Geographic areas of Houston
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Locations in Houston, Texas are generally classified as either being inside or outside Interstate 610, known as the "610 Loop." Inside the loop generally encompasses the Central business district and the "island cities" of West University Place (West U.), Southside Place and a portion of Bellaire. ("Island cities" refers to the City of Houston's practice of annexing around the existing boundaries of incorporated municipalities.)
Other "island cities" include the Memorial Villages — Bunker Hill Village, Hedwig Village, Hilshire Village, Hunters Creek Village, Piney Point Village, and Spring Valley.
The outlying areas of Houston, as well as the rest of Bellaire, the Memorial Villages, the airports and the city's suburbs and enclaves are outside the loop. Another ring road, Beltway 8 (also known simply as the "Beltway"), encircles the city another 5 miles (8 km) further out. A third, Texas Highway 99 or Grand Parkway, has begun construction roughly 10 miles (16 km) beyond the Beltway around the outer suburbs and currently extends from north of Interstate 10 east of Katy to U.S. Highway 59 in Sugar Land.
Locations within the Houston city limits inside the 610 loop had traditionally used the 713 area code. Those outside the 610 loop but within city limits had received the 281 or 832 area code. However, the geographic division between 713, 281, and 832 has been eliminated, and newly-issued phone numbers (especially for cell phones and fax machines) within that zone may be assigned any of the three codes. Areas far north, west, east and south of the inner-city also use 936 and 409. Zip codes in Houston range from 77002 to 77099. However, a small portion of northeast Houston uses zip codes 77339 and 77345.
Houston, being the largest city in the United States without zoning laws, has grown in an unusual manner. Rather than a single “downtown” as the center of the city's employment, five additional business districts have grown throughout the inner-city, including one for Houston's medical center complex. If these business districts were combined, they would form the third largest downtown in the United States. The city also has the third largest skyline in the United States (after New York City and Chicago, Illinois), but because it is spread over a few miles, pictures of the city show, for the most part, the main downtown area.
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[edit] Downtown Houston
Downtown, the seventh largest business district in the country, is located in the very center of the city's highway system. The Skyline District is the heart of downtown and home to headquarters of various multinational businesses and financial institutions.
The Houston Theater District, in north downtown, is home to Houston's eight performing arts organizations and includes the Alley Theatre, Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, Wortham Center, the Verizon Wireless Theatre (formerly Aerial Theater), and Jones Hall, home of the Houston Symphony Orchestra. The theater district is the second-largest performing arts district, next to New York City.
Downtown is also home to one of the city's two Chinatowns. The first Chinatown is situated in the shadow of the George R. Brown Convention Center downtown, while the newer, larger Chinatown (originating around 1982), is located primarily on Bellaire Boulevard west of the Sharpstown neighborhood.
The Main Street Corridor in downtown, opened in 2004, has become a popular nightlife spot, particularly now that the city has light rail service. This is because the light rail line begins near the University of Houston-Downtown.
Preston Station is a neighborhood in downtown Houston that takes its name from the Houston MetroRail's Preston Station, which is at the neighborhood's center. It is well known for its bars and restaurants, and includes such famous buildings as the Rice Hotel, the St. Germain building, and the Hotel Icon.
[edit] Hiram Clarke
Hiram Clarke is a small neighborhood in south side Houston. The neighborhood is around South Post Oak and Briarwick.
[edit] Southwest
Located in southwest Houston, this densely populated area includes the communities of Alief and Sharpstown.
[edit] Midtown
Midtown, south of downtown, is a recently redeveloped area with many newly-constructed apartments and condominiums. The area is also home to Little Saigon, the center of the city's Vietnamese American commerce and businesses.
[edit] Uptown
Uptown is primarily anchored by the Houston Galleria. It is the city's second-largest business district and home to the world-famous Williams Tower. The Williams Tower is said to be the tallest building outside of a CBD. Uptown is home to Houston's tallest condo towers. The Uptown area, also known as the Galleria district, is home to many high-end retailers, local and national fashion designers.
[edit] Texas Medical Center
The Texas Medical Center, about three miles (5 km) south of the Midtown area is the largest medical complex in the world. Bordering the Texas Medical Center are Reliant Park to the south and the Rice University/Rice Village area to the west. Many people from around the world come to the center for medical treatment.
[edit] Museum District
The Museum District comprises more than 16 institutions, Hermann Park, the Houston Zoo and the Miller Outdoor Theatre. It is one of the most visited museum districts in the country.
[edit] The Six "Wards"
When Houston was established in 1837, the city's founders divided it into political geographic districts called "wards." The ward designation is the progenitor of the nine current-day Houston City Council districts.
