I went to Sharpstown High School when I was a freshman in 1988...the year the first "Rock" was placed in front of the school and the year these crazy race riots broke out during finals. There was cops and paddy wagons in the streets. I transfered to Bellaire High School where I eventually graduated in 1991. Shapstown High was a piece of crap...even back then!!! My Mother-in-Law still lives in a house in the neighborhood behind Jane Lonfg Middle School. Poor lady!
The dump comment notwithstanding, you can thank our more conservative friends for the lack of zoning. Houston is owned by developers. Has been for decades. Each time zoning gets mentioned, the powerful property tax advocates in Harris County come screaming out of the woodwork. They oppose anything that might limit development and/or raise taxes including zoning, historic preservation, city-funded facilities, etc.
Houston is the largest US city without zoning. I heard somewhere that the second largest is Pearland.
I went to Sharpstown from '88-'92. My freshmen year was the year after the race riots. I actually remember Sharpstown Middle School being much worse. My first job was at the ice cream store in Sharpstown Mall, so I got to know all of those places down there in the food court. There was some weird child-molester looking guy that worked at the arcade. My dad threatened to kick his ass because he would get my brother stoned (my brother was like 13). Just before I moved out of my neighborhood, some kid (probably 11 or 12) was trying to break into one of my neighbors cars in the middle of the day while we were outside playing basketball. When we stared him and his friend down they slowly started to walk away but then turned around with a gun and asked, "what are you looking at white boy?!" They were both asian and they were on one bike. We walked back up to the house and they got on their bike and left. I was pissed and glad to move out of the neighborhood. I haven't really been back since, but I have very fond memories of the area.
Definitely - for some reason SMS was much worse. My 8th grade year three teachers were attacked with two having to go to the hospital. Then some kids got in a fight before school and one was killed when he was stabbed in the neck with a screwdriver. Good times.
When I was about 9 or 10 years old- in about 1965 or maybe 1966-67 we attended swim meets at the Houston Swim club (maroon and white theme color for their team) in Sharpstown. It had a cover with a heated olympic size - 50 meter pool. The cover seemed to be metal ribbing with a tarp -like cover. We really enjoyed going to competitions there. It was "kid friendly" with a trampoline and nice diving area with platform. The construction seemed temporary, but the pool was nice. This was a really long time ago- I was a small child-so I do not know if the mall had been built yet- but I think it did exist- probably new.
Agreed- in "free market" mayhem there is no comprehensive land use plan-all for a quick buck. The proposed freeway interchange blowing through the Heights in the near future is a good example. The highway department will do as it pleases regardless of the consequences for that neighborhood.... You recall that land not long ago mentioned here in BBS hangout -neighbors wanted it for a park. Developers wanted to build. I hope it can become a park.
Seriously though who is surprised by the downfall of Sharstown mall??? I used to work in Gadzooks in the mid 90's as a teen and I even knew what was going to happen to that mall... One can just look at Westwood mall and see the outcome .. Its like Duh!!!! Damn some people brought it back when they said phymsical whymsical wow. The only way that mall stays open is because of public funding by the folks in the Galleria and First Colony... If sharpstown closed down you know that the Galleria and First Colony mall wouldn't want that type of clientele..
I've lived in Houston my whole life. Decided recently that after I finsih this M.S. I'm either moving away or moving out somewhere with considerably less people, like Alvin (I work in Clear Lake). Never thought I'd see it, but even the Clear Lake area is significantly more downtrodden than I remember.
You couldn't pay me enough to live in the area around Jane Long Middle School, and points west down Bellaire, including the area south of Bellaire and west of Fondren. Glad I don't own a house over there. Nasty!
Yep. It was bad, and Katrina made it worse. It's a couple miles west of where I live, but my favorite Tex Mex joint is right there near the intersection. I'm always very careful when I head over there. Fondren Southwest & Fonmeadow are both crap now.
I always feel like crap when I come to Houston. It takes a week or two to get used to this place. I always get sore throats too. I can't believe how dirty the air is. I don't know how you guys can stand living here.
i grew up in alief. it is now, flat out, the ghetto. i used to think that houston was a city of great potential but i might be wrong. it seems there is too strong an anti-zoning contingent too allow intelligent planning for the future.
I always thought people had the hats in rap videos custom made. You knwo the ones that say Screwston, TX, Free Pimp C, etc... The footlocker at Greenspoint sells them.
Exactly. There are enough thugs in the Galleria right now. We don't need anymore. They need to start selling less cool things at Footlocker and Champs in the galleria. Then the thugs will keep going to Sharpstown and Greenspoint.
