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Market Urbanism: Houston Impressions

Discussion in 'BBS Hangout' started by basso, Mar 15, 2022.

  1. basso

    basso Member
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    Houston Impressions

    MARCH 14, 2022 BY SALIM FURTH

    Given that I’ve written a few papers about Harris County, Texas, and even helped republish a book about the city of Houston, it’s a little embarrassing to admit I had never been there. So when a Canadian buddy suggested meeting up in the Bayou City for barbeque ahead of his conference there, I jumped at the chance.

    As a market urbanist, I was already a fan of Houston in theory. But the visit made me significantly upgrade my evaluation of Houston as a place. It is far more interesting than Austin, for one thing. And although it is automobile-oriented, it is definitively a city, with all that implies.
    https://marketurbanism.com/2022/03/14/houston-impressions/
     
  2. Xerobull

    Xerobull ...and I'm all out of bubblegum

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    Outstanding article. I love Houston.
     
  3. basso

    basso Member
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    which one of you did this?

     
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  4. Roscoe Arbuckle

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    basso likes this.
  5. Ubiquitin

    Ubiquitin Member
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    One thing I really like about Houston is that it’s neither weird nor pretentious.
     
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  6. Buck Turgidson

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    What?

    There's both all over the place.

    Probably less of the 'weird' now.
     
  7. Ubiquitin

    Ubiquitin Member
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    That’s fair, Houston is a massive city.
     
  8. Roscoe Arbuckle

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    Been in Houston 90% of my life.

    Still love it, but it's always the people.

    Irritated with our politics the last couple decades, and I loathed Lanier. When I go to Dallas and see their DART rail vs our ****? That makes me angry.
     
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  9. dmoneybangbang

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    I love Houston, but living in other cities makes you realize how bad the pedestrian infrastructure is. I wouldn't expect Houston, with its climate and its size.

    I grew up in Houston (Fondren SW) and I lived in Montrose as an adult before leaving the city, but the sidewalks and retail still overwhelmingly favored the car. Westheimer between Shepard and Bagby is embarrassing.
     
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  10. Xerobull

    Xerobull ...and I'm all out of bubblegum

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    ...but then you spend five minutes in Dallas and get over it.
     
  11. Bob Barker 007

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    I've spent a lot of time in both DFW and Houston. The DART is a useless commuter rail that isn't even useful from the airport to the downtown areas because it doesn't come frequently enough. In downtown Dallas, the DART stations are legitimately scary and not somewhere I would take women and children. Houston's METRO lines make a lot more sense and generally connect the core in a more efficient manner; there just need to be more of them.That's my take, though I'm not an urban planning expert.
     
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  12. Astrodome

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  13. dmoneybangbang

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    DART tries to do too much.
     
  14. Buck Turgidson

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