawn there, for a lot of different reasons.
Quote:
Originally Posted by OducksFTW!
Yes Houston is better than most parts of the country, but a city of this size is SUPPOSED TO, but heck there are many MAJOR cities that people consider to be better. I know friends that moved to SF, NYC, Chicago, Boston because they felt those were more progressive and exciting cities, AND MOST OF THEM TOOK PAY CUTS AND EXPENSES TO MOVE! And speak to most transplants, they moved here for a job, not because this city is "remaking itself". Its all about the money for them, and many just want to make money and get the hell out. Anytime someone mentions moving here on this site, the posts are always encouraging them to have an open mind and not compare it to the major city that they moved from BECAUSE MORE THAN LIKELY IT WILL PALE IN COMPARISON!
Of course there are the folks that move here with an open mind and enjoy it here, but those folks are predisposed to liking anywhere they move, because that is now their living situation and how many times have you heard of transplants "Making the best of it", plenty on my end.
Try comparing Houston to something its scale, which is not many parts of the US, but the ones that are, tend to falter to Houston, except for one thing Economics, like I mentioned.
And if the city is collecting so much tax revenue, where are the project works that should have been here. We're a rich city right? Then how is it that we didn't have a decent park til Discovery green? (part of memorial park is a swamp, it really needs some work). How come it doesn't have light rail that isn't pitiful? Where are the bike lanes and walkways? Heck City Centre and Discovery Green we're spurned on by big name developers looking to make a profit, oh wait that goes back to the business thing.
But alas, for many Houstonians a good job and a big house is all that matters, and so there isn't a major motivation for much else.
Sigh. Some people like dogs and some people like cats. People move where they want to move for the reasons they want to move there. Your friends decided being in what they felt were progressive, exciting cities was what was best for them. I've had friends that have moved all around the country for all kinds of reasons, and a few for that specific reason as well. Good for them. The population numbers (specifically by age) speak for themselves. Look at who is moving to Houston. People of all kinds, from all over the country and the world. And a lot of them are young, smart, and ready to continue the process of growing and building the city.
I suspect that the reason that it's difficult for you to appreciate Houston is that you haven't been there long enough to really appreciate how far it's come from what it once was. Another poster referenced the oil bust. I was a small child during the oil bust so that's my baseline for how far the city has come since then. In terms of everything, crime, quality of life, traffic, entertainment (with the exception of the Astroworld and Astrodome fiascos, but that's another story), etc. the city has made huge leaps and bounds. The biggest issue I see in Texas in general is education, and that's not unique to Houston.
I think another poster summed it up well - it seems like Houston just depresses you! If it's really that bad, why are you there? Do you have to be there?
Either way, I'm going to go catch Iron Man 3 with the misses. We could catch the same movie in Houston for probably 2/3 of the price but, c'est la vie.... at least there's lots of historic buildings and trees and other things we can look at while we're sitting in traffic or walking down the 4 story Metro escalators that never work.
You guys in Houston are winning. It's a great place to be. Maybe I'll rejoin you one day but y'all should hope that it stays a "secret" for as long as possible because the smart people are increasingly discovering it. And unless the city government completely screws the pooch, it will continue to grow toward that status that Oducks wishes it had already attained.
Just be patient, my friend. Houston never stops making moves (even if some of them backfire from time to time).
Hmm, how does Houston blow DC/Baltimore out of the water? I've visited DC, it seemed quite nice, albeit a little too touristy, but nice. DuPont circle was fun,many great clubs and bars, had a blast riding a bike through town, China Town had some good eats, used the public transportation to get anywhere I needed to go, and dont get me started about how awesome Georgetown is, Rice U pales in comparison on that one for sure! I have heard bad things and good things about Baltimore, its pretty run down but has a gorgeous harbor, many great neighborhoods, an amazing harbor, etc. etc. so perhaps you may need to specify what you're actually referring to.
But perhaps you could give me more insight, aside from "its my home now", something more objective, to prove that Houston blows DC/Baltimore out of the water. And try not to use economics; like you said there are more things in life than that.
oducksftw, you sound bitter. Are you posting that Houston is the "worst" place on earth, or just worse than any other location that will ever be mentioned in this thread.
