This article is about the city in the U.S. department of state of Texas. For the unrelated county, see Houston County, Texas. For other uses, see Houston ( disambiguation )
City in Texas, United States
Reading: Houston – Wikipedia
Houston ( HEW-stən ) is the most populous city in Texas, fourth-most populous city in the United States, most populous city in the Southern United States, arsenic well as the sixth-most populous in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in 2020. [ 2 ] Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the seat of Harris County and the principal city of the Greater Houston metropolitan area, which is the fifth-most populous metropolitan statistical area in the United States. Houston is the southeast anchor of the greater megaregion known as the Texas Triangle. [ 6 ] Comprising a full sphere of 637.4 square miles ( 1,651 km2 ), [ 7 ] Houston is the ninth-most expansive city in the United States ( including consolidated city-counties ). It is the largest city in the United States by total area, whose politics is not consolidated with a county, parish, or borough. Though primarily in Harris County, minor portions of the city extend into Fort Bend and Montgomery counties, bordering early principal communities of Greater Houston such as Sugar Land and The Woodlands. The city of Houston was founded by farming investors on August 30, 1836, [ 8 ] at the confluence of Buffalo Bayou and White Oak Bayou ( a indicate nowadays known as Allen ‘s Landing ) and incorporated as a city on June 5, 1837. [ 9 ] [ 10 ] The city is named after former General Sam Houston, who was president of the Republic of Texas and had won Texas ‘s independence from Mexico at the Battle of San Jacinto 25 miles ( 40 kilometer ) east of Allen ‘s Landing. [ 10 ] After briefly serving as the capital of the Texas Republic in the late 1830s, Houston grew steadily into a regional trading center for the remainder of the nineteenth century. [ 11 ] The arrival of the twentieth century brought a convergence of economic factors that fueled rapid emergence in Houston, including a burgeoning port and railroad industry, the descent of Galveston as Texas ‘s chief port following a crushing 1900 hurricane, the subsequent construction of the Houston Ship Channel, and the Texas oil boom. [ 11 ] In the mid-20th hundred, Houston ‘s economy diversified, as it became home plate to the Texas Medical Center —the world ‘s largest concentration of healthcare and inquiry institutions—and NASA ‘s Johnson Space Center, home to the Mission Control Center. Since the late nineteenth century Houston ‘s economy has had a across-the-board industrial base, in energy, fabrication, aeronautics, and transportation. Leading in healthcare sectors and construction oilfield equipment, Houston has the second-most Fortune 500 headquarters of any U.S. municipality within its city limits ( after New York City ). [ 12 ] [ 13 ] The Port of Houston ranks first in the United States in international waterborne tonnage handled and second in total cargo tonnage handled. [ 14 ] Nicknamed the “ Bayou City ”, “ Space City ”, “ H-Town ”, and “ the 713 “, Houston has become a global city, with strengths in culture, music, and research. The city has a population from diverse ethnic and religious backgrounds and a large and growing external community. Houston is the most diverse metropolitan area in Texas and has been described as the most racially and ethnically divers major city in the U.S. [ 15 ] It is home to many cultural institutions and exhibits, which attract more than seven million visitors a year to the Museum District. The Museum District is home to nineteen museums, galleries, and community spaces. Houston has an active ocular and performing arts scene in the Theater District, and offers year-round house physician companies in all major performing arts. [ 16 ]
history [edit ]
The Houston area occupying land that was home of the Karankawa ( kə rang′kə wä′, -wô′, -wə ) and the Atakapa ( əˈtɑːkəpə ) autochthonal peoples for at least 2,000 years before the foremost know settlers arrived. [ 17 ] [ 18 ] [ 19 ] These tribes are about nonexistent today ; this was most likely caused by foreign disease, and competition with respective settler groups in the 18th and 19th centuries. [ 20 ] however, the country remained largely uninhabited until liquidation in the 1830s. [ 21 ]
early colonization to the twentieth century [edit ]
The Allen brothers— Augustus Chapman and John Kirby —explored town sites on Buffalo Bayou and Galveston Bay. According to historian David McComb, “ [ T ] he brothers, on August 26, 1836, bought from Elizabeth E. Parrott, wife of T.F.L. Parrott and widow of John Austin, the confederacy half of the lower league [ 2,214-acre ( 896 hour angle ) tract ] granted to her by her recently husband. They paid $ 5,000 total, but only $ 1,000 of this in cash ; notes made up the remainder. ” [ 22 ] The Allen brothers ran their first base ad for Houston equitable four days former in the Telegraph and Texas Register, naming the conceptional town in honor of President Sam Houston. [ 10 ] They successfully lobbied the Republic of Texas Congress to designate Houston as the irregular capital, agreeing to provide the new politics with a country capitol build up. [ 23 ] About a twelve persons resided in the town at the begin of 1837, but that number grew to about 1,500 by the clock the Texas Congress convened in Houston for the beginning fourth dimension that May. [ 10 ] The Republic of Texas granted Houston internalization on June 5, 1837, as James S. Holman became its foremost mayor. [ 10 ] In the same year, Houston became the county seat of Harrisburg County ( now Harris County ). [ 24 ] In 1839, the Republic of Texas relocated its capital to Austin. The town suffered another reverse that year when a scandalmongering fever epidemic claimed about one life for every eight residents, yet it persisted as a commercial kernel, forming a symbiosis with its Gulf Coast interface, Galveston. Landlocked farmers brought their produce to Houston, using Buffalo Bayou to gain access to Galveston and the Gulf of Mexico. Houston merchants profited from selling staples to farmers and shipping the farmers ‘ produce to Galveston. [ 10 ] The capital majority of enslave people in Texas came with their owners from the older slave states. ample numbers, however, came through the domestic slave trade. New Orleans was the center of this trade in the Deep South, but slave dealers were in Houston. Thousands of enslave black people lived near the city before the American Civil War. Many of them near the city worked on sugar and cotton plantations, [ 25 ] while most of those in the city limits had domestic and craftsman jobs. [ 26 ] In 1840, the community established a chamber of commerce, in separate to promote ship and seafaring at the newly created larboard on Buffalo Bayou. [ 27 ]
Houston, c. 1873 By 1860, Houston had emerged as a commercial and railroad hub for the export of cotton. [ 24 ] Railroad spur from the Texas inland converged in Houston, where they met train lines to the ports of Galveston and Beaumont. During the American Civil War, Houston served as a headquarter for General John Magruder, who used the city as an organization detail for the Battle of Galveston. [ 28 ] After the Civil War, Houston businessmen initiated efforts to widen the city ‘s extensive system of bayou so the city could accept more commerce between Downtown and the nearby port of Galveston. By 1890, Houston was the railroad track concentrate of Texas. [ citation needed ] In 1900, after Galveston was struck by a crushing hurricane, efforts to make Houston into a viable deep-water port were accelerated. [ 29 ] The adopt year, the discovery of oil at the Spindletop vegetable oil field near Beaumont prompted the exploitation of the Texas petroleum diligence. [ 30 ] In 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt approved a $ 1 million improvement project for the Houston Ship Channel. By 1910, the city ‘s population had reached 78,800, about doubling from a ten before. african Americans formed a big part of the city ‘s population, numbering 23,929 people, which was closely one-third of Houston ‘s residents. [ 31 ] President Woodrow Wilson opened the deep-water Port of Houston in 1914, seven years after digging began. By 1930, Houston had become Texas ‘s most populous city and Harris County the most populous county. [ 32 ] In 1940, the U.S. Census Bureau reported Houston ‘s population as 77.5 % White and 22.4 % Black. [ 33 ]
World War II to the late twentieth century [edit ]
When World War II started, tonnage levels at the port decreased and shipping activities were suspended ; however, the war did provide economic benefits for the city. Petrochemical refineries and fabricate plants were constructed along the ship channel because of the demand for petroleum and synthetic rubberize products by the defense diligence during the war. [ 34 ] Ellington Field, initially built during World War I, was revitalized as an advanced train center for bombardiers and navigators. [ 35 ] The Brown Shipbuilding Company was founded in 1942 to build ships for the U.S. Navy during World War II. Due to the boom in defense jobs, thousands of new workers migrated to the city, both blacks, and whites competing for the higher-paying jobs. President Roosevelt had established a policy of nondiscrimination for defense contractors, and blacks gained some opportunities, particularly in shipbuilding, although not without resistance from whites and increasing social tensions that erupted into casual violence. Economic gains of blacks who entered defense industries continued in the postwar years. [ 36 ] In 1945, the M.D. Anderson Foundation formed the Texas Medical Center. After the war, Houston ‘s economy reverted to being primarily port-driven. In 1948, the city annexed several unincorporated areas, more than doubling its size. Houston proper began to spread across the region. [ 10 ] [ 37 ] In 1950, the handiness of air travel stipulate provided drift for many companies to relocate to Houston, where wages were lower than those in the North ; this resulted in an economic thunder and produced a key shift in the city ‘s economy toward the energy sector. [ 38 ] [ 39 ] The increased production of the elaborate shipbuilding industry during World War II spurred Houston ‘s growth, [ 40 ] as did the establishment in 1961 of NASA ‘s “ Manned Spacecraft Center ” ( renamed the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in 1973 ). This was the stimulation for the development of the city ‘s aerospace industry. The Astrodome, nicknamed the “ eighth Wonder of the World “, [ 41 ] opened in 1965 as the populace ‘s first indoor domed sports stadium. During the late 1970s, Houston had a population boom as people from the Rust Belt states moved to Texas in big numbers. [ 42 ] The raw residents came for numerous employment opportunities in the petroleum diligence, created as a leave of the arab vegetable oil embargo. With the increase in professional jobs, Houston has become a destination for many college-educated persons, most recently including african Americans in a change by reversal Great Migration from northerly areas. In 1997, Houstonians elected Lee P. Brown as the city ‘s inaugural african american english mayor. [ 43 ]
early 21st century [edit ]
Houston has continued to grow into the twenty-first century, with the population increasing 17 % from 2000 to 2019. [ 44 ] Oil & accelerator have continued to fuel Houston ‘s economic increase, with major oil companies including Phillips 66, ConocoPhillips, Occidental Petroleum, Halliburton, and ExxonMobil having their headquarters in the Houston area. In 2001, Enron Corporation, a Houston caller with $ 100 billion in tax income, became engulf in an account scandal which bankrupted the company in 2001. [ 45 ] Health care has emerged as a major industry in Houston. The Texas Medical Center is nowadays the largest medical complex in the universe and employs 106,000 people. Three new sports stadiums opened downtown in the first ten of the twenty-first century. In 2000, the Houston Astros opened their fresh baseball stadium, Minute Maid Park, in business district adjacent to the old Union Station. The Houston Texans were formed in 2002 as an NFL expansion team, replacing the Houston Oilers, which had left the city in 1996. NRG Stadium opened the like class. In 2003, the Toyota Center opened as the home for the Houston Rockets. In 2005, the Houston Dynamo soccer team was formed. In 2017, the Houston Astros won their first World Series. flood has been a recurring problem in the Houston area, exacerbated by a lack of zoning laws, which allowed unregulated build of residential homes and other structures in flood-prone areas. [ 46 ] In June 2001, Tropical Storm Allison dumped up to 40 inches ( 1,000 millimeter ) of rain on parts of Houston, causing what was then the worst flood in the city ‘s history and billions of dollars in price, and killed 20 people in Texas. [ 47 ] In August 2005, Houston became a shelter to more than 150,000 people from New Orleans, who evacuated from Hurricane Katrina. [ 48 ] One month late, about 2.5 million Houston-area residents evacuated when Hurricane Rita approached the Gulf Coast, leaving little damage to the Houston area. This was the largest urban evacuation in the history of the United States. [ 49 ] [ 50 ] In May 2015, seven people died after 12 inches of rain fell in 10 hours during what is known as the Memorial Day Flood. Eight people died in April 2016 during a storm that dropped 17 inches of rain. [ 51 ] The worst came in recently August 2017, when Hurricane Harvey stalled over southeastern Texas, much like Tropical Storm Allison did sixteen years early, causing dangerous deluge in the Houston area, with some areas receiving over 50 inches ( 1,300 millimeter ) of rain. [ 52 ] The rain exceeded 50 inches in several areas locally, breaking the national phonograph record for rain. The damage for the Houston area was estimated at up to $ 125 billion U.S. dollars, [ 53 ] and was considered to be one of the worst natural disasters in the history of the United States, [ 54 ] with the death toll exceeding 70 people .