Much of the predominantly African-American First Ward was demolished and renovated as part of a gentrification effort. Much of the district is bordered by Houston Avenue, Interstates 10 and 45, and Washington Avenue. Because of rising land values, houses formerly located in Third Ward, Montrose, the West End and West University Place were relocated from their former land parcels and rehabilitated.
The Second Ward, located east of downtown, was developed in the roaring '20s. Stephen F. Austin High School depicts art deco architecture of the time. The Second Ward is now predominantly a Hispanic community.
The predominantly African-American Third Ward, southeast of downtown, was home to one of the most affluent African-American communities in the South after World War I. It is also where the University of Houston and Texas Southern University are located. The tallest structure in the Third Ward is the Moody Towers, an 18-story, twin tower dormitory on the University of Houston campus. The Third Ward lies within two city council districts (D and I).
The Fourth Ward, known as Freedmen's Town for the freed slaves that settled there after the United States Civil War, was the first and most prominent African-American community in Houston. It is home to the first campus of Booker T. Washington High School which was later moved to Independence Heights in northern Houston. Historically, the ward has been among the poorest areas of the inner-city, but is undergoing extensive gentrification because of its proximity to downtown. The ward included the Allen Parkway Village housing project, which was redeveloped into the Historic Oaks at Allen Parkway Village. The Freedmen's Town Historical District was created in 1988. Today, about 40 percent of the original wood-frame homes remain in the ward. Aggressive gentrification has threatened the ward's historical status.
The Fifth Ward is another predominantly African American community originally settled by freed slaves. It too is undergoing gentrification.
[edit] Greenway Plaza
The Greenway Plaza business district is west of Midtown and southwest of Downtown Houston. The district is home to Lakewood Church, the country's largest megachurch.
[edit] Montrose
Montrose is located west of downtown and Midtown and northwest of the medical center. It is the center of Houston's gay and lesbian community, and known for its vintage shops, 1950s-style eateries and street art. Montrose traditionally hosted the Westheimer Street Festival, a colorful community gathering that was ended mostly due to gentrification. It is also the location of the Menil Collection and the University of Saint Thomas.
[edit] Other notable communities
The historic Houston Heights, near downtown, has the highest point of elevation in the city. Like the smaller Woodland Heights neighborhood just to its east, it was originally a separate, independent suburb connected to Houston by streetcar. It was incorporated in 1891 and consolidated into the city of Houston in 1919. Even today it retains a ban on liquor sales and is a popular area for antique shopping. Like the neighboring Montrose, Houston Heights has long been a popular place for the artistic and gay and lesbian communities to live. Like other neighborhoods, the Heights has been experiencing gentrification pressures as the inner-loop grows, but residents concerned with historic preservation have resisted through the use of deed restrictions. Many of the Heights' Victorian houses and Craftsman bungalows are in high demand, especially those that have been remodeled. The Houston Heights is also home to the Art Car Museum, a tourist attraction.
River Oaks is the city's most affluent area, often compared to Beverly Hills. Beyond Houston, it is the wealthiest neighborhood in the entire state and is home to many celebrities and political figures. Situated as it is between downtown and Uptown, River Oaks is a collection of mansions in a sea of high-rise apartments and lofts. Near and partially blending into River Oaks, the areas of Highland Village and Upper Kirby are home to many high-end shopping and dining venues.
To the west is the Memorial Area. The zip code for Memorial (77024) is the sixth wealthiest in Texas[1]. It contains the largest of a series of affluent municipalities separate from but surrounded by the city of Houston, known as the Villages, which include Hedwig Village, Bunker Hill Village, Hunters Creek Village, Piney Point Village, Hilshire Village, and Spring Valley.
To the southwest are several communities that sprang up in the years following World War II, when they were considered to be suburbs, such as Fondren Southwest, Meyerland, Sharpstown and Westbury. Fondren Southwest and Meyerland are centers of Houston's Jewish community. Sharpstown has a large Asian American community and was the first master-planned community in Houston. Westbury and Meyerland are becoming popular places for some gay men and lesbians to live, as real estate in Montrose has become more expensive as it has gentrified.
South of downtown, but to the east of Meyerland and Fondren, lies Hiram Clarke, Sunnyside, South Park, Kennedy Heights and other largely African-American communities with sizable Latino populations. Collectively (with the [Third Ward]) known as the "Southside," these formerly rural communities were childhood homes of country singer Kenny Rogers and (more recently) rap artists, Scarface (rapper) and DJ Screw.
Clear Lake City is a master-planned community located in southeast Houston. It is home to the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center, the University of Houston-Clear Lake and a very large upper-middle class Asian American community. The area was annexed into the city of Houston in 1979. League City, just south of this area, is home to a few water-side resorts.
To the northeast is the 14,000-acre master-planned community of Kingwood, which was annexed by the city of Houston in 1996. Kingwood is the largest master-planned community in Harris County.
