The Houston You Don't See

[photoLith]

^
They are getting redeveloped in the wrong way though imo, at least a lot of the areas are. A lot of it is getting infilled with crap architecture thats gated from the street.

[AusHou]

Originally Posted by BG918

Houston has a lot of contrasts in its inner city neighborhoods. Lots of new infill, especially those lofts with the metal siding, amidst rundown homes or vacant lots. Not very many sidewalks either, and some streets have huge drainage ditches on the sides. Lots of potential though. In a city like Detroit or St. Louis those areas would just stay rundown. In Houston, because it is such a growing, rich city these same rundown areas are getting redeveloped.

I really like what I'm seeing with the redevelopment, particularly in the Midtown area (nice low to midrise, brick and stucco condos, with some sidewalk cafes and restaurants). But I'd sure like to see some Midtown and downtown highrise condos like Austin has (Austin's highrise condos downtown are amazing). Uptown Houston has a bunch of highrise condos, so I don't see why Midtown and downtown can't have them as well.

[photoLith]

^
Yeah, it would seem like midtown would be the most perfect place for mid-highrise res development but for whatever reason, it hasnt happened so far. It would make for some badass views of downtown though and Im sure in the future some highrises will be built in midtown, well just have to wait.

[SouthByMidwest]

The midrises in Midtown are just fine - you don't have to be tall to be dense. Still a lot of infill left to be done there. That empty superblock has gotta go, though it is a decent place to set up and take skyline shots when it's dry.

[Ray]

Originally Posted by BG918

Lots of new infill, especially those lofts with the metal siding, amidst rundown homes or vacant lots.

I know people that complain about those, but I'm not sure if they are any worse than another stupid "Spanish Villa" apartment building....

[zilfondel]

You know, its funny, the first half of the photos remind me of NE Portland. Except... ours never quite decayed like Houston's neighborhood depicted above did, and there has been a tremendous amount of reinvestment, GARDENS everywhere, and businesses.

Makes me kind of sad. One of the houses above looks almost exactly like a house I used to live in... but mine was maintained and not neglected.

[SouthByMidwest]

Originally Posted by Ray

I know people that complain about those, but I'm not sure if they are any worse than another stupid "Spanish Villa" apartment building....

I'd agree, and I think they work well in a traditionally industrial area like that.

[BG918]

Originally Posted by Ray

I know people that complain about those, but I'm not sure if they are any worse than another stupid "Spanish Villa" apartment building....

I don't mind them. A Houston developer has built a lot of them in Tulsa too. Some look pretty good:





And others, well...




Much better than rundown houses and empty lots though.

[photoLith]

^
Those developments looks a hell of a lot better than the stuff going up in Houston overall.

[SouthByMidwest]

Looks more or less the same to me.

They're just fine in a place like....ahem..."EaDo." (Yes, that's still a lame name, but it's kind of sticking)

I don't like when they're towering over nice old 1930s-era duplexes in Montrose or Boulevard Oaks area...or replacing them.

[Trae]

They look pretty much the same to me also. You see those kind of things all over the Inner Loop.

[AusHou]

Originally Posted by photolitherland

^
Those developments looks a hell of a lot better than the stuff going up in Houston overall.

Those are indeed nice, but I've seen plenty of beautiful new developments in Houston, too, and some I don't like.

[kcexpress69]

Certainly wish I had the money to buy one of those metal condos!! I would have to say, that this is definately one of your better picture threads!! I admit, that it's sad to see such a rundown place, but rest assured, every large city has them. There are places in Kansas City that I will show you soon with this type of grit. As much as I would like to get out and walk around, I will probably stay in my car, even if it means that I don't capture some of the life that goes on in those neighborhoods. Interesting that you had some bad places in Little Rock. I don't know if I hit those neighborhoods or not when I was doing my Little Rock thread a couple of years ago. I was driving around looking for Central High School and went through a couple of run down neighborhoods, but I can't recall if there were just a little gritty, or dangerous. I would like to do an East St. Louis thread sometime soon, but as a couple of previous posters mentioned, it would be crazy to just go into a place like that without knowing where you're going, and what you could be dealing with. Maybe an early morning shoot would be better. I don't know. Any thoughts??

[photoLith]

^
Thats all I ever do, I never know where Im going when Im in a new place, I just meander around and come across bad ass stuff. I never plan out trips, I just go and see what I can find.

[Michi]

Originally Posted by Trae

They look pretty much the same to me also. You see those kind of things all over the Inner Loop.

They are only allowed within the 610 Loop. It's called a "Shared Driveway" development. The configuration is a minimum of two lots taking access from a shared driveway which is essentially an access easement crossing all lots.

In Houston, most, if not all, shared driveways are gated, walling them off from the urban/semi-urban neighborhoods they are built in. Some have nice, attractive architecture, while some are an insult to the neighborhood they are built in. Many neighborhoods, like Greater Montrose/Neartown will petition for minimum lot size requirements along their streets. Meaning a developer can't come in and subdivide a lot into, say 6 lots, and put a shared driveway on it. The petition is usually intended to protect the traditional character of the neighborhood and of course there are residents both for and against doing something like this because some won't want any sort of infringement on their rights as a property owner. This IS Texas afterall!

[Evo5Boise]

Damn nice thread man. I would have been packing heat taking some of those shots.

BTW, Little Rock has ghettos that bad? Doesn't strike me as a place that has bad neighborhoods.

[AusHou]

Originally Posted by Evo5Boise

Damn nice thread man. I would have been packing heat taking some of those shots.

BTW, Little Rock has ghettos that bad? Doesn't strike me as a place that has bad neighborhoods.

Just about any city has bad neighborhoods. Even Austin, which so many think of as a relative paradise of a city, has some really bad, crime ridden neighborhoods, particularly on the northeast side. Like in Houston and elsewhere, many people in Austin don't even know such neighborhoods exist.

Until not too long ago, there was an area of Phoenix along I-10, south of the main city, that looked like something you'd see in India or Pakistan. It was mind boggling. Last time I was there, I couldn't find it, and assumed it had been razed.

[Nightsky]

A very good job, someone has to show the areas that are not on the postcards as well cause they are part of reality as much as the glitzy facades in downtown. But it's good that you are careful, it's not worth risking ones life to get a photo!

[diskojoe]

Originally Posted by photolitherland

^
I use a Nikon D2oo, have been since 2004. Its pretty much ancient in digital camera years and yes thats a DSLR.

I think the worst ghettos Ive walked through are those located in Little Rock. They are real bad, I was walking around one taking photos a few months ago and heard some gun shots and some woman screaming bloody murder. Theres lots of parts of Little Rock that I would never dare venture out of my car with my camera. Theres no areas in Houston that are that bad.

well during the day at least this is true. there are lots of places i would never go at night. 5th ward being one of them.

[Flamesrule]

Great pics, nice thread!