geography [edit ]
Satellite effigy of Houston, 2020 Houston is 165 miles ( 266 kilometer ) east of Austin, [ 55 ] 88 miles ( 142 kilometer ) west of the Louisiana boundary line, [ 56 ] and 250 miles ( 400 kilometer ) south of Dallas. [ 57 ] The city has a full area of 637.4 square miles ( 1,651 km2 ) ; [ 7 ] this comprises over 599.59 square miles ( 1,552.9 km2 ) of land and 22.3 square miles ( 58 km2 ) covered by urine. [ 58 ] Most of Houston is on the gulf coastal plain, and its vegetation is classified as western Gulf coastal grasslands while far north, it transitions into a subtropical jungle, the Big Thicket. much of the city was built on afforest land, marshes, or swamps, and all are still visible in surrounding areas. [ 59 ] Flat terrain and across-the-board greenfield exploitation have combined to worsen deluge. [ 60 ] Downtown stands about 50 feet ( 15 molarity ) above sea charge, [ 61 ] and the highest point in far northwesterly Houston is about 150 feet ( 46 thousand ) in elevation. [ 62 ] The city once relied on groundwater for its needs, but land cave in forced the city to turn to ground-level water sources such as Lake Houston, Lake Conroe, and Lake Livingston. [ 10 ] [ 63 ] The city owns surface water rights for 1.20 billion US gallons ( 4.5 Gl ) of water a day in addition to 150 million US gallons ( 570 Ml ) a day of groundwater. [ 64 ] Houston has four major bayou passing through the city that accept body of water from the across-the-board drain system. Buffalo Bayou runs through Downtown and the Houston Ship Channel, and has three tributaries : White Oak Bayou, which runs through the Houston Heights community northwest of Downtown and then towards Downtown ; Brays Bayou, which runs along the Texas Medical Center ; [ 65 ] and Sims Bayou, which runs through the south of Houston and Downtown Houston. The ship channel continues past Galveston and then into the Gulf of Mexico. [ 34 ]
geology [edit ]
antenna view of central Houston, showing Downtown and surrounding neighborhoods, March 2018 Houston is a compressed, boggy area where an extensive drain system has been built. The adjoining prairie land drains into the city, which is prone to implosion therapy. [ 66 ] Underpinning Houston ‘s land surface are unconsolidated clays, cadaver shales, and ailing cemented sands improving to several miles deep. The region ‘s geology developed from river deposits formed from the corrosion of the Rocky Mountains. These sediments consist of a series of sands and clays deposited on decaying organic marine matter, that over meter, transformed into vegetable oil and natural natural gas. Beneath the layers of sediment is a water-deposited layer of halite, a rock salt. The holey layers were compressed over time and forced up. As it pushed upward, the salt dragged surrounding sediments into salt dome formations, much trapping vegetable oil and gas that seeped from the surrounding holey sands. The thick, rich people, sometimes black, surface dirt is desirable for rice agrarian in suburban outskirts where the city continues to grow. [ 67 ] [ 68 ] The Houston area has over 150 active faults ( estimated to be 300 active faults ) with an aggregate length of up to 310 miles ( 500 kilometer ), [ 69 ] [ 70 ] [ 71 ] including the Long Point–Eureka Heights fault arrangement which runs through the plaza of the city. No significant historically recorded earthquakes have occurred in Houston, but researchers do not discount the possibility of such quakes having occurred in the deeply past, nor occurring in the future. Land in some areas southeast of Houston is sinking because water has been pumped out of the land for many years. It may be associated with dislocate along the faults ; however, the slippage is slow and not considered an earthquake, where stationary faults must slip on the spur of the moment enough to create seismic waves. [ 72 ] These faults besides tend to move at a fluent rate in what is termed “ demerit sneak “, [ 63 ] which far reduces the risk of an earthquake .
cityscape [edit ]
Houston ‘s superneighborhoods The city of Houston was incorporated in 1837 and adopted a cellblock system of representation shortly subsequently, in 1840. [ 73 ] The six original wards of Houston are the progenitors of the 11 contemporary geographically-oriented Houston City Council districts, though the city abandoned the ward system in 1905 in favor of a commission government, and, later, the existing mayor–council government .
intersection of Bagby and McGowen streets in western Midtown, 2016 Locations in Houston are generally classified as either being inside or outside the Interstate 610 loop. The “ Inner Loop ” encompasses a 97-square-mile ( 250 km2 ) area which includes Downtown, pre–World War II residential neighborhoods and streetcar suburbs, and newer high-density apartment and townhouse developments. [ 74 ] Outside the loop, the city ‘s typology is more suburban, though many major occupation districts—such as Uptown, Westchase, and the Energy Corridor —lie well outside the urban congress of racial equality. In summation to Interstate 610, two extra loop highways encircle the city : Beltway 8, with a radius of approximately 10 miles ( 16 kilometer ) from Downtown, and State Highway 99 ( the Grand Parkway ), with a radius of 25 miles ( 40 kilometer ). approximately 470,000 people lived within the Interstate 610 loop topology, while 1.65 million lived between Interstate 610 and Beltway 8 and 2.25 million lived within Harris County outside Beltway 8 in 2015. [ 75 ] Though Houston is the largest city in the United States without courtly zone regulations, it has developed similarly to early Sun Belt cities because the city ‘s land use regulations and legal covenants have played a exchangeable character. [ 76 ] [ 77 ] Regulations include compulsory set size for single-family houses and requirements that parking be available to tenants and customers. such restrictions have had mixed results. Though some have blamed the city ‘s gloomy density, urban sprawl, and miss of pedestrian-friendliness on these policies, others have credited the city ‘s estate manipulation patterns with providing significant low-cost housing, [ citation needed ] sparing Houston the worst effects of the 2008 substantial estate of the realm crisis. [ citation needed ] The city issued 42,697 building permits in 2008 and was ranked first in the list of healthiest house markets for 2009. [ 78 ] In 2019, home sales reached a newfangled phonograph record of $ 30 billion. [ 79 ] In referendums in 1948, 1962, and 1993, voters rejected efforts to establish offprint residential and commercial land-use districts. consequently, quite than a individual central business district as the center of the city ‘s employment, multiple districts and skylines have grown throughout the city in addition to Downtown, which include Uptown, the Texas Medical Center, Midtown, Greenway Plaza, Memorial City, the Energy Corridor, Westchase, and Greenspoint. [ 80 ]
computer architecture [edit ]
Houston had the fifth-tallest skyline in North America ( after New York City, Chicago, Toronto and Miami ) and 36th-tallest in the world in 2015. [ 81 ] A seven-mile ( 11 kilometer ) system of tunnels and skywalks links Downtown buildings containing shops and restaurants, enabling pedestrians to avoid summer inflame and rain while walking between buildings. In the 1960s, Downtown Houston consisted of a solicitation of mid-rise office structures. Downtown was on the threshold of an energy industry–led boom in 1970. A sequence of skyscrapers was built throughout the 1970s—many by real estate developer Gerald D. Hines —culminating with Houston ‘s tallest skyscraper, the 75-floor, 1,002-foot ( 305 thousand ) -tall JPMorgan Chase Tower ( once the Texas Commerce Tower ), completed in 1982. It is the tallest structure in Texas, 19th tallest build in the United States, and was previously 85th-tallest skyscraper in the worldly concern, based on highest architectural feature. In 1983, the 71-floor, 992-foot ( 302 thousand ) -tall Wells Fargo Plaza ( once Allied Bank Plaza ) was completed, becoming the second-tallest build in Houston and Texas. Based on highest architectural sport, it is the 21st-tallest in the United States. In 2007, Downtown had over 43 million public square feet ( 4,000,000 m2 ) of agency space. [ 82 ] Centered on Post Oak Boulevard and Westheimer Road, the Uptown District boomed during the 1970s and early 1980s when a collection of midrise office buildings, hotels, and retail developments appeared along Interstate 610 West. Uptown became one of the most outstanding instances of an boundary city. The tallest construct in Uptown is the 64-floor, 901-foot ( 275 megabyte ) -tall, Philip Johnson and John Burgee designed landmark Williams Tower ( known as the Transco Tower until 1999 ). At the time of construction, it was believed to be the universe ‘s tallest skyscraper outside a central occupation zone. The raw 20-story Skanska build up [ 83 ] and BBVA Compass Plaza [ 84 ] are the newest office buildings built in Uptown after 30 years. The Uptown District is besides home to buildings designed by note architects I. M. Pei, César Pelli, and Philip Johnson. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, a mini-boom of midrise and highrise residential loom construction occurred, with several over 30 stories tall. [ 85 ] [ 86 ] [ 87 ] Since 2000 over 30 skyscrapers have been developed in Houston ; all told, 72 high-rises tugboat over the city, which adds up to about 8,300 units. [ 88 ] In 2002, Uptown had more than 23 million square feet ( 2,100,000 m2 ) of position space with 16 million square feet ( 1,500,000 m2 ) of course A office space. [ 89 ]
The Niels Esperson Building stood as the tallest build in Houston from 1927 to 1929 .
The JPMorgan Chase Tower is the tallest building in Texas and the tallest 5-sided construct in the populace .
The Williams Tower is the tallest build in the US outside a cardinal business zone .
