Is Houston, Tx as horrible as I'm hearing?

Question

I will be moving from NY to an area around houston (not sure exactly where yet) hopefully 30min-40min from houston. I saw a lot of comments posted about how horrible houston is, the weather, the traffic, the area after hurricane katrina, that it's a busy area. Where is a good place to live around houston? Preferably away from the coast and not that industrialized, I know it's a big oil area, but not that country either. Something in between. I'm looking for a more peaceful place than NY and cheaper to live but not poor, also I read that it rains a lot there, is that true? I can handle the heat I'm trying to get away from the winter. If anyone knows, how would you compare it to NY? What kind of museums or sites are there to see? Basically I would like to get the feel of what to expect from someone who lives there. Please help. I've searched some internet sites and they don't have something current or a clear picture of the surrounding towns of houston.

Answer 1

I am going to try to answer as many of these questions as possible! (BTW: There are certain areas of Houston where the Katrina evacuees have congregated...like zip code 77082 and Southwest Houston/Missouri City....just stay out of Houston ISD, Alief ISD, North Forest ISD, and Cy-fair ISD to name a few!)

Traffic can really suck during rush hour. This is always a given. There is not much that can be done about it. You just get used to it...well, you learn to deal with it! Things are not nearly as crazy as I have seen it in NYC.

A great place to live is in the area known as Katy, west of Houston, off of I-10. Katy has an excellent school district and excellent neighborhoods. http://www.katyisd.org/

Home prices in the Katy area run from $90,000's all the way up to $1 million+ and you get some great square footage! Here is a web site that can help you find out about houses and house prices in all areas here: http://www.har.com/
Here are some nicer areas to look at: Brookshire, Katy, Friendswood, Sugar Land, Taylor Lake Village, Seabrook, Pearland, Manvel, Magnolia, and Waller. You can search by city/area, zip code, or school district. I will tell you that ther further west you go, the better off you will be. Expansion is moving westward and there are plenty of new homes to choose from....as well as some very nice established communities.

Here is some information about our weather: http://www.cityrating.com/cityweather.asp?city=Houston
It does rain quite a bit.....we do get some pretty good summer showers, but they come and go quickly....usually! In the winter we can get a lot of rain with el nino. Yes it can get hot....and yes there are days where there will be almost 100% humidity on top of it....but you just learn to deal with it. You learn to adapt to it....and sort of get used to it.

Here are some links and information about the Museums and other local points of interest.
Houston Museum Distirct
http://www.houstonmuseumdistrict.org/default.asp?id=1
The Houston Museum District is an area of Houston where many of the city's museums are located. The district is centered on the Hotel Zaza (currently being renovated) and the adjacent Mecom Fountain. The Museum District also houses Rice University, the Clayton Library Center for Genealogical Research and Hermann Park which includes the Houston Zoo and the Miller Outdoor Theatre. The Museum District is also near the University of Saint Thomas.
Some of the museums and institutions include:
Holocaust Museum Houston
Children's Museum of Houston
John P. McGovern Museum of Health & Medical Science
Contemporary Arts Museum Houston
The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
Museum of Natural Science
The Buffalo Soldiers National Museum
Byzantine Fresco Chapel Museum
Houston Center for Contemporary Craft
Houston Center for Photography
John C. Freeman Weather Museum

HERMANN PARK
Hermann Park is one of Houston's finest and most-visited public parks. Situated between Fannin Street and North Macgregor Way, it is within walking distance from the Texas Medical Center, Rice University, and the Museum District, and within a few miles of the Third Ward, the historic Astrodome and Reliant Stadium (home stadium for the Houston Texans). The land which it occupies was presented to the City of Houston by George Hermann in 1914. The park is located at 29.717°, -95.391°.
This historic 445-acre park space is home to numerous cultural institutions including the Houston Zoo, Houston Garden Center, Miller Outdoor Theatre, Houston Museum of Natural Science, and the Hermann Park Golf Course, which was the first desegregated public golf course in the United States.