As to the merits of Houston. You act as though this" hell hole", somehow has this unfair advantage in economic terms, with the oil industry just happening to be located here. The fact is the oil industry ended up here because Houston won an economic competition against a variety of other locations, for a variety of reasons. There were many other cities that would have loved to be the center of a industry with that kind of import. In fact the oil industry actually didn't start in Texas at all. It started in the northeast. John Rockefeller was from Cleveland. Pennsylvania was where it all really started, and where the first oil wells were drilled, and New York was the center of the oil industry, for a long time. But Houston ended up being the center, not because of divine province or political huncksterism or charity. No Houston won that competition because Houstonians were the innovators and movers of the worldwide oil industry, on top of being in a location that has a lot to offer. Year round recreational amenities along with a pleasant landscape that is fertile and moist lol . Those big paychecks, and yards are not God given, but were won through an economic competition that we are all involved in. So an areas ability to support life, and economic opportunity are the basic, and most important criteria for what makes an area desirable.
oducksftw, you sound bitter. Are you posting that Houston is the "worst" place on earth, or just worse than any other location that will ever be mentioned in this thread.
As to the merits of Houston. You act as though this" hell hole", somehow has this unfair advantage in economic terms, with the oil industry just happening to be located here. The fact is the oil industry ended up here because Houston won an economic competition against a variety of other locations, for a variety of reasons. There were many other cities that would have loved to be the center of a industry with that kind of import. In fact the oil industry actually didn't start in Texas at all. It started in the northeast. John Rockefeller was from Cleveland. Pennsylvania was where it all really started, and where the first oil wells were drilled, and New York was the center of the oil industry, for a long time. But Houston ended up being the center, not because of divine province or political huncksterism or charity. No Houston won that competition because Houstonians were the innovators and movers of the worldwide oil industry, on top of being in a location that has a lot to offer. Year round recreational amenities along with a pleasant landscape that is fertile and moist lol . Those big paychecks, and yards are not God given, but were won through an economic competition that we are all involved in. So an areas ability to support life, and economic opportunity are the basic, and most important criteria for what makes an area desirable.
What are these year-round recreational activities? Houston doesn't have much in the way of outdoors stuff. Are you going to kayak on the bayou? Have fun dodging the bags of garbage
What are these year-round recreational activities? Houston doesn't have much in the way of outdoors stuff. Are you going to kayak on the bayou? Have fun dodging the bags of garbage
Ok, I will
I like the Bayou , when I was a teen, there was a rope, that was tied to this branch, on an oak tree, that hung out over the bayou, in Memorial park, just a little east of the RR tracks. We would cross the bayou over that RR bridge and swim in the bayou, and drink some brewskis as well , ah those were the days Then on the weekends we would go to Surfside, or maybe East Beach in Galveston, and the sailing is always good on the Bay, as well as the fishing. I'm not that into fishing though..
Last edited by Jack Lance; 05-10-2013 at 07:15 PM..
What are these year-round recreational activities? Houston doesn't have much in the way of outdoors stuff. Are you going to kayak on the bayou? Have fun dodging the bags of garbage
Lets see Trail walk, biking, kayaking like you said, fishing. second the bayou is not the only body of water their are a number of lakes not to far out of the city.. Skying diving , Join a group that caters to your sports interest(Football , rugby, golf, etc) .. Boxing, dance, cooking class ... helll this could go on, people who stand around a ***** and moan about nothing to do are really just people who dont really want to do anything, but sit at so It spot club and talk about how everything is lame.
The idea of keeping Houston secret is contingent upon the idea of Houston somehow being a nice place to live. But it's not... We're far behind virtually every American city in quality of life, and not doing anything to make it better. The only thing Houston has going for it is jobs, and jobs alone do not make a city great.
I hope more Californians move here and start asking "Where are the rail lines? Where are the bike lanes? Where are the urban neighborhoods? Where are the well designed suburbs? Where are the parks?" Because that's the only way I can see for Houston to improve.
The quality of life in Houston is quite much better than the one I had in Southern California. I have a house. I could never have a house in Cali. Surely not like the one I have here in beautiful H-town. I once lived in the San Diego Gas Lamp for a few months at the J Street. Talk about over-rated SoCal "urbanity."
The mountains were of no use to me. My beloved Pinellas County, FL has way better beaches. I prefer the green, tree filled East Texas moors, prairies, pineys and pastures to the desert anyway.
The local police do not set up checkpoints in Houston (or Texas) for that matter. In checkpoint-happy San Diego, the police act like they are in the Soviet Union of old and ask EVERY SINGLE driver going through for their papers, like comrades.
My thick black hair has more summer volume and nicer texture in Houston compared to when in San Diego. I don't have chalk marks on my Pacific Islander skin here in Houston compared to when I lived in San Diego. "Quality of life" hoo hah. Next.