The Bank of America Center by Philip Johnson is an exemplar of postmodernist computer architecture .
climate [edit ]
Houston ‘s climate is classified as humid subtropical ( Cfa in the Köppen climate categorization system ), distinctive of the Southern United States. While not in Tornado Alley, like much of Northern Texas, spring supercell thunderstorms sometimes bring tornadoes to the area. [ 90 ] Prevailing winds are from the confederacy and southeast during most of the year, which bring estrus and moisture from the nearby Gulf of Mexico and Galveston Bay. [ 91 ] During the summer, temperatures reach or exceed 90 °F ( 32 °C ) an median of 106.5 days per year, including a majority of days from June to September. additionally, an average of 4.6 days per year pass or exceed 100 °F ( 37.8 °C ). [ 92 ] Houston ‘s feature subtropical humidity much results in a higher apparent temperature, and summer mornings average over 90 % relative humidity. [ 93 ] Air condition is omnipresent in Houston ; in 1981, annual spend on electricity for home cooling exceeded $ 600 million ( equivalent to $ 1.71 billion in 2020 ), and by the recently 1990s, approximately 90 % of Houston homes featured breeze conditioning systems. [ 94 ] [ 95 ] The record highest temperature recorded in Houston is 109 °F ( 43 °C ) at Bush Intercontinental Airport, during September 4, 2000, and again on August 27, 2011. [ 92 ]
Houston has mild winters, with casual cold spells. In January, the convention average temperature at George Bush Intercontinental Airport is 53 °F ( 12 °C ), with an average of 13 days per year with a abject at or below 32 °F ( 0 °C ), occurring on average between December 3 and February 20, allowing for a growing season of 286 days. [ 92 ] twenty-first century snow events in Houston include a storm on December 24, 2004, which saw 1 edge ( 3 curium ) of snow roll up in parts of the metro sphere, [ 96 ] and an event on December 7, 2017, which precipitated 0.7 inches ( 2 curium ) of snow. [ 97 ] [ 98 ] Snowfalls of at least 1 column inch ( 2.5 centimeter ) on both December 10, 2008, and December 4, 2009, marked the first time measurable snow had occurred in two straight years in the city ‘s recorded history. Overall, Houston has seen measurable snow 38 times between 1895 and 2018. On February 14 and 15, 1895, Houston received 20 inches ( 51 centimeter ) of snow, its largest snow from one storm on record. [ 99 ] The coldest temperature officially recorded in Houston was 5 °F ( −15 °C ) on January 18, 1930. [ 92 ] The last time Houston saw single digit temperatures was on December 23, 1989. The temperature dropped to 7 °F ( −14 °C ) at Bush Airport, marking the coldest temperature always recorded there. 1.7 inches of snow fell at George Bush Intercontinental Airport the former day. [ 100 ] Houston by and large receives ample rain, averaging about 49.8 in ( 1,260 millimeter ) per annum based on records between 1981 and 2010. many parts of the city have a senior high school risk of localized flood due to bland topography, [ 101 ] omnipresent low- permeability clay-silt prairie soils, [ 102 ] and inadequate infrastructure. [ 101 ] During the mid-2010s, Greater Houston experienced consecutive major flood events in 2015 ( “ Memorial Day ” ), [ 103 ] 2016 ( “ Tax Day ” ), [ 104 ] and 2017 ( Hurricane Harvey ). [ 105 ] Overall, there have been more casualties and property loss from floods in Houston than in any other vicinity in the United States. [ 106 ] The majority of rain occurs between April and October ( the wet season of Southeast Texas ), when the moisture from the Gulf of Mexico evaporates extensively over the city. [ 103 ] [ 106 ] Houston has excessive ozone levels and is routinely ranked among the most ozone-polluted cities in the United States. [ 107 ] Ground-level ozone, or smog, is Houston ‘s prevailing air contamination problem, with the American Lung Association military rank the metropolitan area ‘s ozone level one-twelfth on the “ Most contaminated Cities by ozone ” in 2017, after major cities such as Los Angeles, Phoenix, New York City, and Denver. [ 108 ] The industries along the ship channel are a major causal agent of the city ‘s air pollution. [ 109 ] The rankings are in terms of peak-based standards, focusing rigorously on the worst days of the year ; the average ozone levels in Houston are lower than what is seen in most other areas of the area, as dominant allele winds ensure uninfected, marine breeze from the Gulf. [ 110 ] excessive man-made emissions in the Houston area led to a persistent increase of atmospheric carbon paper dioxide over the city. Such an increase, much regarded as “ CO2 urban dome, ” is driven by a combination of potent emissions and stagnant atmospheric conditions. furthermore, Houston is the only metropolitan sphere with less than ten million citizens where such CO2 dome can be detected by satellites. [ 111 ]
| Climate data for Houston (Intercontinental Airport), 1991–2020 normals,[a] extremes 1888–present[b] | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 84 (29) |
91 (33) |
96 (36) |
95 (35) |
99 (37) |
107 (42) |
105 (41) |
109 (43) |
109 (43) |
99 (37) |
89 (32) |
85 (29) |
109 (43) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 78.9 (26.1) |
81.2 (27.3) |
85.4 (29.7) |
88.6 (31.4) |
93.8 (34.3) |
97.8 (36.6) |
99.1 (37.3) |
101.2 (38.4) |
97.3 (36.3) |
92.2 (33.4) |
84.9 (29.4) |
80.7 (27.1) |
102.1 (38.9) |
| Average high °F (°C) | 63.8 (17.7) |
67.8 (19.9) |
74.0 (23.3) |
80.1 (26.7) |
86.9 (30.5) |
92.3 (33.5) |
94.5 (34.7) |
94.9 (34.9) |
90.4 (32.4) |
82.8 (28.2) |
72.6 (22.6) |
65.3 (18.5) |
80.5 (26.9) |
| Average low °F (°C) | 43.7 (6.5) |
47.6 (8.7) |
53.6 (12.0) |
59.8 (15.4) |
67.8 (19.9) |
73.7 (23.2) |
75.7 (24.3) |
75.4 (24.1) |
70.6 (21.4) |
60.9 (16.1) |
51.5 (10.8) |
45.6 (7.6) |
60.5 (15.8) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | 27.5 (−2.5) |
31.6 (−0.2) |
35.0 (1.7) |
43.4 (6.3) |
53.8 (12.1) |
66.5 (19.2) |
70.5 (21.4) |
70.0 (21.1) |
58.3 (14.6) |
44.1 (6.7) |
34.2 (1.2) |
30.0 (−1.1) |
26 (−3) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 5 (−15) |
6 (−14) |
21 (−6) |
31 (−1) |
42 (6) |
52 (11) |
62 (17) |
54 (12) |
45 (7) |
29 (−2) |
19 (−7) |
7 (−14) |
5 (−15) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 3.76 (96) |
2.97 (75) |
3.47 (88) |
3.95 (100) |
5.01 (127) |
6.00 (152) |
3.77 (96) |
4.84 (123) |
4.71 (120) |
5.46 (139) |
3.87 (98) |
4.03 (102) |
51.84 (1,317) |
| Average precipitation days ( ≥ 0.01 in ) | 10.0 | 8.8 | 8.8 | 7.3 | 8.6 | 10.0 | 9.1 | 8.5 | 8.4 | 7.7 | 7.6 | 9.6 | 104.4 |
| Average relative humidity (%) | 74.7 | 73.4 | 72.7 | 73.1 | 75.0 | 74.6 | 74.4 | 75.1 | 76.8 | 75.4 | 76.0 | 75.5 | 74.7 |
| Average dew point °F (°C) | 41.5 (5.3) |
44.2 (6.8) |
51.3 (10.7) |
57.7 (14.3) |
65.1 (18.4) |
70.3 (21.3) |
72.1 (22.3) |
72.0 (22.2) |
68.5 (20.3) |
59.5 (15.3) |
51.4 (10.8) |
44.8 (7.1) |
58.2 (14.6) |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 143.4 | 155.0 | 192.5 | 209.8 | 249.2 | 281.3 | 293.9 | 270.5 | 236.5 | 228.8 | 168.3 | 148.7 | 2,577.9 |
| Percent possible sunshine | 44 | 50 | 52 | 54 | 59 | 67 | 68 | 66 | 64 | 64 | 53 | 47 | 58 |
| Source: NOAA (relative humidity and dew point 1969–1990, sun 1961–1990)[92][113][114] | |||||||||||||
| Climate data for Houston (William P. Hobby Airport), 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1941–present | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 85 (29) |
87 (31) |
96 (36) |
94 (34) |
100 (38) |
105 (41) |
104 (40) |
106 (41) |
108 (42) |
96 (36) |
90 (32) |
84 (29) |
108 (42) |
| Average high °F (°C) | 63.8 (17.7) |
67.6 (19.8) |
73.4 (23.0) |
79.3 (26.3) |
85.9 (29.9) |
91.0 (32.8) |
92.9 (33.8) |
93.5 (34.2) |
89.3 (31.8) |
82.1 (27.8) |
72.6 (22.6) |
65.7 (18.7) |
79.8 (26.6) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 55.0 (12.8) |
58.9 (14.9) |
64.7 (18.2) |
70.6 (21.4) |
77.6 (25.3) |
83.0 (28.3) |
84.8 (29.3) |
85.1 (29.5) |
81.1 (27.3) |
73.0 (22.8) |
63.3 (17.4) |
56.9 (13.8) |
71.2 (21.8) |
| Average low °F (°C) | 46.1 (7.8) |
50.1 (10.1) |
55.9 (13.3) |
61.8 (16.6) |
69.3 (20.7) |
74.9 (23.8) |
76.6 (24.8) |
76.7 (24.8) |
72.9 (22.7) |
63.9 (17.7) |
54.0 (12.2) |
48.0 (8.9) |
62.5 (16.9) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 10 (−12) |
14 (−10) |
22 (−6) |
36 (2) |
44 (7) |
56 (13) |
64 (18) |
66 (19) |
50 (10) |
33 (1) |
25 (−4) |
9 (−13) |
9 (−13) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 4.09 (104) |
2.85 (72) |
3.28 (83) |
4.08 (104) |
5.42 (138) |
6.09 (155) |
4.59 (117) |
5.44 (138) |
5.76 (146) |
5.78 (147) |
3.90 (99) |
4.34 (110) |
55.62 (1,413) |
| Average precipitation days ( ≥ 0.01 in ) | 9.2 | 9.0 | 8.0 | 7.1 | 7.3 | 9.9 | 9.1 | 9.8 | 9.1 | 7.6 | 8.5 | 9.1 | 103.7 |
| Source: NOAA[92] | |||||||||||||
Flooding [edit ]
Flooded park fortune during Hurricane Harvey, August 2017 Because of Houston ‘s wet season and proximity to the Gulf Coast, the city is prone to flooding from big rains ; the most celebrated flood events include tropical Storm Allison in 2001 and Hurricane Harvey in 2017, along with most late tropical Storm Imelda in 2019 and Tropical Storm Beta in 2020. In response to Hurricane Harvey, Mayor Sylvester Turner of Houston initiated plans to require developers to build homes that will be less susceptible to flooding by raising them two feet above the 500-year floodplain. Hurricane Harvey damaged hundreds of thousands of homes and dumped trillions of gallons of water system into the city. [ 115 ] In places this led to feet of standing water system that blocked streets and flooded homes. The Houston City Council passed this regulation in 2018 with a vote of 9–7. Had these floodplain development rules had been in station all along, it is estimated that 84 % of homes in the 100-year and 500-year floodplains would have been spared damage. [ dubious – discuss ] [ 115 ] In a holocene font testing these regulations, near the Brickhouse Gulley, an honest-to-god golf run that farseeing served as a floodplain and reservoir for floodwaters, announced a variety of heart toward intensifying development. [ 116 ] A countrywide developer, Meritage Homes, bought the land and planned to develop the 500-year floodplain into 900 new residential homes. Their design would bring in $ 360 million in tax income and boost city population and tax gross. In order to meet the fresh floodplain regulations, the developers needed to elevate the lowest floors two feet above the 500-year floodplain, equivalent to five or six feet above the 100-year base flood elevation, and build a channel to direct stormwater runoff toward detention basins. Before Hurricane Harvey, the city had bought $ 10.7 million in houses in this area specifically to take them out of danger. In accession to developing new streets and single-family house within a floodplain, a flowing flood-water stream termed a floodway runs through the development area, a most dangerous invest to encounter during any future flood event. [ 117 ] Under Texas law Harris County, like early more rural Texas counties, can not direct developers where to build or not build via bring consumption controls such as a zoning ordinance, and alternatively can only impose general floodplain regulations for enforcement during section approvals and building permit approvals. [ 117 ]
Demographics [edit ]
