Houston's Galleria & West Rice Areas (Photos) (Austin, Cinco Ranch: homes, neighborhood)

[Bike4Life]

Now you can understand why I bike to work. Jog to Rice University. And go in and around the Loop. This is a prime example of better urban designs of the past.

[jfre81]

Originally Posted by houstoner

Well, now, sounds like a little history lesson is in order... Here's the ueber-abridged version: the Rice U area consists of a collection of neighborhoods that were suburbs at one time. It was considered the edge of town, like everything outside of downtown was. But the City of Houston kept growing and growing and growing and later added the 610 freeway loop (which is as much an ideological boundary as a physical one) and voilà! you get the Beast known as Houston that we have today. So some areas within the loop are urban-suburban, I think is what we've agreed to call it. Suburban in the built environment, but urban in the way life goes on, if that makes sense. Did you check out the HAIF link I gave you a while back? There's lots of info and background on Houston neighborhoods there.

You might wanna reconsider that job offer, it it's not too late.

This can be said for most of what's inside 610, south of 59 and west of 288, as well as many areas closer to 610 all around including the Heights. Maybe "semi-urban" rolls off the tongue (or keyboard?) a little better. It was definitely fewer keystrokes, and that's good enough for me. There is still a grid of sorts rather than subdivisions in the Cinco Ranch sense. You have to go about halfway between 610 and Beltway 8 in most directions before those start taking over. These are mostly newer, built after 1980 (I guess after the *haunted house look* went out of style - did I understand that correctly, Wizzywig?) They don't build suburbs like they used to. The move outward to Katy, Spring and such really got going after the 1980s oil bust. This helped make some of these "old" suburbs thought of more as the inner city.

The Rice Village area is not far from the Texas Medical Center which, if people being seen walking around is the measuring stick for urbanity, could be considered the most urban place in Houston.

[houstoner]

I stumbled across some awesome pictures of historic Houston (circa 1920's judging by the cars and fashions) at a building in the Medical Center the other day. Hordes of people walking around downtown. They were fully clothed, so the lack of urban, pedestrian areas isn't because of the humidity. It really gave you an idea of what Might Have Been...

(Can we ever stay on topic? Apparently not. )

[jfre81]

What's a topic?

[Bike4Life]

Originally Posted by houstoner

I stumbled across some awesome pictures of historic Houston (circa 1920's judging by the cars and fashions) at a building in the Medical Center the other day. Hordes of people walking around downtown. They were fully clothed, so the lack of urban, pedestrian areas isn't because of the humidity. It really gave you an idea of what Might Have Been...

(Can we ever stay on topic? Apparently not. )

Sure, where are the pictures or a link? I've seen a few in the hallway around TMC but you might have something better.

[houstoner]

Originally Posted by Bike4Life

Sure, where are the pictures or a link? I've seen a few in the hallway around TMC but you might have something better.

I don't have the pictures or a link. They're at the TMC. Sounds like we may have seen the same ones?

[texasboi]

I love those stone homes..how much does a house like that go for?

[CanTex]

If Rice U is a suburb, then I must be living in outer space since I'm beyond Hwy 6!

[Nairobi]

Oh, the Galleria Mall...Houston's saving grace.

[cwooten85]

Awsome pitcures. Going to move to Houston soon so pictures help me see what's what.