TEXAS MEDICAL CENTER
The Texas Medical Center, with more than five million patient visits annually and one of the highest densities of clinical facilities and basic science and translational research of any location, is the largest medical district in the world. The center is located in Houston, Texas. It contains 42 medicine-related institutions, 13 hospitals, and two medical schools.
Adjacent to the center is Rice University, Hermann Park, Reliant Park and the Museum District.
Patient care institutions
Northern view of Texas Medical Center campus with downtown Houston in the distanceBen Taub General Hospital, part of the Harris County Hospital District
The Hospice at The Texas Medical Center
Memorial Hermann Hospital
The Methodist Hospital
Saint Luke's Episcopal Hospital
Shriners Hospitals for Children - Houston
Texas Children's Hospital
The Institute for Rehabilitation and Research (TIRR)
The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center

MIDTOWN (Midtown Houston is a district southwest of Downtown Houston, Texas, bordered by the Montrose area and U.S. Highway 59.)
Midtown has become one of the hotest nightspots in town, and is filled with a number of restaurants, bars, theatres, and art galleries.
Some notable restaurants are:
Julia's Bistro, The Fish, The Breakfast Klub, Farrago World, Cuisine, Ponzo's Italian Food, T'afia, Van Loc
The Ensemble Theater in Midtown Houston. Also seen are the two kinds of street signs on the same pole (one for Midtown and one for the Main Street Corridor) that are seen along Main Street in Midtown. Bars include: Pub Fiction, Red Door, Front Porch Pub, Wet Spot, Little Woodrow's, Tipsy Clover, Theatres, art galleries, and museums, which include: The Ensemble Theater (a theater that focuses on African-American themed plays)
The Community Artists' Collective, Houston Fire Museum, Houston Center for Contemporary Arts, Lawndale Art Center
Midtown Art Center, Destiny's Child's Recording Studio

THE GALLERIA (just outside the city's I-610 inner beltway)
Anchor Stores:
Macy's Neiman Marcus Nordstrom Saks Fifth Avenue Other notable stores in the Galleria include:
Adrienne Vittadini, Anne Fontaine, Apple Store, A/X Armani, Exchange, Baccarat, Bally of Switzerland, Bang & Olufsen,
Barneys, New York CO-OP, BCBG, Max Azria, Betsey Johnson,
Brooks Brothers, Bulgari, Burberry, Cartier, Chanel, CH, Carolina Herrera, Christian Dior ,Christofle, Club Monaco, Coach, Cole, Haan, David Yurman, Discovery Channel, Disney, Duo, Emporio Armani, Energie, Fendi, Fila Forth & Towne, French Connection, Gianni Versace, Giorgio Armani, Gucci ,Jacadi, Jessica McClintock, Jimmy Choo, Kate Spade, Kenneth Cole, Lacoste Lalique, Louis Vuitton ,Luca Luca ,Marmi, Max Mara, Michael Kors, Miss Sixty, Montblanc, Movado, Oakley, Puma, Ralph Lauren, Salvatore Ferragamo, Sony, Style, St. John, Stuart Weitzman, Swatch, Tiffany & Co., Tourneau, Tumi Wolford ,Yves Saint Laurent, Zara
There is also an ice skating rink inside! And yes this is just a huge mall, but there are also many quaint stores and restaurants in the area as well!

THE THEATRE DISTIRCT (DOWNTOWN)
The Houston Theater District, a 17-block area in the heart of Downtown Houston, is home to Houston's nine world-class performing arts organizations, the 130,000 square-foot Bayou Place entertainment complex, restaurants, movies, plazas and parks. The district is ranked second in the United States for the number of theater seats in a concentrated downtown area and is one of only five cities with permanent professional resident companies in all of the major performing arts disciplines (the Houston Grand Opera, the Houston Symphony Orchestra, the Houston Ballet, and The Alley Theatre).
One of the several attractions in the district is the Bayou Place Entertainment Complex—a large multilevel building that is home to full service restaurants, bars, live music, billiards, multiple theatres and art house films. The Houston Verizon Wireless Theatre stages a variety of live concerts and the Angelika Theatre presents the latest in art, foreign and independent films.