I once drove my Tercel around parts of New York City's environs, the parts the tourists never see. UGLY. MASS POVERTY I have NEVER seen on such a scale in Houston. Pasadena and Baytown are paradises in comparison. Kashmere at least has some quaint dignity compared to some of those rough areas of the Big Apple's environs. "Quality of life", lol. Next.
"Where are the parks?" Hershey Park ALONE is a wonderland of pedestrian and SECLUDED green trailways that go on for miles. I love the urban parks like Arthur Storey with the duck pond and walkway around the huge ponds, Chinatown architecture looming. Discovery Green downtown gives me a different flavor...Hermann Park is an awesome oasis for me, a Medical Center worker. Next.
"Urban neighborhood?" Ah, Houston's quirky neighborhoods (with diverse streetscapes) exude far more eccentric charm than the ones I've come across in L.A. and San Diego, you know, the ones that have the nearly identical sidewalk and storefront patterns. Just merely different demographic flavors.
Something like White Oak St. in the Heights, alone with that oddball concrete trail (with the assortment of old houses and gas stations converted to colorful bars and cafes) captivates my attention far more than the likes of Korea Town, Pacific Beach, Melrose, Uptown/Hillcrest, yada yada, same sidewalks.
Just the corner of Taft/Fairview with that motley collection of unique bars and cafes set on that quirky secluded little "main street" is something I don't see in more plastic cities with uniform sidewalks. Houston just does EVERYTHING from sci-fi futuristic to truly bizarre Mayberry-on acid-like no other US metro (well, Tampa Bay kind of has that oddball mix of streetscapes too but that area is rather sleepy compared to Houston).
Next.
"Rail lines?" Do these mealy-mouthed Houston bashers truly know what really is going on here? What's to come as far as rail? Indeed, METRORAIL only has the 2nd highest ridership per rail mile in the USA and there's still more to come. The details, well, I will leave that ignorance at that...and (Houston) is "not doing anything to make it better?"
Next.
What is "mediocrity?" You know, the street life of San Francisco and New York are MEDIOCRE compared to the raw street life I've come across in different cities. If I want raw and totally visceral street life, those US cities are a joke compared to Manila and Cebu. I want more elegant to well-designed street life, those US cities are an absolute joke compared to what I've experienced in Copenhagen and Amsterdam.
So what the hell is "mediocrity" in the context of Houston?
Yeah, Houston is so "mediocre" with its 90 plus foreign consulates, being one of only four or five US cities with permanent ballet, opera, symphony and theater. It has upscale shopping, quirky shopping, Chinatowns, Little Korea, Mahatma Gandhi District, downtown observation decks,
I can have fun in Houston's tight urban inner loop bars, I can have fun in Houston's colorful strip center bars, some with the WIDEST patio collection OF ANY US CITY, in the outer areas. Too bad we can't say the same about those Anal Urbanists who don't know how to have fun unless it's been nicely zoned with 12 ft wide sidewalks properly measured for them without a single bump in the pavement.
It's great here. I live a hybrid lifestyle. I use METRO to work about 80% of the time, then use my car for errands or bad weather and weekend socialization. Unlike the spoon-fed Anal Urbanists who, well, want to be spoon-fed and coddled by a Sun Belt Giant complaining about public transit (as if Houston's 600 square miles can be negotiated like that of much smaller San Fran or Boston or such)...I considered the landscape here and made this Sun Belt Giant WORK FOR ME.
Last edited by worldlyman; 05-11-2013 at 03:18 AM..
The quality of life in Houston is quite much better than the one I had in Southern California. I have a house. I could never have a house in Cali. Surely not like the one I have here in beautiful H-town. I once lived in the San Diego Gas Lamp for a few months at the J Street. Talk about over-rated SoCal "urbanity."
The mountains were of no use to me. My beloved Pinellas County, FL has way better beaches. I prefer the green, tree filled East Texas moors, prairies, pineys and pastures to the desert anyway.
The local police do not set up checkpoints in Houston (or Texas) for that matter. In checkpoint-happy San Diego, the police act like they are in the Soviet Union of old and ask EVERY SINGLE driver going through for their papers, like comrades.
My thick black hair has more summer volume and nicer texture in Houston compared to when in San Diego. I don't have chalk marks on my Pacific Islander skin here in Houston compared to when I lived in San Diego. "Quality of life" hoo hah. Next.
I once drove my Tercel around parts of New York City's environs, the parts the tourists never see. UGLY. MASS POVERTY I have NEVER seen on such a scale in Houston. Pasadena and Baytown are paradises in comparison. Kashmere at least has some quaint dignity compared to some of those rough areas of the Big Apple's environs. "Quality of life", lol. Next.