[edit] Adjacent cities and suburbs
In addition to the "island cities" of Bellaire, West University Place, Southside Place and the Memorial Villages, there are several communities not part of Houston that are important to the metropolitan area.
Sugar Land is a city southwest of Houston in northeast Fort Bend County, and is named for the former Imperial Sugar refinery. It is home to a number of international energy, software and product firms. It also is one of the fastest-growing and wealthiest cities in the state due to the numerous master-planned communities in the area, such as First Colony, New Territory, Greatwood, Sugar Creek, Sugar Lakes, Avalon, and Riverstone. Sugar Land has the most master-planned communities within Fort Bend County, which is home to the largest number of master-planned communities in the nation. Sugar Land ranked as the hottest places to live within the state of Texas and third in the United States for 2006 according to Money magazine.
In 1890, the land that now comprises Missouri City was advertised for sale in St. Louis, Missouri and surrounding areas as "a land of genial sunshine and eternal summer." Despite all the efforts to appeal to settlers from the "north," the first actual settlers came from Arlington, Texas - between Dallas and Fort Worth - in early 1894. Partially within Harris County, but mostly in neighboring Fort Bend County, the city boasts a large African American population. "Mo City," as it is sometimes called, has experienced significant "white flight."
Pearland is a city located south of Houston in Brazoria County with a small portion in Harris County. Pearland is the fastest-growing city in Brazoria County — it has increased from about 19,000 to 41,000 residents in the last decade alone (based on 2000 U.S. Census figures). It is home to companies such as Wheatherford and Aggreko. It is the closest suburb to Downtown Houston and the Texas Medical Center (about 10 miles away), which attracts professionals from the oil, gas, energy, medical and aerospace industries. Some of the master-planned communities found in the area are Silverlake, Silvercreek, and Shadow Creek Ranch.
Katy is about 30 minutes west of downtown. Many people live between Katy and Houston — those areas have "Katy" addresses and are referred to as "New Katy", while the city proper is known as "Old Katy". Because of this, the "Greater Katy" area has a population of 185,000.
The Woodlands is a large master-planned community about 30 miles north of Downtown Houston in Montgomery County. It is one of the largest and most popular master-planned communities in the country. Most of The Woodlands lies in the city of Houston's extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) and the city limits of Shenandoah.
Bridgeland is a larger new master-planned community being built in Houston's northwest suburbs. It stands at 10,000 acres. At build out in 2020, it should have a population of 65,000. Bridgelands is currently being constructed by General Growth Properties.
To the east is the city of Pasadena, Houston's most populous suburb and the former location of "Gilley's," the honky-tonk bar that inspired the hit 1980 movie Urban Cowboy, which was filmed in Pasadena. Because of its location skirting the ship channel where most of the city's refineries are located, Pasadena is considered the backbone of Houston's enormous petrochemical complex. The nearby cities of Baytown, La Porte, and Channelview are also host to many refineries and chemical plants. Another city nearby is Deer Park, which is home to the San Jacinto Monument.
A popular day trip may include Galveston to visit Moody Gardens or the beach. Before near destruction in 1900 Galveston was larger and wealthier than Houston, dubbed "The Wall Street of the Southwest" and on par with New Orleans as the Gulf Coast's premier city. Galveston is also home to the new Schlitterbahn Waterpark. The waterpark is located across the street from Moody Gardens. Galveston's vulnerability on a narrow barrier bar island led to the creation of the Port of Houston, made by dredging the shallow Buffalo Bayou and Galveston Bay to form a protected port some 40 miles (64 km) inland of the open Gulf and less than 10 miles (16 km) from Houston's central business district. Beach houses owned by Houstonians have sprung up in other cities along the Gulf of Mexico's shoreline. Another tourist hot spot is Kemah where visitors see the Kemah Boardwalk, which has many seafood restaurants and local tourist attractions. Kemah is surrounded by Galveston Bay to the east and Clear Lake Shores (a brackish-water boater's paradise with open pass through to Galveston Bay) to the west.
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City of Houston History | Geography | Economy | Culture | Politics | Architecture | Transportation | Education | Houstonians |
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| Areas | Downtown | Uptown | Texas Medical Center | Midtown | Neartown | Museum District | Upper Kirby | Greenway Plaza | Rice Village | Westchase | Greenspoint |
| Communities | Acres Homes | Addicks | Aldine | Alief | Braeburn | Braeswood Place | Clear Lake City | Genoa Township | Harrisburg | Houston Heights | Independence Heights | Inwood Forest | Kingwood | Maplewood | Memorial | Meyerland | Northshore | Oak Forest | River Oaks | Sharpstown | South Park | Spring Branch | Sunnyside
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| "Island" cities |
Bellaire | Bunker Hill Village | Hedwig Village | Hilshire Village | Hunters Creek Village | Piney Point Village | Southside Place | Spring Valley | West University Place |
