San Francisco to Houston (Georgetown, Howe: real estate, condos, townhomes)

[testmo]

what part of houston is treeless? you can get away from them here. the newer suburbs, which some half heads love, yeah don't have mature trees. because your developer bulldozed them all down to build the largest cheapest home possible for you and your neighbors. could never say majority of houston is "treeless" that is a ridiculous statement

[micmac99]

I grew up in the Bay Area (East Oakland) and have lived in several places in the Sun Belt including Atlanta, Phoenix, Dallas and Las Vegas. I live in Houston now (Westchase).

I like Westchase and some of the newer parts of Fort Bend county. But overall, I have found since moving here in fall 2010 that 75% of Houston is butt ugly. 40% of Houston is ghetto (or should I say, solidly blue-collar). The city does not do a good job AT ALL with road beautification and signage outside of some of the "special districts" like Westchase, Spring Branch and portions of Sharpstown. If Houston would redesign its street signs and stoplight masts that would be 25% of the problem solved right there. Many parts of town have stoplights and street signs hanging from wires. That is tacky and makes Houston look like some rural town out in the middle of nowhere when we are the 6th largest metro area in America.

(Take a look at these street signs from the Phoenix area: parts of the Energy Corridor here in Houston use a similar style which works awesome:
http://shell.deru.com/~gdt/babs/bars...riceCorner.jpg)

And if you drive on the streets in this city be prepared to think your tires and suspension will be worn out. Many streets here are worn, filled with cracks and potholes. Drive the length of Richmond Avenue from Midtown to Highway 6. That's a PERFECT example.

Looking for a neighborhood to live in? Do a search for Randalls or Whole Foods supermarkets and concentrate on those zip codes where you find them. If the neighborhood has a Food Town, Foodarama or Dollar General locations, the income level is lower and the crime rate a little higher. This is a good rule of thumb for most areas of Texas.

[Lije Baley]

Originally Posted by testmo

.......could never say majority of houston is "treeless" that is a ridiculous statement

I was comparing Houston to areas crammed with trees, so I guess I got a little carried away.

[TrueDat]

Originally Posted by micmac99

(Take a look at these street signs from the Phoenix area: parts of the Energy Corridor here in Houston use a similar style which works awesome:
http://shell.deru.com/~gdt/babs/bars...riceCorner.jpg)

Dallas needs to clean up its act with regards to street signage, stop lights, and telephone polls too. Cities like LA and Phoenix seem to be way ahead in that regard.

I like the signage in Houston near the Galleria. It may be a bit over the top but it seems to personify Houston's Space City image.

[Lije Baley]

Originally Posted by micmac99

Drive the length of Richmond Avenue from Midtown to Highway 6.

Because it IS so bad, I now avoid it if all possible - I truly can say (no hyperbole here) that if your car's shocks are worn out, do not drive on it. I've been in cars w/older shocks whose front end seemed to have literally left the ground and then - and we know the following actually occurred - came back down hard enough to crash into the front suspension's internal bump-stops. Not fun. And btw this was going at the posted speed limit.

I like the signage in Houston near the Galleria. It may be a bit over the top but it seems to personify Houston's Space City image.

+1

[micmac99]

Originally Posted by TrueDat

Dallas needs to clean up its act with regards to street signage, stop lights, and telephone polls too. Cities like LA and Phoenix seem to be way ahead in that regard.

I like the signage in Houston near the Galleria. It may be a bit over the top but it seems to personify Houston's Space City image.
Attachment 88330

I am still fairly new to Houston but that Galleria signage (the METRO bus stops have a complementary design) is a perfect fit for the upscale "Beverly Hills"-wanna-be shopping and hotel attitude in that area.

[westhou]

Originally Posted by Lije Baley

Because it IS so bad, I now avoid it if all possible - I truly can say (no hyperbole here) that if your car's shocks are worn out, do not drive on it. I've been in cars w/older shocks whose front end seemed to have literally left the ground and then - and we know the following actually occurred - came back down hard enough to crash into the front suspension's internal bump-stops. Not fun. And btw this was going at the posted speed limit.

+1

Westheimer between Montrose and Shepard is brutal. Great way to tear up your car.

[Premont]

I've been out west to a lot of these cities some of you rave about.

Phoenix - Smaller, dingier and much less urban than Houston. Extreme heat.
Las Vegas - Interesting at night. Ugly dust bowl in the day. Extreme heat.
San Francisco - Naturally beautiful and scenic, but no shortage of urban blight and homelessness.
Los Angeles - Similar to Houston. Better beaches and scenery, but more pollution and traffic.

My Dad was from the Bronx and attended his brother's funeral in NY about 10 years ago. I asked him how the city had changed. He said, "It was a dump then, it's a dump now."

All of these cities have their own ghettos and bad roads just like Houston. Those are the facts. The rest is just opinion.

[HtownLove]

Originally Posted by testmo

what part of houston is treeless? you can get away from them here. the newer suburbs, which some half heads love, yeah don't have mature trees. because your developer bulldozed them all down to build the largest cheapest home possible for you and your neighbors. could never say majority of houston is "treeless" that is a ridiculous statement

Originally Posted by Lije Baley

I was comparing Houston to areas crammed with trees, so I guess I got a little carried away.

Its getting carried away like this that makes people call other posters Testmo.

Houston is one of the most heavily treed metros Testmo should not have to spend his time defending Houston's greenery.

Why do people always have to go to the extreme with y'all statements?

And someone coming from Arizona should not be opening their mouth talking about Houston's trees. Phoenix is butt ugly all over the city, stop acting like it is only Houston that have run down areas.

Heck Phoenix's downtown is new and two blocks in most directions puts you in the same butt ugly looking areas.
its like all of you move away to Houston and forget that cities in your state are just the same.

And geez, someone makes a thread about moving to Houston and all the advice all of you have to give is an essay on the looks?? Driving with yall must be fun.

[HtownLove]

Originally Posted by Premont

I've been out west to a lot of these cities some of you rave about.

Phoenix - Smaller, dingier and much less urban than Houston. Extreme heat.
Las Vegas - Interesting at night. Ugly dust bowl in the day. Extreme heat.
San Francisco - Naturally beautiful and scenic, but no shortage of urban blight and homelessness.
Los Angeles - Similar to Houston. Better beaches and scenery, but more pollution and traffic.

My Dad was from the Bronx and attended his brother's funeral in NY about 10 years ago. I asked him how the city had changed. He said, "It was a dump then, it's a dump now."

All of these cities have their own ghettos and bad roads just like Houston. Those are the facts. The rest is just opinion.

totally agree.

Phoenix:

Saw lots of these- http://uglyhousephotos.com/wordpress...08/110825i.jpg

http://uglyhousephotos.com/wordpress...10/081001a.jpg

tons of these- http://uglyhousephotos.com/wordpress...06/110629f.jpg

http://uglyhousephotos.com/wordpress...05/080526e.jpg

Las Vegas- wonder off the strip and you fall into this:
http://wwp.greenwichmeantime.com/tim...p-from-air.jpg

Seattle-
Yes run down areas here too:

http://www.thestranger.com/images/bl...ley_houses.jpg

http://www.thestranger.com/images/bl...ferson_pic.jpg

Los Angeles:
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/99/30...fa5660.jpg?v=0
http://www.urbanohio.com/OtherStates...ngelesCA17.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2379/...9bf0ac.jpg?v=0
http://www.urbanohio.com/OtherStates...ngelesCA18.jpg