How dense is Houston? (Paris, Bellaire: 2013, apartment complexes, how much)

[jello1388]

[theSUBlime]

I've seen this so many times. We have quite the spread here since we are at 3,623 people per sq. mile.
It's weird because I'm in Santa Monica right now and it's 10,634 people per sq. mile. It feels like a huge city, way bigger than Houston, even though it doesn't have 100,000 people. Obviously not the best comparison, but for Houston I don't think there is a good one.

[2Easy]

That looks huge since it covers most of the US, but if you think about how much of the world would be covered, it's really not that much more than the others.

[Bobloblawslawblog]

So Houston, a sunbelt city that experienced the bulk of it's growth in the average baby-boomer's lifetime, is less dense than Paris, San Francisco, NYC, London, and Singapore? All old (some VERY old) cities that experienced the bulk of their growth before most people even owned automobiles?

SHOCKER!!!

And yes, comparing the density of Santa Monica to Houston is just silly... because the city of Houston covers 628 square miles, much of which is suburban and has a denser core of neighborhoods that are closer to 10,000 ppsm, but constitute only about 50-60 of those 628 square miles. Not to mention large areas of the city that aren't even developed at all.

By comparison, Santa Monica is a 100% developed urban area of only 8.4 square miles, which is completely landlocked by the city of Los Angeles. The Montrose neighborhood in Houston, which averages around 9,000 ppsm, is roughly the same size as the entire city of Santa Monica (area-wise).

There really are no good comparisons for Houston when it comes to the complexities of overall density. In Houston, it just depends on the neighborhood.

[2Easy]

Originally Posted by Bobloblawslawblog

The Montrose neighborhood in Houston, which averages around 9,000 ppsm, is roughly the same size as the entire city of Santa Monica (area-wise).

I've only been to Houston once, but that was one of the places that I hung out for a bit. Until your post I think that I kind of mistakenly assumed that was representative of a large part of Houston.

[Dopo]

I think the reason for Houston spreading out so much is caused by politicians here constantly spending money to help new developers in areas outside of the city and don't spend any money to fix areas in the inner city.
This happens all over the US and soon or later is gonna come to bite us in the a... and the first sign of that is how much all of us rely on cars and how much money we spend on cars and gasoline.

[Bobloblawslawblog]

Originally Posted by 2Easy

I've only been to Houston once, but that was one of the places that I hung out for a bit. Until your post I think that I kind of mistakenly assumed that was representative of a large part of Houston.

It is fairly representative of the Western core of Houston (the areas inside I-610, West of I-45 and the 288 freeway), and perhaps a few Eastern-core areas like Eastwood and the South-central part of the city South of the 3rd ward and North of Braes Bayou, but most of Houston outside loop 610 is much more sunbelt-suburban (ie. single-family, post-war, ranch-style tract homes and large bi-level apartment complexes). The Montrose is a pretty unique neighborhood in Houston.

Originally Posted by Dopo

I think the reason for Houston spreading out so much is caused by politicians here constantly spending money to help new developers in areas outside of the city and don't spend any money to fix areas in the inner city.
This happens all over the US and soon or later is gonna come to bite us in the a... and the first sign of that is how much all of us rely on cars and how much money we spend on cars and gasoline.

Agreed.

[jr1038]

Originally Posted by theSUBlime

I've seen this so many times. We have quite the spread here since we are at 3,623 people per sq. mile.
It's weird because I'm in Santa Monica right now and it's 10,634 people per sq. mile. It feels like a huge city, way bigger than Houston, even though it doesn't have 100,000 people. Obviously not the best comparison, but for Houston I don't think there is a good one.

If Santa Monica feels like a "huge city" to you then you clearly haven't seen much of the world.

Nor does it feel "way bigger" than Houston. Even though it is definitely densely populated, it doesn't feel big.

[Bobloblawslawblog]

Originally Posted by jr1038

If Santa Monica feels like a "huge city" to you then you clearly haven't seen much of the world.

Nor does it feel "way bigger" than Houston. Even though it is definitely densely populated, it doesn't feel big.

It does feel like part of a big city, but that's because Santa Monica is essentially to L.A. what West University is to Houston - an incorporated city surrounded by a much larger city. In Santa Monica's case, surrounded by the 2nd largest city (and MSA) in America. And it also depends on where you are in Santa Monica (it's much more dense in it's Southern half. The part North of Montana Ave. is wealthier and has larger homes on larger lots, therefore less dense).

Of course it's going to feel "bigger" than Houston, because it's basically an extension of L.A.

[theSUBlime]

Originally Posted by jr1038

If Santa Monica feels like a "huge city" to you then you clearly haven't seen much of the world.

Nor does it feel "way bigger" than Houston. Even though it is definitely densely populated, it doesn't feel big.

LOL! Wow, the expert on my life, Santa Monica, and the world lives in Bellaire.

Originally Posted by Bobloblawslawblog

It does feel like part of a big city, but that's because Santa Monica is essentially to L.A. what West University is to Houston - an incorporated city surrounded by a much larger city. In Santa Monica's case, surrounded by the 2nd largest city (and MSA) in America. And it also depends on where you are in Santa Monica (it's much more dense in it's Southern half. The part North of Montana Ave. is wealthier and has larger homes on larger lots, therefore less dense).

Of course it's going to feel "bigger" than Houston, because it's basically an extension of L.A.

Exactly, Bob -- in terms of immediate feel. Santa Monica is sandwiched in between L.A. so you get the shadow of some of that density, too. I'm right on the stretch between North and South (downtown) and it feels a lot denser than most parts of Houston. The elevation/topography here also helps because you get the feeling that you are surrounded. SM has really done a good job of laying out their mixed-use development (Third Street Promenade/SM Place) in a way that's really conducive to exploration. I think it's how visitors get the feeling there is "nothing to do" in Houston when it's simply not the case. That's the thing with low density, you really have to know where you're going in Houston -- entertainment doesn't come to you.