Houston's Third Ward... A Multi-dimensional Neighborhood
Third Ward is one of Houston's most prominent inner city neighborhoods. It is predominantly African-American, and has a die-hard reputation as one of the city's largest "ghettos". Here's what most Houstonians think about when they picture Third Ward...
But trust me, the neighborhood is a lot nicer than it looks on the main streets. Most of it is beautiful areas of older homes...
There is also an interessting suburban style development going up right along OST...
Just for reminder, all of this is inside the loop... within 5 minutes of downtown or the med center.
Finally some townhome development and high-end real estate is also a large part of Third Ward...
Parkwood area
Of course Third Ward is also Houston's "educational heart", being the home of both the University of Houston and Texas Southern University. The neighborhood is definitely more than meets the eye. Thanks for viewing.
The really large, older homes are on or near South MacGregor Way on the south side of MacGregor Bayou. The new suburban-style develop is just bizarre. I'm glad I've yet to actually see it in person. The townhouses are striking the death knell to both the 3rd and 4th Wards. Freedman's Town is now Corrugated Tin City.
The "worst" of Third Ward is the area north of Alabama to I-45. This is what some label "Old Third Ward." But as both Sabotai and Bilbao pointed out, a lot of new townhome development has taken place in that area, shifting the character of the neighborhood as well as the economic demographics. The more prosperous section of Third Ward goes south of Alabama to OST. There is a wealthy section between Southmore and OST featuring the neighborhoods of Washington Terrace, Riverside Terrace and University Oaks. Also, the majority of the western end of Third Ward (that is, west of SH 288) borders the Museum District and is very much middle-to-upper middle income. In fact, new development and redevelopments are driving up property values to alarming rates.
As far as big cities go, no, most of Third Ward doesn't look very ghetto at all, although there are a couple of sections of OST that are trashy.
__________________
Disciple of the written word. Antagonist of the uninitiated.
Yeah, I'm gonna take some pics of the rough stuff too... it's important to show everything. Third Ward is a good representation of Houston overall character (at least inside the loop). You can have two totally different worlds just by walking down the block.
It's important to note that Third Ward is diversifying economically again too. I know that the rowhouses are an important part of history, but I'm kinda glad to see many of them being replaced by townhomes, ESPECIALLY when the owners are bought out properly and can put the money towards a new home.
Hybrid Mode