White, Black, Asian, Hispanic or Other (yellow) Map of heathen distribution in Houston, 2010 U.S. Census. Each dot is 25 people : or ( chicken ) The 2020 U.S. census determined Houston had a population of 2,304,280. [ 2 ] In 2017, the census-estimated population was 2,312,717, and in 2018 it was 2,325,502. [ 2 ] An calculate 600,000 undocumented immigrants resided in the Houston sphere in 2017, [ 118 ] comprising closely 9 % of the city ‘s metropolitan population. [ 119 ] At the 2010 United States census, Houston had a population of 2,100,263 residents. [ 120 ] Per the 2019 American Community Survey, Houston ‘s old age distribution was 482,402 under 15 ; 144,196 aged 15 to 19 ; 594,477 aged 20 to 34 ; 591,561 aged 35 to 54 ; 402,804 aged 55 to 74 ; and 101,357 aged 75 and older. The median old age of the city was 33.4. [ 121 ] At the 2014-2018 census estimates, Houston ‘s old age distribution was 486,083 under 15 ; 147,710 aged 15 to 19 ; 603,586 aged 20 to 34 ; 726,877 aged 35 to 59 ; and 357,834 aged 60 and older. [ 122 ] The median historic period was 33.1, up from 32.9 in 2017 and down from 33.5 in 2014 ; the city ‘s youth was attributed to an inflow of an african american New Great Migration, Hispanic and latin american, and asian immigrants into Texas. [ 123 ] [ 124 ] [ 125 ] For every 100 females, there were 98.5 males. [ 122 ] There were 987,158 house units in 2019 and 876,504 households. [ 121 ] [ 126 ] An estimated 42.3 % of Houstonians owned housing units, with an average of 2.65 people per family. [ 127 ] The medial monthly owner costs with a mortgage were $ 1,646, and $ 536 without a mortgage. Houston ‘s medial gross rent from 2015 to 2019 was $ 1,041. The median family income in 2019 was $ 52,338 and 20.1 % of Houstonians lived at or below the poverty line .
race and ethnicity [edit ]
Houston is a majority-minority city. The Rice University Kinder Institute for Urban Research, a think tank, has described Greater Houston as “ one of the most ethnically and culturally diverse metropolitan areas in the country ”. [ 134 ] Houston ‘s diversity, historically fueled by large waves of Hispanic and latin american, and asian immigrants, has been attributed to its relatively low price of live, firm speculate market, and role as a hub for refugee resettlement. [ 135 ] [ 136 ] Houston has long been known as a popular finish for Black and african Americans due to the city ‘s well-established and influential Black or african American community. Houston is besides known as the future Black Mecca after Atlanta. [ 137 ] The Houston area is home to the largest african American community west of the Mississippi River. [ 138 ] [ 139 ] [ 140 ] A 2012 Kinder Institute composition found that, based on the evenness of population distribution between the four major racial groups in the United States ( non-Hispanic white, non-Hispanic black, spanish american or Latino, and Asian ), Greater Houston was the most ethnically diverse metropolitan area in the United States, ahead of New York City. [ 141 ] In 2019, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, non-Hispanic whites made up 23.3 % of the population of Houston proper, Hispanics and Latin Americans 45.8 %, Blacks or african Americans 22.4 %, and asian Americans 6.5 %. [ 121 ] In 2018, non-Hispanic whites made up 20.7 % of the population, Hispanics or Latin Americans 44.9 %, Blacks or african Americans 30.3 %, and asian Americans 8.2 %. [ 122 ] The largest hispanic or latin american heathen groups in the city were mexican Americans ( 31.6 % ), Puerto Ricans ( 0.8 % ), and Cuban Americans ( 0.8 % ) in 2018. [ 122 ] Houston has a higher proportion of minorities than non-Hispanic whites. In 2010, whites ( including Hispanic whites ) made up 57.6 % of the city of Houston ‘s population ; 24.6 % of the full population was non-Hispanic whites. [ 142 ] Blacks or african Americans made up 22.5 % of Houston ‘s population, American Indians made up 0.3 % of the population, Asians made up 6.9 % ( 1.7 % vietnamese, 1.3 % Chinese, 1.3 % amerind, 0.9 % Pakistani, 0.4 % Filipino, 0.3 % Korean, 0.1 % japanese ) and Pacific Islanders made up 0.1 %. Individuals from some other race made up 15.69 % of the city ‘s population. [ 129 ] Individuals from two or more races made up 2.1 % of the city. [ 142 ] At the 2000 U.S. census, the racial constitution of the city in was 49.3 % White, 25.3 % Black or african American, 5.3 % asian, 0.7 % american english Indian, 0.1 % Pacific Islander, 16.5 % from some other slipstream, and 3.1 % from two or more races. In addition, Hispanics made up 37.4 % of Houston ‘s population in 2000, while non-Hispanic whites made up 30.8 %. [ 143 ] The proportion of non-Hispanic whites in Houston has decreased significantly since 1970, when it was 62.4 %. [ 33 ]
sexual orientation and gender identity [edit ]
Houston is home to one of the largest LGBT communities and pride parades in the United States. [ 144 ] [ 145 ] [ 146 ] In 2018, the city scored a 70 out of 100 for LGBT friendliness. [ 147 ] Jordan Blum of the Houston Chronicle stated levels of LGBT acceptance and discrimination varied in 2016 due to some of the region ‘s traditionally button-down culture. [ 148 ] Before the 1970s, the city ‘s gay bars were spread around Downtown Houston and what is now midtown Houston. LGBT Houstonians needed to have a seat to socialize after the close of the cheery bars. They began going to Art Wren, a 24-hour restaurant in Montrose. LGBT community members were attracted to Montrose as a neighborhood after encountering it while patronizing Art Wren, and they began to gentrify the neighborhood and assist its native inhabitants with property maintenance. Within Montrose, new brave bars began to open. [ 149 ] By 1985, the relish and politics of the vicinity were heavily influenced by the LGBT community, and in 1990, according to Hill, 19 % of Montrose residents identified as LGBT. Paul Broussard was murdered in Montrose in 1991. [ 150 ] Before the legalization of same-sex marriage in the United States the marriage of Billie Ert and Antonio Molina, considered the first same-sex marriage in Texas history, took place on October 5, 1972. [ 151 ] Houston elected the first openly lesbian mayor of a major city in 2009, and she served until 2016. [ 151 ] [ 152 ] During her tenure she authorized the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance which was intended to improve anti-discrimination coverage based on sexual predilection and sex identity in the city, specifically in areas such as house and occupation where no anti-discrimination policy existed. [ 153 ]
religion [edit ]
| Religious affiliation (2014) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Christian | 73% | |||
| Catholic | 19% | |||
| Protestant | 50% | |||
| Other Christian | 4% | |||
| Unaffiliated | 20% | |||
| Jewish | 2% | |||
| Muslim | 1% | |||
| Hindu | 1% | |||
| Buddhist | 1% | |||
| Other faiths | 1% | |||
Houston and its metropolitan area are the third-most religious and christian area by percentage of population in the United States, and moment in Texas behind the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. [ 154 ] [ 155 ] Historically, Houston has been a center of Protestant Christianity, being part of the Bible Belt. [ 156 ] early christian groups including Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Christianity, and non-Christian religions did not grow for much of the city ‘s history because immigration was predominantly from Western Europe ( which at the time was dominated by western Christianity and favored by the quotas in federal immigration law ). The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 removed the quotas, allowing for the growth of early religions. [ 157 ] According to a 2014 study by the Pew Research Center, 73 % of the population of the Houston area identified themselves as Christians, about 50 % of whom claimed Protestant affiliations and about 19 % claimed Roman Catholic affiliations. Nationwide, about 71 % of respondents identified as Christians. About 20 % of Houston-area residents claimed no religious affiliation, compared to about 23 % countrywide. [ 158 ] The lapp survey says area residents who identify with other religions ( including Judaism, Buddhism, Islam, and Hinduism ) jointly made up about 7 % of the area population. [ 158 ] In 2020, the Public Religion Research Institute estimated 40 % were Protestant and 29 % Catholic ; overall, Christianity represented 72 % of the population. [ 159 ] Lakewood Church in Houston, led by Pastor Joel Osteen, is the largest church service in the United States. A megachurch, it had 44,800 weekly attendees in 2010, up from 11,000 weekly in 2000. [ 160 ] Since 2005, it has occupied the erstwhile Compaq Center sports stadium. In September 2010, Outreach Magazine published a list of the 100 largest christian churches in the United States, and on the tilt were the following Houston-area churches : Lakewood, Second Baptist Church Houston, Woodlands Church, Church Without Walls, and First Baptist Church. [ 160 ] According to the list, Houston and Dallas were tied as the second-most popular city for megachurches. [ 160 ]
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, the largest catholic legal power in Texas and fifth-largest in the United States, was established in 1847. [ 161 ] The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston claims approximately 1.7 million Catholics within its boundaries. [ 161 ] other outstanding catholic jurisdictions include the Eastern Catholic Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church and ukrainian Greek Catholic Church vitamin a well as the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter, whose cathedral is besides in Houston. [ 162 ] A variety show of Eastern and Oriental Orthodox churches can be found in Houston. Immigrants from Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Ethiopia, India, and other areas have added to Houston ‘s Eastern and Oriental Orthodox population. As of 2011 in the entire state, 32,000 people actively attended Orthodox churches. [ 163 ] In 2013 Father John Whiteford, the pastor of St. Jonah Orthodox Church near Spring, stated there were about 6,000-9,000 Eastern Orthodox Christians in Houston. [ 164 ] The most outstanding Eastern and Oriental Orthodox jurisdictions are the greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, [ 165 ] the Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese of North America, [ 166 ] the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, [ 167 ] and ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. [ 168 ] Houston ‘s Jewish community, estimated at 47,000 in 2001, has been deliver in the city since the 1800s. Houstonian Jews have origins from throughout the United States, Israel, Mexico, Russia, and other places. As of 2016, over 40 synagogues were in Greater Houston. [ 157 ] The largest synagogues are Congregation Beth Yeshurun, a conservative jewish temple, and the Reform Jewish congregations Beth Israel and Emanu-El. According to a study in 2016 by Berman Jewish DataBank, 51,000 Jews lived in the sphere, an increase of 4,000 since 2001. [ 169 ] Houston has a big and divers Muslim community ; it is the largest in Texas and the Southern United States, as of 2012. [ 170 ] It is estimated that Muslims made up 1.2 % of Houston ‘s population. [ 170 ] As of 2016, Muslims in the Houston sphere included South Asians, Middle Easterners, Africans, Turks, and Indonesians, american samoa well as a growing population of Latino Muslim converts. In 2000 there were over 41 mosques and storefront religious centers, with the largest being the Al-Noor Mosque ( Mosque of Light ) of the Islamic Society of Greater Houston. [ 171 ] The Hindu, Sikh, and Buddhist communities form a growing sector of the religious demographic after Judaism and Islam. One of the largest hindu temples in the metropolitan area is BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Houston, affiliated with the Swaminarayan Sampradaya denomination. Of the irreligious community 16 % practiced nothing in particular, 3 % were agnostic, and 2 % were atheist. [ 154 ]