NEARTOWN--AKA MONTROSE (Neartown is bounded by U.S. Highway 59 to the south, Allen Parkway to the north, Bagby Street on the east, and Shepherd Drive to the west.)
Neartown is an area located in west-central Houston, Texas and is one of the city's major cultural areas. The location comes with distinctive character of eccentricity and diversity. The location and boundaries of Neartown is colloquially referred to as Montrose. Once a magnet for the hippie movement, Houstonians would consider it as a hybrid of San Francisco's the Haight-Ashbury and The Castro.
Museums: Menil Collection art museum, Rothko Chapel, Houston Center for Photography, Byzantine Fresco Chapel Museum, Museo Guadalupe Aztlan, Museum of Printing History, Dan Flavin permanent exhibit

KATY
Katy is named for the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad (commonly referred to as the "Katy Railroad", now a part of Union Pacific) that ran through Katy in the 19th century. Katy was once known as Cane Island. The name is derived from Cane Island Creek which runs just west of downtown. Cane Creek is a branch of Buffalo Bayou. The origins of the name Cane Island are believed to be from the fact that Katy was once a major sugar cane producer. The Houston suburb's prime attraction is the Katy Mills Mall. A secondary attraction is an unusual outdoor museum of Chinese culture and history called the Forbidden Gardens.
Katy has one shopping center, Katy Mills Mall; and two that will be completed in the future, The Village of Katy, a shopping and business center, and the West Grand Promenade.
Katy is home to the Igloo Corporation.

CLEAR LAKE
http://www.spacecenter.org/
NASA

SEABROOK/KEMAH
Seabrook is well-known among Houston metropolitan area residents for its fish markets on Waterfront Drive where resident shrimpers and fishermen bring in their catches daily. Besides bordering the bay, the city encompasses marshes though which runoff from inland fields drain to the bay. There are eight miles of continuous trails from Hammer Street to Galveston Bay at Pine Gully Park, where the Lucky Trails Marathon is run in March. Seabrook is also home of the eclectic Mariabelle's which sponsors a popular 5K fun run every August. Seabrook is also host to the Texas Concours d'Elegance "Keels & Wheels" classic car and boat show held each year the first weekend in May at Lakewood Yacht Club.
The Kemah Boardwalk is an amusement park in Kemah, Texas. The main attractions of the 35-acre complex are its many restaurants overlooking Galveston Bay, recreational sailing, and rides. The area was developed by Landry's, which owns all of the restaurants on the boardwalk. Activities include shopping and midway games, as well as a miniature train that traverses the entire area. Additional attractions include a 36-foot carousel and a 65-foot Ferris wheel.

GALVESTON
Galveston is known for its historic neighborhoods and a ten-mile long seawall designed to protect the city from floods. It is also home to the infamous Balinese Room, a historic nightclub and former illegal gambling hall located on a 600-foot pier extending into the Gulf of Mexico. The city houses many tourist attractions. The attractions include the Galveston Schlitterbahn waterpark, Moody Gardens, the Lone Star Flight Museum, a downtown neighborhood of historic buildings known as "The Strand," many historical museums and mansions, and miles of beach front. The Strand plays host to a yearly Mardi Gras festival, Galveston Island Jazz & Blues Festival, Texas Beach Fest, Lone Star Bike Rally, and a Victorian-themed Christmas festival called "Dickens on the Strand" (honoring the works of novelist Charles Dickens, especially A Christmas Carol) in early December. There are lots of shops along The Strand that you can have fun in.
Other attractions in Galveston include Moody Gardens, the Galveston Island Railroad Museum, Schlitterbahn, the Strand and the Lone Star Flight Museum. Galveston is also home to several historic ships: the tall ship Elissa at the Texas Seaport Museum and USS Cavalla and USS Stewart, both berthed at Seawolf Park on nearby Pelican Island. Galveston is also home to a symphony orchestra and a small ballet company.

I hope that this starts to give you an idea about what Houston is like.