"Where are the parks?" Hershey Park ALONE is a wonderland of pedestrian and SECLUDED green trailways that go on for miles. I love the urban parks like Arthur Storey with the duck pond and walkway around the huge ponds, Chinatown architecture looming. Discovery Green downtown gives me a different flavor...Hermann Park is an awesome oasis for me, a Medical Center worker. Next.
"Urban neighborhood?" Ah, Houston's quirky neighborhoods (with diverse streetscapes) exude far more eccentric charm than the ones I've come across in L.A. and San Diego, you know, the ones that have the nearly identical sidewalk and storefront patterns. Just merely different demographic flavors.
Something like White Oak St. in the Heights, alone with that oddball concrete trail (with the assortment of old houses and gas stations converted to colorful bars and cafes) captivates my attention far more than the likes of Korea Town, Pacific Beach, Melrose, Uptown/Hillcrest, yada yada, same sidewalks.
Just the corner of Taft/Fairview with that motley collection of unique bars and cafes set on that quirky secluded little "main street" is something I don't see in more plastic cities with uniform sidewalks. Houston just does EVERYTHING from sci-fi futuristic to truly bizarre Mayberry-on acid-like no other US metro (well, Tampa Bay kind of has that oddball mix of streetscapes too but that area is rather sleepy compared to Houston).
Next.
"Rail lines?" Do these mealy-mouthed Houston bashers truly know what really is going on here? What's to come as far as rail? Indeed, METRORAIL only has the 2nd highest ridership per rail mile in the USA and there's still more to come. The details, well, I will leave that ignorance at that...and (Houston) is "not doing anything to make it better?"
Next.
What is "mediocrity?" You know, the street life of San Francisco and New York are MEDIOCRE compared to the raw street life I've come across in different cities. If I want raw and totally visceral street life, those US cities are a joke compared to Manila and Cebu. I want more elegant to well-designed street life, those US cities are an absolute joke compared to what I've experienced in Copenhagen and Amsterdam.
So what the hell is "mediocrity" in the context of Houston?
Yeah, Houston is so "mediocre" with its 90 plus foreign consulates, being one of only four or five US cities with permanent ballet, opera, symphony and theater. It has upscale shopping, quirky shopping, Chinatowns, Little Korea, Mahatma Gandhi District, downtown observation decks,
I can have fun in Houston's tight urban inner loop bars, I can have fun in Houston's colorful strip center bars, some with the WIDEST patio collection OF ANY US CITY, in the outer areas. Too bad we can't say the same about those Anal Urbanists who don't know how to have fun unless it's been nicely zoned with 12 ft wide sidewalks properly measured for them without a single bump in the pavement.
It's great here. I live a hybrid lifestyle. I use METRO to work about 80% of the time, then use my car for errands or bad weather and weekend socialization. Unlike the spoon-fed Anal Urbanists who, well, want to be spoon-fed and coddled by a Sun Belt Giant complaining about public transit (as if Houston's 600 square miles can be negotiated like that of much smaller San Fran or Boston or such)...I considered the landscape here and made this Sun Belt Giant WORK FOR ME.
It sounds like you've falled into the Houston rut and settle for mediocrity. Come on-- common sense should tell you that the Houston light rail's "ridership per mile" means nothing. I can't get on a train and commute downtown from the suburb where I can afford to live. I could in most other big cities, including Dallas, the city that Houstonians love to hate for no apparent reason. Instead we have park and ride buses that share accident-prone HOV lanes with SINGLE occupant vehicles that paid a toll. So tell me how it benefits me that the pathetic single line has the most ridership per mile.
You were talking about poverty in NYC. Have you been to the poor neighborhoods and the barrios of Houston? When we first immigrated to the US we lived in the southwest, and I went to school at Johnston Middle School. The HS I would have gone to was Westbury if we didn't move to Cypress. Spend some time in that area and see what you think. It's not a ghetto, but it's not that nice either outside of a few neighborhoods, and the strip malls don't help. I can point you to the ghetto too.
I'm amazed that someone is praising that park by the dirty bayou. Are you sure you're not thinking of the country club? I have noticed that Houstonians sometime confuse country clubs and golf courses with parks. I go by the bayou every day on the bus and it doesn't look inviting at all. You're jogging along an ugly drainage channel.
Last edited by winkosmosis; 05-11-2013 at 08:34 AM..
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If it's really that bad, why are you there? Do you have to be there? 
What makes a place desirable?
