Tell me about Pasadena...

[texas7]

lol - Yes - that was the area known as "old pasadena" - the undesirable area. Nobody goes there - even the decent stores are not in there. That mall was pretty much downhill since the mid 1990s. So going there -- doesn't count as an opinion on the entire area.

Sort of like any area of greater Houston - you can have a really nice area that somewhere borders up against a very undesirable area. You have to know where you are going in any city.

[SouthmoreAve]

Originally Posted by Texascrude

I just moved to Houston and wanted to check out all the malls that I had heard of. I drove from Humble to the mall in Pasadena (like I said, I had just moved here) and was too afraid to get out of my car to actually see what stores were inside.

Oh, and this was on a Saturday afternoon.

Its store selection is pretty mediocre, but it has the closest Sears and Macys to service the closest 150-200,00 people, but I think still pass up Pasadena Town Square for better malls like Baybrook, etc. It has the standard shoe stores, Journey's, Finishline, Famous Footwear, Payless, etc, and a substandard food court selection, a Palais Royal,Anna's Linnens, F.Y.E, Melrose, Radio Shack, Claire's, Toys R Us Express and the other usual mall stores like 5 jewelry stores, etc. It has what most non-upscale malls have in the GHouston area. It's not dangerous at all, City Hall, the Police Dept. HQ, the Central Library, the Main Post Office, and 3 schools all border or are within a 2 block radius from the Mall.

Originally Posted by texas7

lol - Yes - that was the area known as "old pasadena" - the undesirable area. Nobody goes there - even the decent stores are not in there. That mall was pretty much downhill since the mid 1990s. So going there -- doesn't count as an opinion on the entire area.

Sort of like any area of greater Houston - you can have a really nice area that somewhere borders up against a very undesirable area. You have to know where you are going in any city.

Unlike other cities where both good and bad areas are given acknowledgement, Pasadena gets a bad rep for people generalizing the entire city over a small undesireable area.

Not to you, but to the cancer comment:
I jog every weekday morning in the undiserable area, about 3 blocks south of SH 225, in a four block square between Shaver and Main, and have yet to develop cancer, and that area is in ok condition, with new sidewalks and the new Shaver street, my guess due to Memorial Park, and 3 schools taking up a large portion of the area.

Originally Posted by pacific_trader

I've living close to Pasadena for about 15 years but am now officially "Pasadena scum", having moved just inside the Beltway a few months ago. If you're near Fairmont and the Beltway, you'd think you're on Bay Area Blvd in Clear Lake - it's very uppity. But yeah, cruise down Spencer or Pasadena Blvd far enough and you're back in the ghetto - nothing but pawn shops, used car dealerships, strip clubs, liquor stores and "send money to Honduras" and check cashing places.

Safety wise, the most dangerous thing in Pasadena is driving past 9pm on the weekend. The illegal aliens leave the Tejano bars with 6 to 8 beers in them, get in their uninsured Chevy trucks, and proceed to kill everything in sight, then drive away.

Other than that, I love it here. I'm at the top of the food chain - definately one of the more attractive people around here, that much is for sure.

Yeah, Im guessing this is only on some small sections of the city? Because on any given weekend on any given street past 9 pm, I am not fearful of getting killed by "drunk illegal aliens".

[tstone]

Originally Posted by SouthmoreAve

Yeah, Im guessing this is only on some small sections of the city? Because on any given weekend on any given street past 9 pm, I am not fearful of getting killed by "drunk illegal aliens".

I'm more concerned by getting killed by coked up, 19 yr old white boys having cussing-shouting matches w/ each other & racing down the roads in their pick'em-up trucks. Mostly around Genoa-Red Bluff to Spencer, the otherwise decent part of town.

[Poltracker]

Originally Posted by Texascrude

I just moved to Houston and wanted to check out all the malls that I had heard of. I drove from Humble to the mall in Pasadena (like I said, I had just moved here) and was too afraid to get out of my car to actually see what stores were inside.

Oh, and this was on a Saturday afternoon.

Pasadena Town Square is not what it was even 20 years ago, but it is not dangerous. My office is not far from there and I have been shopping the mall for about 20 years. Just go to Macy's and Sears now, but I have never had one problem or even heard of crime there other than probably some shoplifting (which happens everywhere). It does help that Police headquarters practically uses the same parking lots. For that matter, my office is in the Old part of Pasadena north of 225 and we have never had any problems with car theft or similar crimes. Heck, I used to work midnight shifts on my own with no problems. Not saying I didn't keep a watch out...that is only prudent, but the worst dangers around here are from drunk drivers in the evenings.

[Texascrude]

Originally Posted by Poltracker

Pasadena Town Square is not what it was even 20 years ago, but it is not dangerous. My office is not far from there and I have been shopping the mall for about 20 years. Just go to Macy's and Sears now, but I have never had one problem or even heard of crime there other than probably some shoplifting (which happens everywhere). It does help that Police headquarters practically uses the same parking lots. For that matter, my office is in the Old part of Pasadena north of 225 and we have never had any problems with car theft or similar crimes. Heck, I used to work midnight shifts on my own with no problems. Not saying I didn't keep a watch out...that is only prudent, but the worst dangers around here are from drunk drivers in the evenings.

Good to know -- thanks! Guess you can't always judge an area by looking.

Now Greenspoint Mall on the other hand...

[texas7]

Originally Posted by tstone

I'm more concerned by getting killed by coked up, 19 yr old white boys having cussing-shouting matches w/ each other & racing down the roads in their pick'em-up trucks. Mostly around Genoa-Red Bluff to Spencer, the otherwise decent part of town.

I don't really see than anymore either - sounds a little Urban Cowboy-ish. With the demographics shifting -- the strong redneck element is no more or less than other areas. With the changing demographics - I think that element is worse in the Conroe/New Caney/Porter areas now. But that is a mere assumption on my part because any time I drive though that area, that is what I see a lot of.

[pacific_trader]

lol, well that mall is pretty safe, it's just dead now.

[SouthmoreAve]

Originally Posted by pacific_trader

lol, well that mall is pretty safe, it's just dead now.

I'd say its just past its prime, I mean its not dead exactly. It is in the lower tier of malls in the area, but a dead mall is one that stores are gradually closing, and no new stores are coming. And while Pasadena Town Square has had its share of closings, the only store that I know that is closing currently is Famous Footwear, and there have been some new ones coming in, like Toys R Us Express, god knows why an already declining brand and concept chose to expand here, but there you have it. There are notable vacancies in the outer ends, but the mall itself is not dead yet. I'm not saying its in healthy condition, but it's not dead either.

[texas7]

It's relatively dead compared to other Malls in the city - I'd put it put it slightly below Almeda Mall but not much - that is a pretty dead mall too with stores nobody really wants to go to - not sure why Macy's hangs on there.

[pacific_trader]

I remember putting together the Sam Goody in that mall. It must have been about 1992, because I remember seeing Bram Stoker's Dracula the night before. Man that was a while back, I think I was living on El Dorado in Clear Lake.