Answer 2

We enjoyed Houston very much. A lot to do all the time. And, just because you are moving to Houston doesn't mean you have to live IN Houston.

Houston has been the only place I have been that I could actually see the topography change in front of me. From forest and hills on the north side to the flat grassland to the south that leads toward the gulf, it's a really big place.

Houston Intercontinental is on the northeast of Houston. That is about the line where you start to see forest.

To the north (which I recommend) on I-45 you have a fantastic community, the Woodlands, also next to it is Shennandoah with malls. The town of Spring is full of antique stores and is just a couple of miles south of the Woodlands. Just off I-35 is Kingwood, near Greenspoint Mall. A small distant further is city of Conroe, it's a little far to live, but if you enjoy boating/fishing, there is a large lake with all the ammenities. There are smaller communities all around Houston and I am sure that you will find one that will be comfortable for you. It does get hot and it is humid. I would like to say that you will get use to it, but you won't. People that say that . . . lie.

I didn't mind driving in Houston, I believe Dallas is much worse. Commute times can be bad and you have to find your own "window" of time for where you live vs. work. We lived 35 miles to the north; but, if my husband didn't catch a 15 minute window (get on the road at just the right time) it could end up taking 1 1/2 - 2 hours instead of 40 minutes to get to his office. The good thing was that when he got home it was as though work was a million miles away - quiet, slow. The people of Texas are friendly, the word for Texas - Tejas, means friendly and the people seem to come by it naturally.

I hope you enjoy Houston and Texas in particular as much as we have. Welcome, Bienvenidos!

Answer 3

Great Caruso Dinner Theater Houston

Answer 4

You might look into the Great Caruso! It is a dinner theatre over off of Westheimer and beltway 8. It costs about $35 to $40, depending if it is during the week or weekend, a person and that includes the play and the meal. It is really a neat place to go.

Answer 5

Well it depends.....i go to McAllen Every summer to visit my mom and i fly through the houston International Airport and yes the heat is unbearable and the brightness outside does take some time to get used to but overall the atmosphere is great. For the most part people are pretty nice and they are will ing to help out alot mre rather than places like Florida or California....But there is nothing to worry about but i know for a fact that the Policemen there alot less leanient but as long as you follow the laws and you respect others you will be in good shape...There are alot of people yes but coming from New York it should feel like your in some small place like Alabama or someting. Best of luck and hope you enjoy Texas as much as i do......keep in touch if you have any other concerns about there...([e-mail])

Best of luck,

William Dawson

Answer 6

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Answer 7

I can't say whether or not you'll like it, but I can guarantee you that it'll be a bit of a shock at first. I joined the Army from Long Island and got stationed at Ft. Hood in central Texas. I miss the snow, it's so hot that I run my AC from February until November, Christmas doesn't feel like Christmas when it gets up into the eighties, and Texans are by and large full of themselves. They even have Texas-shapes tortilla chips and bricks of cheese in the local grocery stores. But there are things that I'm going to miss when I leave here, like the great Mexican restaurants, and the courteous drivers (the locals are polite on the road, not the other soldiers). Texans may be overly proud of their state, but they're friendly folks for the most part. Make sure you go to San Antonio and to Austin for some sightseeing.

Answer 8

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Answer 9

I lived in Upstate NY. I moved to Houston - love love Houston.

Down town in Neartown is great or The Heights. Montrose area is great.

Depending on where you will be working should decide where you live in Houston.

Answer 10

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Answer 11

It s a disgusting **** hole full of ******* and spics. Traffic is endless, at all times of the day, everywhere, the air smells like actual **** due to the abundance of bayous (massive outdoor sewer ditches) and their evaporating black water; the climate in general is miserable, with 75-85% humidity almost year round and extreme heat, even during supposed winter and there are constant brownouts due to a terrible, old, ill maintained infrastructure.

Welcome to ******* hell. The ******* praising this **** hole only say so because they ve either literally NEVER left the confines of this putrid sewer, or they re ******* paid shills; most likely they re just disgusting lizard people that actually enjoy 98f degree weather with 88% humidity in ******* feburary.