economy [edit ]
Houston is recognized global for its energy industry—particularly for petroleum and natural gas—as well as for biomedical research and aeronautics. renewable department of energy sources—wind and solar—are besides growing economic bases in the city, [ 173 ] [ 174 ] and the City Government purchases 90 % of its annual 1 TWh world power by and large from wind, and some from solar. [ 175 ] [ 176 ] The city and area have besides been growing centers for engineering. [ 177 ] Major engineering and software companies within Greater Houston include Crown Castle, KBR, Cybersoft, Houston Wire & Cable, and HostGator. In 2020, it was announced Hewlett Packard Enterprise would relocate its ball-shaped headquarters from California to the Greater Houston area. [ 178 ] The Houston Ship Channel is besides a large partially of Houston ‘s economic base. Because of these strengths, Houston is designated as a global city by the Globalization and World Cities Study Group and Network and ball-shaped management consult tauten A.T. Kearney. [ 13 ] The Houston area is the top U.S. grocery store for exports, surpassing New York City in 2013, according to data released by the U.S. Department of Commerce ‘s International Trade Administration. In 2012, the Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land area recorded $ 110.3 billion in trade exports. [ 179 ] Petroleum products, chemicals, and oil and boast extraction equipment accounted for roughly two-thirds of the metropolitan area ‘s exports last class. The clear three destinations for exports were Mexico, Canada, and Brazil. [ 180 ] The Houston area is a leading center for building oilfield equipment. [ 181 ] a lot of its success as a petrochemical complex is due to its busy ship channel, the Port of Houston. [ 182 ] In the United States, the port ranks first in external commerce and 16th among the largest ports in the worldly concern. [ 183 ] Unlike most places, high petroleum and gasoline prices are beneficial for Houston ‘s economy, as many of its residents are employed in the energy diligence. [ 184 ] Houston is the begin or end point of numerous vegetable oil, accelerator, and products pipelines. [ 185 ]
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The Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metro area ‘s gross domestic product ( GDP ) in 2016 was $ 478 billion, making it the sixth-largest of any metropolitan area in the United States and larger than Iran ‘s, Colombia ‘s, or the United Arab Emirates ‘ GDP. [ 186 ] only 27 countries other than the United States have a megascopic domestic merchandise exceeding Houston ‘s regional gross area intersection ( GAP ). [ 187 ] In 2010, mine ( which consists about wholly of exploration and production of anoint and gas in Houston ) accounted for 26.3 % of Houston ‘s GAP up aggressively in reception to high energy prices and a decreased global excess of petroleum production capability, followed by engineer services, health services, and fabrication. [ 188 ] The University of Houston System ‘s annual affect on the Houston area ‘s economy equates to that of a major corporation : $ 1.1 billion in new funds attracted per annum to the Houston area, $ 3.13 billion in entire economic benefit, and 24,000 local jobs generated. [ 189 ] [ 190 ] This is in addition to the 12,500 new graduates the U.H. System produces every year who enter the work force in Houston and throughout Texas. These degree-holders tend to stay in Houston. After five years, 80.5 % of graduates are still living and working in the region. [ 190 ] In 2006, the Houston metropolitan area ranked first gear in Texas and third base in the U.S. within the category of “ Best Places for Business and Careers ” by Forbes cartridge holder. [ 191 ] Ninety-one foreign governments have established consular offices in Houston ‘s metropolitan area, the third-highest in the state. [ 192 ] Forty foreign governments maintain trade and commercial offices here with 23 active extraneous chambers of department of commerce and trade associations. [ 193 ] twenty-five alien banks representing 13 nations operate in Houston, providing fiscal aid to the international residential district. [ 194 ] In 2008, Houston received top rank on Kiplinger’s Personal Finance “ Best Cities of 2008 ” list, which ranks cities on their local economy, employment opportunities, reasonable be costs, and quality of life. [ 195 ] The city ranked fourth for highest increase in the local technological invention over the preceding 15 years, according to Forbes magazine. [ 196 ] In the like year, the city ranked second on the annual Fortune 500 list of company headquarters, [ 197 ] first for Forbes magazine ‘s “ Best Cities for College Graduates ”, [ 198 ] and first on their list of “ Best Cities to Buy a home ”. [ 199 ] In 2010, the city was rated the best city for shopping, according to Forbes. [ 200 ] In 2012, the city was ranked count one for paycheck worth by Forbes and in late May 2013, Houston was identified as America ‘s top city for employment creation. [ 201 ] [ 202 ] In 2013, Houston was identified as the number one U.S. city for job creation by the U.S. Bureau of Statistics after it was not entirely the first major city to regain all the jobs lost in the preceding economic downturn, but besides after the crash, more than two jobs were added for every one lost. Economist and frailty president of research at the Greater Houston Partnership Patrick Jankowski attributed Houston ‘s success to the ability of the region ‘s veridical estate and energy industries to learn from diachronic mistakes. furthermore, Jankowski stated that “ more than 100 foreign-owned companies relocated, expanded or started newly businesses in Houston ” between 2008 and 2010, and this openness to external business boosted job universe during a period when domestic requirement was problematically low. [ 202 ] besides in 2013, Houston again appeared on Forbes’ list of “ Best Places for Business and Careers ”. [ 203 ]
polish [edit ]
Located in the American South, Houston is a divers city with a big and growing international community. [ 204 ] The Greater Houston metropolitan area is home to an estimated 1.1 million ( 21.4 percentage ) residents who were born outside the United States, with about two-thirds of the sphere ‘s foreign-born population from south of the United States–Mexico border since 2009. [ 205 ] Additionally, more than one in five foreign-born residents are from Asia. [ 205 ] The city is home to the nation ‘s third-largest assiduity of consular offices, representing 92 countries. [ 206 ] many annual events celebrate the divers cultures of Houston. The largest and longest-running is the annual Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, held over 20 days from early to late March, and is the largest annual livestock express and rodeo in the populace. [ 207 ] Another large celebration is the annual night-time Houston Gay Pride Parade, held at the end of June. [ 208 ] other luminary annual events include the Houston Greek Festival, [ 209 ] Art Car Parade, the Houston Auto Show, the Houston International Festival, [ 210 ] and the Bayou City Art Festival, which is considered to be one of the top five art festivals in the United States. [ 211 ] [ 212 ] Houston is highly regarded for its diverse food and restaurant polish. respective major publications have systematically named Houston one of “ America ‘s Best food Cities ”. [ 213 ] [ 214 ] [ 215 ] [ 216 ] [ 217 ] Houston received the official nickname of “ Space City ” in 1967 because it is the location of NASA ‘s Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center. early nickname often used by locals include “ Bayou City ”, “ Clutch City “, “ Crush City ”, “ Magnolia City ”, “ H-Town ”, and “ culinary capital of the South ”. [ 218 ] [ 219 ] [ 220 ]
Arts and dramaturgy [edit ]
The Houston Theater District, in Downtown, is home to nine major performing arts organizations and six performance halls. It is the second-largest concentration of dramaturgy seats in a Downtown area in the United States. [ 221 ] [ 222 ] [ 223 ] Houston is one of few United States cities with permanent wave, master, house physician companies in all major performing arts disciplines : opera ( Houston Grand Opera ), ballet ( Houston Ballet ), music ( Houston Symphony Orchestra ), and field ( The Alley Theatre, Theatre Under the Stars ). [ 16 ] [ 224 ] Houston is besides home to folk artists, art groups and respective little progressive arts organizations. [ 225 ] Houston attracts many touring Broadway acts, concerts, shows, and exhibitions for a variety of interests. [ 226 ] Facilities in the Theater District include the Jones Hall —home of the Houston Symphony Orchestra and Society for the Performing Arts—and the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts. The Museum District ‘s cultural institutions and exhibits attract more than 7 million visitors a year. [ 227 ] [ 228 ] Notable facilities include The Museum of Fine Arts, the Houston Museum of Natural Science, the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, the Station Museum of Contemporary Art, the Holocaust Museum Houston, the Children ‘s Museum of Houston, and the Houston Zoo. [ 229 ] [ 230 ] [ 231 ] Located near the Museum District are The Menil Collection, Rothko Chapel, the Moody Center for the Arts and the Byzantine Fresco Chapel Museum. Bayou Bend is a 14-acre ( 5.7 hour angle ) adeptness of the Museum of Fine Arts that houses one of America ‘s most outstanding collections of cosmetic art, paintings, and furniture. Bayou Bend is the early home of Houston philanthropist Ima Hogg. [ 232 ] The National Museum of Funeral History is in Houston near the George Bush Intercontinental Airport. The museum houses the original Popemobile used by Pope John Paul II in the 1980s along with numerous hearses, embalming displays, and information on celebrated funerals. Venues across Houston regularly host local and touring rock, blues, state, dubstep, and Tejano melodious acts. While Houston has never been widely known for its music scene, [ 233 ] Houston rap has become a significant, independent music view that is influential countrywide. Houston is the birthplace of the chop and screwed remixing-technique in Hip-hop which was pioneered by DJ Screw from the city. Some other noteworthy rap artists from the area include Slim Thug, Paul Wall, Mike Jones, Bun B, Geto Boys, Trae tha Truth, Kirko Bangz, Z-Ro, South Park Mexican, Travis Scott and Megan Thee Stallion. [ 234 ] Beyoncé Knowles and girl group Destiny ‘s Child originated in Houston .
