AZ/NM Desert Rat looking for "charm" & wants to retire near water/decent shopping/restaurants. Suggestions appreciated.

[texas7]

Lots of palms have been lost due to the freeze — all the way to the coast. Galveston lost some but fared better than more inland.

[KerrTown]

Originally Posted by texas7

Lots of palms have been lost due to the freeze — all the way to the coast. Galveston lost some but fared better than more inland.

I would say that Galveston may have fared worse since there are plenty of tropical landscapes due to the coastal location. It may have been warmer than the rest of Texas, but it got cold enough to kill tropical flowers like hibiscus and it was borderline palm killing temps anywhere south of I-10.

The storm delayed the Live Oak "autumn" season. So many leaves falling out of the oaks around town creating piles of mess! Pretty much the only plants that survived the freeze were greenery such as shrubs and trees. Native plants can survive a short winter blast and will recover fully once Spring arrives within the next couple of months.

[magni]

Except for the beach, I think The Woodlands has all that you want. Lake Conroe is within 30 mins driving distance if what you are looking for from the beach is the views and fishing, it may be good enough too.

[Rancho5]

Thanks!

[Rancho5]

Originally Posted by magni

Except for the beach, I think The Woodlands has all that you want. Lake Conroe is within 30 mins driving distance if what you are looking for from the beach is the views and fishing, it may be good enough too.

Woodlands is sweet! Thanks for the referral. I can totally live away from the beach if I lived in the trees. Didn’t think that many trees were possible in Houston. Heading to N Houston in July to check it out.

[LocalPlanner]

Originally Posted by Rancho5

Woodlands is sweet! Thanks for the referral. I can totally live away from the beach if I lived in the trees. Didn’t think that many trees were possible in Houston. Heading to N Houston in July to check it out.

The Great Southern Forest literally has its southwestern terminus at Houston. The northern part of the metro area is mostly heavily forested, though sometimes clear cut when new development occurs.

[Rancho5]

Originally Posted by LocalPlanner

The Great Southern Forest literally has its southwestern terminus at Houston. The northern part of the metro area is mostly heavily forested, though sometimes clear cut when new development occurs.

This is cool, I had no idea! Are they Ponderosa Pines?

[LocalPlanner]

Originally Posted by Rancho5

This is cool, I had no idea! Are they Ponderosa Pines?

No - I'm not an expert, but I believe most of them are yellow pines and loblolly pines. Ponderosa pines are more found in the western U.S. at higher elevations.

[KerrTown]

Originally Posted by Rancho5

This is cool, I had no idea!

Most people don't realize that Houston has a very diverse ecology. The major layers are the pine forests in the north, the bayou swamp through the middle of the city, and the coastal area.

[jackalope48]

Think you should check out Corpus.

Within 30 min to the beach

Has 120 miles of Public Beach. Downtown Beach, North Beach Beach, State Park beach, City and County Gulf Beaches, and National Park Beach. It's impossible to live in Corpus and be more than 20 minutes from a beach. Water is clearer than Galveston.

Paved bike trails (20 miles-ish or more)

Has the Bay Trail which is being repaved as we speak. https://www-cdn.cctexas.com/sites/de...ure-200411.pdf It's basically the length of the Bayfront so the view is the water and the nicest houses in the city. Groups of riders every morning and several national level events a year. Also you can do a ring around the Bay.

Green, and shade trees (NM has none)

Older Parts of town have old growth oaks. I had one that took up my whole backyard with the canopy on an 8000 sq.ft. lot.

Stores newer that 20 years old (NM has none)

Mall is very busy still and was totally renovated 10 years ago. Have most of the big national chains.

Decent restaurants/movie theaters/shopping not too far

Have an Alamo Drafthouse and Cinemark renovated to compete, most of the good chain restaurants, and lots of very good local restaurants

Charming parks, walkways, outdoor eating, etc. (NM has none)

We have a lot of waterfront restaurants with outdoor eating. Weather is good here so lots of places have it. Our premier parks tend to the Downtown water front ones like Water's Edge and Cole Park. We are also a major birding destination so there are a huge number of very large nature preserves with walking trails.

Pickle ball courts a plus.

We have city owned and operated pickelball courts(indoor and outdoor) as well as some private ones. The big city court is in South Downtown.

I saw on the first page some people suggested Corpus and someone said we were hurricane prone. We are not. In the last 100 years we've been hit as frequently as Boston. Corpus is protected by the Yucatan so it and south of it are the least hit by storms of anywhere North or East of it. New York City is how far East and North you have to go to get a similar storm risk.