"H-Town’s pride on the line" article on Travel+Leisure debacle (Houston: living in, studios)

[EasilyAmused]

Originally Posted by jfre81

How are we embracing mediocrity?

Endlessly chasing around the newest trend and groveling for general acceptance from a largely mediocre population is what I would call embracing mediocrity. Maybe we just don't see it the same way.

I think society as a whole embraces mediocrity.

well put.

[TexasTheKid]

Originally Posted by dcoolbro

I think you native Houstonians are in denial about Houston's perception problem. Those of us who've lived outside this city know this exist. Is it fair? No, but Houston has a problem. I bet the city's ecomony would be far more diversified if it didn't have an image problem. As many more non-energy businesses would be relocating and created here instead of Dallas, Austin and the like. I just think other cities in Texas have done a better job at branding themselves than we have. That does have an affect on our ecomony and what talent we attract here. Houston isn't doing bad, but who knows how great this city can be if we had a better image.

We don't seem to be having too much difficulty attracting business outside the energy industry:
TOP METROS OF 2008 -- Site Selection magazine, March 2009

We're going to be ok as a city regardless of whether or not we're perceived as a desireable place to take a vacation. By the way, no one will ever think vacation and Houston simultaneously. We don't have Times Square. We don't have a pretty beach. We don't mountains or even ample amounts of hills. However, we do get the business travelers and people passing through on I-10. More importantly, our handful of attractions do get local visitors and their local dollars. That's pretty important. It keeps the money in the local economy, and it means the paintings in the MFA only have the fingerprint smudges of local brats, not brats from all over the world.

Also, and I hate to say it, but travel magazines outside the US already tout Houston as being an inexpensive place to visit and see the "real" US. Apparently, even foreign tourists travel on a budget and New York and LA are getting pricey these days. It seems to be working because whenever I'm downtown I'll spot a ton of foreigners photographing the skyscrapers with their expensive cameras with the two foot long zoom lenses.

[houstoner]

Originally Posted by jfre81

How are we embracing mediocrity?

Endlessly chasing around the newest trend and groveling for general acceptance from a largely mediocre population is what I would call embracing mediocrity. Maybe we just don't see it the same way.

I think society as a whole embraces mediocrity.

You're embracing mediocrity when you say, "That's just the way things are" and "We don't care what people think" and so on. You embrace mediocrity when you equate making the city a better place to live with being trendy. It's not about being trendy. It's about having a vision to improve the city. If you're not interested in improving the quality of life here for ALL, not just some, and you just sit back and say, "Well, that's just how things work here, sonny," you're embracing mediocrity from where I'm sitting. Houston does not deserve its world-class city status, as it falls short when compared to other cities (Oh, noes! She compared Houston to another city! Where's my shotgun?!) in very obvious ways. It doesn't deserve to be hyped in its current state because it doesn't live up to any hype. I hate to say this, but Houston in its current state deserves its negative image problem.

[TexasTheKid]

Originally Posted by houstoner

You're embracing mediocrity when you say, "That's just the way things are" and "We don't care what people think" and so on. You embrace mediocrity when you equate making the city a better place to live with being trendy. It's not about being trendy. It's about having a vision to improve the city. If you're not interested in improving the quality of life here for ALL, not just some, and you just sit back and say, "Well, that's just how things work here, sonny," you're embracing mediocrity from where I'm sitting. Houston does not deserve its world-class city status, as it falls short when compared to other cities (Oh, noes! She compared Houston to another city! Where's my shotgun?!) in very obvious ways. It doesn't deserve to be hyped in its current state because it doesn't live up to any hype. I hate to say this, but Houston in its current state deserves its negative image problem.

You're suggesting that because we don't actively pursue tourism dollars we have no initiative to improve the city? There's a flaw in that line of logic. Houston's changed dramatically in the past couple decades. It's improved for the better, and that trend will continue. But, we're actively improving for our own benefit, not the benefit of others who may stop by and throw a few dollars at us. This isn't a city of dancing monkeys. We're self-aware and self-confident. We recognize our own face in a mirror.

[jfre81]

Originally Posted by houstoner

You embrace mediocrity when you equate making the city a better place to live with being trendy.

And where do I do that? All I'm opposing is expending resources propping up Houston as a leisure travel destination, since I'd rather see that go into things that make this a better place to live. Like better transit.

For all that's made about the image though I don't see where it's holding anything back. There aren't many places doing as well as we are nowadays. The "trendy" factor in Florida just helped inflate the housing bubble. Good thing that didn't happen here. (Think the zoning thing helps scare away the speculators too, if so, then all the better)

What we need to do is let it come naturally. No need to go clamoring for national attention just for the sake of national attention. See, we re-introduced (yes, I said "re-") Houston to rail transit just recently and people have gotten around to refraining from hanging illegal left turns in front of the light rail trains. Not only that, people are even riding them. There's actually life in parts of downtown after 5 now. Let it grow. There's more rail coming that will connect more neighborhoods. Then we will start seeing a proper inner city transit center. The burbs will have to wait but it'll get there eventually. Houston will get attention in its due time. For now, let's quit obsessing over what everyone else thinks and work on making this a better place to live, for our own sake.

[Black Jack22]

Perhaps Houston could model itself more so on the Space City theme to give it more of an identity. Looking at downtown, one does not think of space, since we are called Space City.

[jfre81]

Originally Posted by Black Jack22

Perhaps Houston could model itself more so on the Space City theme to give it more of an identity. Looking at downtown, one does not think of space, since we are called Space City.

Most of the tallest buildings downtown had a rather "space age" perception about them in their heyday but it's kind of dated now. There was a time when NASA was sufficient to give Houston an image (well, other than the usual Texas stereotype of cowboys roping cattle on a ranch) but over the decades it's lost its luster somewhat.

[EasilyAmused]

Gosh, other than the Astros and the Rockets name, I haven't thought of Houston as the Space City in a very long time.....Wasn't that a 60's term? I think Clear Lake is the Space City and Houston is Houston.

[TexasTheKid]

Originally Posted by jfre81

Most of the tallest buildings downtown had a rather "space age" perception about them in their heyday but it's kind of dated now. There was a time when NASA was sufficient to give Houston an image (well, other than the usual Texas stereotype of cowboys roping cattle on a ranch) but over the decades it's lost its luster somewhat.

Perhaps we could build a skyscraper shaped like a space shuttle right down in downtown. Who would office in it? Who knows? Who cares?! It would bring the tourists though... at least until the shuttle is doomed to obsolescence... oh wait...
Space shuttle to take last flight in May 2010 - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

[jfre81]

Originally Posted by TexasTheKid

Perhaps we could build a skyscraper shaped like a space shuttle right down in downtown. Who would office in it? Who knows? Who cares?! It would bring the tourists though... at least until the shuttle is doomed to obsolescence... oh wait...

lol

Downtown doesn't need more skyscrapers. It needs more people to call it home.

I do wish they'd make something out of the Astrodome. That was another thing that people used to come from all over to see, at least when playing a ballgame indoors was a novel thing.