tourism and diversion [edit ]
The Theater District is a 17-block area in the center field of Downtown Houston that is dwelling to the Bayou Place entertainment complex, restaurants, movies, plaza, and parks. Bayou Place is a bombastic multilevel building containing full-service restaurants, bars, live music, billiards, and Sundance Cinema. The Bayou Music Center stages hot concerts, stage plays, and stand-up drollery. Space Center Houston is the official visitors ‘ center of NASA ‘s Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center. The Space Center has many synergistic exhibits including moon rocks, a shuttle simulator, and presentations about the history of NASA ‘s man space flight broadcast. early tourist attractions include the Galleria ( Texas ‘s largest shopping promenade, in the Uptown District ), Old Market Square, the Downtown Aquarium, and Sam Houston Race Park. Houston ‘s current Chinatown and the Mahatma Gandhi District are two major heathen enclaves, reflecting Houston ‘s multicultural makeup. Restaurants, bakeries, traditional-clothing boutiques, and peculiarity shops can be found in both areas. Houston is home to 337 parks, including Hermann Park, Terry Hershey Park, Lake Houston Park, Memorial Park, Tranquility Park, Sesquicentennial Park, Discovery Green, Buffalo Bayou Park and Sam Houston Park. Within Hermann Park are the Houston Zoo and the Houston Museum of Natural Science. Sam Houston Park contains restored and reconstructed homes which were primitively built between 1823 and 1905. [ 235 ] A proposal has been made to open the city ‘s first botanic garden at Herman Brown Park. [ 236 ] Of the 10 most populous U.S. cities, Houston has the most entire area of parks and green space, 56,405 acres ( 228 km2 ). [ 237 ] The city besides has over 200 extra green spaces—totaling over 19,600 acres ( 79 km2 ) that are managed by the city—including the Houston Arboretum and Nature Center. The Lee and Joe Jamail Skatepark is a populace skatepark owned and operated by the city of Houston, and is one of the largest skateparks in Texas consist of a 30,000-ft2 ( 2,800 m2 ) in-ground facility. The Gerald D. Hines Waterwall Park —in the Uptown District of the city—serves as a popular tourist drawing card and for weddings and diverse celebrations. A 2011 study by Walk Score ranked Houston the 23rd most walkable of the 50 largest cities in the United States. [ 238 ]
Sports [edit ]
Houston has sports teams for every major professional league except the National Hockey League and the National Lacrosse League. The Houston Astros are a Major League Baseball expansion team formed in 1962 ( known as the “ Colt .45s ” until 1965 ) that won the World Series in 2017 and appeared in the 2005, 2019, and 2021 World Series. It is the entirely MLB team to have won pennants in both modern leagues. [ 239 ] The Houston Rockets are a National Basketball Association franchise based in the city since 1971. They have won two NBA Championships, one in 1994 and another in 1995 under star players Hakeem Olajuwon, Otis Thorpe, Clyde Drexler, Vernon Maxwell, and Kenny Smith. [ 240 ] The Houston Texans are a National Football League expansion team formed in 2002. The Houston Dynamo is a major League Soccer franchise that has been based in Houston since 2006, winning two MLS Cup titles in 2006 and 2007. The Houston Dash team plays in the National Women ‘s Soccer League. [ 241 ] They won the 2020 NWSL Challenge Cup. The Houston SaberCats are a rugby team that plays in Major League Rugby. [ 242 ] Minute Maid Park ( home of the Astros ) and Toyota Center ( home of the Rockets ), are in Downtown Houston. Houston has the NFL ‘s first retractable-roof stadium with lifelike grass, NRG Stadium ( home of the Texans ). [ 243 ] Minute Maid Park is besides a retractable-roof stadium. Toyota Center besides has the largest screen for an indoor stadium in the United States built to coincide with the sphere ‘s host of the 2013 NBA All-Star Game. [ 244 ] PNC Stadium is a soccer-specific stadium for the Houston Dynamo, the Texas Southern Tigers football team, and Houston Dash, in East Downtown. Aveva Stadium ( home of the SaberCats ) is in south Houston. In addition, NRG Astrodome was the beginning indoor stadium in the earth, built in 1965. [ 245 ] other sports facilities include Hofheinz Pavilion ( Houston Cougars basketball ), Rice Stadium ( Rice Owls football ), and NRG Arena. TDECU Stadium is where the University of Houston ‘s Cougars football team plays. [ 246 ] Houston has hosted respective major sports events : the 1968, 1986 and 2004 Major League Baseball All-Star Games ; the 1989, 2006 and 2013 NBA All-Star Games ; Super Bowl VIII, Super Bowl XXXVIII, and Super Bowl LI, angstrom well as hosting the 1981, 1986, 1994 and 1995 NBA Finals, winning the latter two, and hosting the 2005 World Series, 2017 World Series and 2019 World Series. The city won its first baseball championship during the 2017 event. NRG Stadium hosted Super Bowl LI on February 5, 2017. [ 247 ] The city has hosted respective major professional and college sporting events, including the annual Houston Open golf tournament. Houston hosts the annual Houston College Classic baseball tournament every February, and the Texas Kickoff and Bowl in September and December, respectively. [ 248 ] The Grand Prix of Houston, an annual car race on the IndyCar Series circuit was held on a 1.7-mile irregular street circuit in NRG Park. The October 2013 event was held using a pluck interpretation of the 2006–2007 course. [ 249 ] The event had a 5-year raceway contract through 2017 with IndyCar. [ 250 ] In motorcycling, the Astrodome hosted an AMA Supercross Championship circle from 1974 to 2003 and the NRG Stadium since 2003. Houston is besides one of the first cities in the world to have a major eSports team represent it, in the form of the Houston Outlaws. The Outlaws bet in the Overwatch League and are one of two Texan teams, the other being the Dallas Fuel. Houston is besides one of eight cities to have an XFL team, the Houston Roughnecks .
government [edit ]
Harris County Family Law Center The city of Houston has a potent mayoral form of municipal government. [ 251 ] Houston is a home plate dominion city and all municipal elections in Texas are nonpartisan. [ 251 ] [ 252 ] The city ‘s elected officials are the mayor, city control and 16 members of the Houston City Council. [ 253 ] The stream mayor of Houston is Sylvester Turner, a Democrat elected on a nonpartisan ballot. Houston ‘s mayor serves as the city ‘s foreman administrator, executive officer, and official representative, and is responsible for the general management of the city and for seeing all laws and ordinances are enforced. [ 254 ] The original city council line-up of 14 members ( nine district-based and five at-large positions ) was based on a U.S. Justice Department mandate which took effect in 1979. [ 255 ] At-large council members represent the entire city. [ 253 ] Under the city rent, once the population in the city limits exceeded 2.1 million residents, two extra districts were to be added. [ 256 ] The city of Houston ‘s official 2010 census count was 600 shy of the want number ; however, as the city was expected to grow beyond 2.1 million curtly thereafter, the two extra districts were added for, and the positions filled during, the August 2011 elections. The city accountant is elected independently of the mayor and council. The restrainer ‘s duties are to certify available funds anterior to committing such funds and process disbursements. The city ‘s fiscal year begins on July 1 and ends on June 30. Chris Brown is the city accountant, serving his first terminus as of January 2016. As the consequence of a 2015 referendum in Houston, a mayor is elected for a four-year term and can be elected to adenine many as two consecutive terms. [ 257 ] The terminus limits were spearheaded in 1991 by conservative political activist Clymer Wright. [ 258 ] During 1991–2015, the city restrainer and city council members were subjected to a biennial, three-term limitation–the 2015 referendum amended term limits to two four-year terms. As of 2017 some councilmembers who served two terms and won a final examination term will have served eight years in office, whereas a freshman councilmember who won a place in 2013 can serve up to two extra terms under the former term terminus ad quem law–a blue-ribbon few will have at least 10 years of incumbency once their term expires. Houston is considered to be a politically separate city whose balance of power much sways between Republicans and Democrats. a lot of the city ‘s wealthier areas vote Republican while the city ‘s wage-earning and minority areas vote democratic. According to the 2005 Houston Area Survey, 68 percentage of non-Hispanic whites in Harris County are declared or favor Republicans while 89 percentage of non-Hispanic blacks in the area are declared or favor Democrats. About 62 percentage of Hispanics ( of any subspecies ) in the area are declared or favor Democrats. [ 259 ] The city has frequently been known to be the most politically divers city in Texas, a state of matter known for being broadly conservative. [ 259 ] As a consequence, the city is frequently a contest area in statewide elections. [ 259 ] In 2009, Houston became the first U.S. city with a population over 1 million citizens to elect a gay mayor, by electing Annise Parker. [ 260 ] Texas has banned sanctuary cities, [ 261 ] but Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said Houston will not assist ICE agents with immigration raids. [ 262 ]
crime [edit ]
Houston Police Department headquarters Houston had 303 homicides in 2015 and 302 homicides in 2016. Officials predicted there would be 323 homicides in 2016. rather, there was no increase in Houston ‘s homicide rate between 2015 and 2016. [ 263 ] [ discuss ] Houston ‘s murder rate ranked 46th of U.S. cities with a population over 250,000 in 2005 ( per head rate of 16.3 murders per 100,000 population ). [ 264 ] In 2010, the city ‘s mangle rate ( per caput rate of 11.8 murders per 100,000 population ) was ranked one-sixth among U.S. cities with a population of over 750,000 ( behind New York City, Chicago, Detroit, Dallas, and Philadelphia ) according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. [ 265 ] Murders fell by 37 percentage from January to June 2011, compared with the like period in 2010. Houston ‘s sum crime rate including crimson and nonviolent crimes decreased by 11 percentage. [ 266 ] The FBI ‘s Uniform Crime Report ( UCR ) indicates a down drift of violent crime in Houston over the ten- and twenty-year periods ending in 2016, which is reproducible with national trends. This swerve toward lower rates of violent crime in Houston includes the murder rate, though it had seen a four-year uptick that lasted through 2015. Houston ‘s crimson crime rate was 8.6 % percentage higher in 2016 than the former year. however, from 2006 to 2016, violent crime was still down 12 percentage in Houston. [ 267 ] Houston is a significant hub for traffic of cocaine, cannabis, heroin, MDMA, and methamphetamine due to its size and proximity to major illegal drug exporting nations. [ 268 ] Houston is one of the area ‘s largest hub for human traffic. [ 269 ] In the early 1970s, Houston, Pasadena and several coastal towns were the locate of the Houston mass murders, which at the fourth dimension were the deadliest case of serial killing in american english history. [ 270 ] [ 271 ] In 1853, the first gear execution in Houston took identify in public at Founder ‘s Cemetery in the Fourth Ward ; initially, the cemetery was the execution web site, but post-1868 executions took invest in the imprison facilities. [ 272 ]
education [edit ]
The first Hattie Mae White Administration Building ; it has been sold and demolished nineteen school districts exist within the city of Houston. The Houston Independent School District ( HISD ) is the seventh-largest school zone in the United States and the largest in Texas. [ 273 ] HISD has over 100 campuses that serve as magnet or avant-garde schools—specializing in such disciplines as health professions, ocular and performing arts, and the sciences. There are besides many rent schools that are run individually from school districts. In addition, some public school districts besides have their own charter schools. The Houston area encompasses more than 300 private schools, [ 274 ] [ 275 ] [ 276 ] many of which are accredited by Texas Private School Accreditation Commission recognized agencies. The Greater Houston metropolitan area ‘s independent schools offer education from a variety of unlike religious angstrom well as worldly viewpoints. [ 277 ] The Greater Houston area ‘s Catholic schools are operated by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston .
Colleges and universities [edit ]
Houston has four submit universities. The University of Houston ( UH ) is a inquiry university and the flagship institution of the University of Houston System. [ 278 ] [ 279 ] [ 280 ] The third-largest university in Texas, the University of Houston has about 44,000 students on its 667-acre ( 270-hectare ) campus in the Third Ward. [ 281 ] The University of Houston–Clear Lake and the University of Houston–Downtown are stand-alone universities within the University of Houston System ; they are not branch campuses of the University of Houston. Slightly west of the University of Houston is Texas Southern University ( TSU ), one of the largest historically black universities in the United States with approximately 10,000 students. Texas Southern University is the first country university in Houston, founded in 1927. [ 282 ] respective private institutions of higher teach are within the city. Rice University, the most selective university in Texas and one of the most selective in the United States, [ 283 ] is a private, profane institution with a high floor of research natural process. [ 284 ] Founded in 1912, Rice ‘s historic, heavily wooded 300-acre ( 120-hectare ) campus, adjacent to Hermann Park and the Texas Medical Center, hosts approximately 4,000 undergraduate and 3,000 post-graduate students. To the north in Neartown, the University of St. Thomas, founded in 1947, is Houston ‘s entirely Catholic university. St. Thomas provides a big arts course of study for roughly 3,000 students at its historic 19-block campus along Montrose Boulevard. In southwest Houston, Houston Baptist University ( HBU ), founded in 1960, offers bachelor ‘s and alumnus degrees at its Sharpstown campus. The school is affiliated with the Baptist General Convention of Texas and has a student population of approximately 3,000. Three community college districts have campuses in and around Houston. The Houston Community College System ( HCC ) serves most of Houston proper ; its main campus and headquarters are in Midtown. Suburban northerly and westerly parts of the metropolitan area are served by assorted campuses of the Lone Star College System, while the southeastern helping of Houston is served by San Jacinto College, and a northeastern parcel is served by Lee College. [ 285 ] The Houston Community College and Lone Star College systems are among the 10 largest institutions of higher teach in the United States. Houston besides hosts a number of graduate schools in law and healthcare. The University of Houston Law Center and Thurgood Marshall School of Law at Texas Southern University are public, ABA-accredited law schools, while the South Texas College of Law, in Downtown, serves as a secret, freelancer alternate. The Texas Medical Center is home to a high concentration of health professions schools, including two aesculapian schools : McGovern Medical School, part of The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, and Baylor College of Medicine, a highly selective individual initiation. Prairie View A & M University ‘s nurse school is in the Texas Medical Center. additionally, both Texas Southern University and the University of Houston have drugstore schools, and the University of Houston hosts a medical school and a college of optometry .
Media [edit ]
Houston Chronicle headquarters, formerly the Houston Post headquarters The currentheadquarters, once theheadquarters The primary coil network-affiliated television stations are KPRC-TV ( NBC ), KHOU ( CBS ), KTRK-TV ( ABC ), KRIV ( Fox ), KIAH ( The CW ), KTXH ( MyNetworkTV ), KXLN-DT ( Univision ), KFTH-DT ( UniMás ), and KTMD-TV ( Telemundo ). KTRK-TV, KRIV, KTXH, KXLN-DT, KFTH-DT, and KTMD-TV function as owned-and-operated stations of their networks. [ 291 ] The Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan area is served by one public television station and one public radio station. KUHT ( Houston Public Media ) is a PBS extremity station and is the first public television receiver station in the United States. Houston Public Radio is listener-funded and comprises one NPR member place, KUHF ( News 88.7 ). The University of Houston System owns and holds broadcasting licenses to KUHT and KUHF. The stations broadcast from the Melcher Center for Public Broadcasting on the campus of the University of Houston. Houston and its metropolitan sphere are served by the Houston Chronicle, its only major daily newspaper with wide distribution. Hearst Communications, which owns and operates the Houston Chronicle, bought the assets of the Houston Post —its long-time rival and independent competition—when Houston Post ceased operations in 1995. The Houston Post was owned by the family of erstwhile Lieutenant Governor Bill Hobby of Houston. The only other major issue to serve the city is the Houston Press —which was a free alternative hebdomadally newspaper before the destruction caused by Hurricane Harvey resulted in the issue switching to an online-only format on November 2, 2017. [ 292 ] other celebrated publications include Houston Forward Times, OutSmart, and La Voz de Houston. Houston Forward Times is one of the largest black-owned newspapers in the metropolitan area and owned by Forward Times Publishing Company. [ 293 ] OutSmart is an LGBT magazine in Houston and was ranked “ Best Local Magazine ” by the Houston Press in 2008. [ 294 ] La Voz de Houston is the Houston Chronicle ‘s Spanish-language newspaper and the largest in the area .
infrastructure [edit ]
healthcare [edit ]
Houston is the seat of the Texas Medical Center, which describes itself as containing the world ‘s largest concentration of research and healthcare institutions. [ 295 ] All 49 member institutions of the Texas Medical Center are non-profit organizations. They provide affected role and preventive caution, research, education, and local, national, and international community wellbeing. Employing more than 73,600 people, institutions at the checkup center include 13 hospitals and two forte institutions, two checkup schools, four nursing schools, and schools of dentistry, populace health, drugstore, and virtually all health-related careers. It is where one of the first—and still the largest—air hand brake military service, Life Flight, was created, and an inter-institutional transplant platform was developed. [ citation needed ] Around 2007, more heart surgeries were performed at the Texas Medical Center than anywhere else in the universe. [ 296 ] Some of the academic and inquiry health institutions at the center include MD Anderson Cancer Center, Baylor College of Medicine, UT Health Science Center, Memorial Hermann Hospital, Houston Methodist Hospital, Texas Children ‘s Hospital, and University of Houston College of Pharmacy. In the 2000s, the Baylor College of Medicine was per annum considered within the top ten medical schools in the nation ; alike, the MD Anderson Cancer Center had been systematically ranked as one of the top two U.S. hospitals specializing in cancer care by U.S. News & World Report since 1990. [ 297 ] [ 298 ] The Menninger Clinic, a psychiatric discussion concentrate, is affiliated with Baylor College of Medicine and the Houston Methodist Hospital System. [ 299 ] With hospital locations nationally and headquarters in Houston, the Triumph Healthcare hospital system was the third base largest long condition acuate worry supplier nationally in 2005. [ 300 ] Harris Health System ( once Harris County Hospital District ), the hospital zone for Harris County, operates public hospitals ( Ben Taub General Hospital and Lyndon B. Johnson Hospital ) and populace clinics. The City of Houston Health Department besides operates four clinics. [ 301 ] As of 2011 the dental centers of Harris Health System take patients of ages 16 and up with patients under that age referred to the City of Houston ‘s dental clinics. [ 302 ] Montgomery County Hospital District ( MCHD ) serves as the hospital zone for Houstonians survive in Montgomery County. Fort Bend County, in which a part of Houston resides, does not have a hospital district. OakBend Medical Center serves as the county ‘s charity hospital which the county contracts with. [ 303 ]
department of transportation [edit ]
Houston is considered an automobile-dependent city, with an estimated 77.2 % of commuters driving entirely to work in 2016, [ 304 ] up from 71.7 % in 1990 [ 305 ] and 75.6 % in 2009. [ 306 ] In 2016, another 11.4 % of Houstonians carpooled to work, while 3.6 % used public passage, 2.1 % walked, and 0.5 % bicycled. [ 304 ] A commute survey estimated the median length of commute in the region was 12.2 miles ( 19.6 kilometer ) in 2012. [ 307 ] According to the 2013 American Community Survey, the median study commute in Houston ( city ) takes 26.3 minutes. [ 308 ] A 1999 Murdoch University study found Houston had both the lengthiest commute and lowest urban density of 13 boastfully american cities surveyed, [ 309 ] and a 2017 Arcadis learn ranked Houston 22nd out of 23 american cities in transportation sustainability. [ 310 ] Harris County is one of the largest consumers of gasoline in the United States, ranking moment ( behind Los Angeles County ) in 2013. [ 311 ] Despite the region ‘s senior high school rate of automobile usage, attitudes towards exile among Houstonians indicate a growing preference for walkability. A 2017 sketch by the Rice University Kinder Institute for Urban Research found 56 % of Harris County residents have a preference for dense housing in a mixed-use, walkable set as opposed to single-family caparison in a low-density area. [ 312 ] A plurality of survey respondents besides indicated traffic congestion was the most significant problem facing the metropolitan sphere. [ 312 ] In addition, many households in the city of Houston have no car. In 2015, 8.3 percentage of Houston households lacked a cable car, which was about unaltered in 2016 ( 8.1 percentage ). The national average was 8.7 percentage in 2016. Houston averaged 1.59 cars per family in 2016, compared to a national average of 1.8. [ 313 ]
Roadways [edit ]
The eight-county Greater Houston metropolitan sphere contains over 25,000 miles ( 40,000 kilometer ) of roadway, of which 10 %, or approximately 2,500 miles ( 4,000 kilometer ), is limited-access highway. [ 314 ] The Houston region ‘s extensive expressway system handles over 40 % of the regional casual vehicle miles traveled ( VMT ). [ 314 ] Arterial roads handle an extra 40 % of casual VMT, while bell roads, of which Greater Houston has 180 miles ( 290 kilometer ), handle closely 10 %. [ 314 ] Greater Houston possesses a hub-and-spoke limited-access highway system, in which a number of freeways radiate outward from Downtown, with ring roads providing connections between these radial highways at intermediate distances from the city center. The city is crossed by three Interstate highways, Interstate 10, Interstate 45, and Interstate 69 ( normally known as U.S. Route 59 ), angstrom well as a number of other United States routes and state highways. Major freeways in Greater Houston are much referred to by either the cardinal number focus or geographic localization they travel towards. Highways that follow the cardinal convention include U.S. Route 290 ( Northwest Freeway ), Interstate 45 north of Downtown ( North Freeway ), Interstate 10 east of Downtown (East Freeway ), Texas State Highway 288 ( South Freeway ), and Interstate 69 south of Downtown ( Southwest Freeway ). Highways that follow the placement convention include Interstate 10 west of Downtown ( Katy Freeway ), Interstate 69 north of Downtown ( Eastex Freeway ), Interstate 45 confederacy of Downtown ( Gulf Freeway ), and Texas State Highway 225 ( La Porte or Pasadena Freeway ). Three cringle freeways provide north–south and east–west connectivity between Greater Houston ‘s radial highways. The inmost loop is Interstate 610, normally known as the Inner Loop, which encircles Downtown, the Texas Medical Center, Greenway Plaza, the cities of West University Place and Southside Place, and many core neighborhoods. The 88-mile ( 142 kilometer ) State Highway Beltway 8, much referred to as the Beltway, forms the middle loop at a radius of roughly 10 miles ( 16 kilometer ). A third, 180-mile ( 290 kilometer ) iteration with a radius of approximately 25 miles ( 40 kilometer ), State Highway 99 ( the Grand Parkway ), is presently under structure, with six of eleven segments completed as of 2018. [ 315 ] Completed segments D through G provide a continuous 70.4-mile ( 113.3 kilometer ) limited-access tollway connection between Sugar Land, Katy, Cypress, Spring, and Porter. [ 315 ] A organization of toll roads, operated by the Harris County Toll Road Authority ( HCTRA ) and Fort Bend County Toll Road Authority ( FBCTRA ), provides extra options for regional commuters. The Sam Houston Tollway, which encompasses the mainlanes of Beltway 8 ( as opposed to the frontage roads, which are untolled ), is the longest tollway in the system, covering the entirety of the Beltway with the exception of a free section between Interstate 45 and Interstate 69 near George Bush Intercontinental Airport. The area is serviced by four speak tollways : a set of wangle lanes on the Katy Freeway ; the Hardy Toll Road, which parallels Interstate 45 north of Downtown up to Spring ; the Westpark Tollway, which services Houston ‘s western suburbs out to Fulshear ; and Fort Bend Parkway, which connects to Sienna Plantation. Westpark Tollway and Fort Bend Parkway are operated conjunctly with the Fort Bend County Toll Road Authority. Greater Houston ‘s expressway organization is monitored by Houston TranStar, a partnership of four government agencies which is responsible for providing transportation system and emergency management services to the region. [ 316 ] Greater Houston ‘s arterial road net is established at the municipal degree, with the City of Houston exercising planning master over both its incorporated area and extraterritorial legal power ( ETJ ). Therefore, Houston exercises department of transportation planning authority over a 2,000-square-mile ( 5,200 km2 ) area over five counties, many times larger than its corporate area. [ 317 ] The Major Thoroughfare and Freeway Plan, updated per annum, establishes the city ‘s street hierarchy, identifies roadways in motivation of widening, and proposes newfangled roadways in unserved areas. arterial roads are organized into four categories, in decreasing rate of intensity : major thoroughfares, transit corridor streets, collector streets, and local streets. [ 317 ] Roadway categorization affects anticipated traffic volumes, roadway design, and right of way width. ultimately, the arrangement is designed to ferry traffic from neighborhood streets to major thoroughfares, which connect into the limited-access highway system. [ 317 ] luminary arterial roads in the region include Westheimer Road, Memorial Drive, Texas State Highway 6, farm to Market Road 1960, Bellaire Boulevard, and Telephone Road .
transit [edit ]
The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County ( METRO ) provides public transportation system in the form of buses, light fulminate, high-occupancy vehicle ( HOV ) lanes, and paratransit to fifteen municipalities throughout the Greater Houston area and parts of unincorporated Harris County. METRO ‘s overhaul area covers 1,303 feather miles ( 3,370 km2 ) containing a population of 3.6 million. [ 318 ] METRO ‘s local bus net services approximately 275,000 riders day by day with a fleet of over 1,200 buses. [ 318 ] The means ‘s 75 local anesthetic routes contain about 8,900 stops and saw closely 67 million boardings during the 2016 fiscal year. [ 318 ] A park and ride system provides commuter bus servicing from 34 transit centers scattered throughout the area ‘s suburban areas ; these express buses operate independently of the local anesthetic busbar network and utilize the region ‘s extensive organization of HOV lanes. [ 319 ] Downtown and the Texas Medical Center have the highest rates of transit practice in the area, largely due to the parking lot and ride organization, with about 60 % of commuters in each district utilizing public transportation system to get to work. [ 319 ] METRO began light rail servicing in 2004 with the open of the 8-mile ( 13 kilometer ) north-south Red Line connecting Downtown, Midtown, the Museum District, the Texas Medical Center, and NRG Park. In the early 2010s, two extra lines—the Green Line, servicing the East End, and the Purple Line, servicing the Third Ward —opened, and the Red Line was extended northbound to Northline, bringing the sum length of the system to 22.7 miles ( 36.5 kilometer ). Two light train lines outlined in a five-line system approved by voters in a 2003 referendum have so far to be constructed. [ 320 ] The Uptown Line, which runs along Post Oak Boulevard in Uptown, [ 321 ] was under construction as a bus rapid transit line—the city ‘s first—while the University Line has been postponed indefinitely. [ 322 ] The light rail system saw approximately 16.8 million boardings in fiscal year 2016. [ 318 ] Amtrak ‘s thrice-weekly Los Angeles–New Orleans Sunset Limited serves Houston at a station northwestern of Downtown. There were 14,891 boardings and alightings in FY2008, [ 323 ] 20,327 in FY2012, [ 324 ] and 20,205 in FY2018. [ 325 ] A daily Amtrak Thruway Motorcoach connects Houston with Amtrak ‘s Chicago–San Antonio Texas Eagle at Longview. [ 326 ]
cycle [edit ]
Houston has the largest count of motorcycle commuters in Texas with over 160 miles of dedicated bikeways. [ 327 ] The city is presently in the process of expanding its on and off street bikeway network. [ when? ] [ 328 ] In 2015, Downtown Houston added a bicycle track on Lamar Street, running from Sam Houston Park to Discovery Green. [ 329 ] Houston City Council approved the Houston Bike Plan in March 2017, at that time entering the plan into the Houston Code of Ordinances. [ 330 ] In August 2017, Houston City Council approved spend for construction of 13 extra miles of bicycle trails. [ 331 ] Houston ‘s bicycle sharing system started serve with nineteen stations in May 2012. Houston Bcycle ( besides known as B-Cycle ), a local non-profit, runs the subscription program, supplying bicycles and docking stations, while partnering with early companies to maintain the system. [ 332 ] The network expanded to 29 stations and 225 bicycles in 2014, registering over 43,000 checkouts of equipment during the first half of the lapp class. [ 333 ] In 2017, Bcycle logged over 142,000 crack outs while expanding to 56 dock stations. [ 334 ]
Airports [edit ]
Newest part of Terminal C, used entirely by United Airlines, at George Bush Intercontinental Airport The Houston Airport System, a branch of the municipal government, oversees the mathematical process of three major populace airports in the city. Two of these airports, George Bush Intercontinental Airport and William P. Hobby Airport, offer commercial aviation service to a variety show of domestic and external destinations and served 55 million passengers in 2016. The one-third, Ellington Airport, is home to the Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base. The Federal Aviation Administration and the department of state of Texas selected the Houston Airport System as “ Airport of the year ” in 2005, largely due to the execution of a $ 3.1 billion airport improvement program for both major airports in Houston. [ 335 ] George Bush Intercontinental Airport ( IAH ), 23 miles ( 37 kilometer ) north of Downtown Houston between Interstates 45 and 69, is the eighth busiest commercial airport in the United States ( by total passengers and aircraft movements ) and forty-third interfering globally. [ 336 ] [ 337 ] The five-terminal, five-runway, 11,000-acre ( 4,500-hectare ) airport served 40 million passengers in 2016, including 10 million external travelers. [ 336 ] In 2006, the United States Department of Transportation named IAH the fastest-growing of the crown ten airports in the United States. [ 338 ] The Houston Air Route Traffic Control Center is at Bush Intercontinental. Houston was the headquarters of Continental Airlines until its 2010 amalgamation with United Airlines with headquarters in Chicago ; regulative approval for the fusion was granted in October of that year. Bush Intercontinental is presently United Airlines ‘ moment largest hub, behind O’Hare International Airport. [ 339 ] United Airlines ‘ share of the Houston Airport System ‘s commercial aviation market was about 60 % in 2017 with 16 million emplane passengers. [ 340 ] In early 2007, Bush Intercontinental Airport was named a model “ port of submission ” for international travelers by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. [ 341 ] William P. Hobby Airport ( HOU ), known as Houston International Airport until 1967, operates primarily short- to medium-haul domestic and external flights to 60 destinations. [ 336 ] The four-runway, 1,304-acre ( 528-hectare ) facility is approximately 7 miles ( 11 kilometer ) southeast of Downtown Houston. In 2015, Southwest Airlines launched service from a new international terminal at Hobby to several destinations in Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean. These were the first external flights flown from Hobby since the open of Bush Intercontinental in 1969. [ 342 ] Houston ‘s aviation history is showcased in the 1940 Air Terminal Museum in the previous terminal construction on the west side of the airport. In 2009, Hobby Airport was recognized with two awards for being one of the peak five performing airports globally and for customer service by Airports Council International. [ 343 ] Houston ‘s third municipal airport is Ellington Airport, used by the military, government ( including NASA ) and general aviation sectors. [ 344 ]
celebrated people [edit ]
International relations [edit ]
The Mayor ‘s office of Trade and International Affairs ( MOTIA ) is the city ‘s affair to Houston ‘s sister cities and to the national govern arrangement, Sister Cities International. Through their official city-to-city relationships, these volunteer associations promote people-to-people delicacy and encourage citizens to develop reciprocal trust and sympathy through commercial, cultural, educational, and human-centered exchanges. [ 345 ] [ 346 ]
See besides [edit ]
Notes [edit ]
- ^ Mean monthly maximum and minimum ( i.e. the highest and lowest temperature readings during an entire calendar month or year ) calculated based on data at said location from 1991 to 2020 .
- ^[112] official records for Houston were kept at the Weather Bureau in business district from July 1888 to May 1969, and at Intercontinental since June 1969 .
References [edit ]
far read [edit ]
Read more: Willem Dafoe