Montrose, Houston
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Montrose (sometimes "The Montrose") is the name of a neighborhood in Houston, Texas. Although Montrose Boulevard extends from the I-10 freeway south to the Mecom Fountain north of Hermann Park, the Montrose neighborhood is usually thought of as the area centered around the intersection of Montrose Boulevard and Westheimer Road. Once a magnet for the hippie movement, Houstonians would consider it as a hybrid of both the Haight-Ashbury and the Castro.
The district is sometimes called Neartown. Montrose, originally envisioned as a planned community and/or streetcar suburb dating back to the early 20th Century before the development of River Oaks, hosts a significant diverse community of young adults, gay men and lesbians, punk rockers, artists, as well as a vibrant thrift/vintage/second-hand shopping district. Gay bars, shopping and restaurants are all found here.
During the 1960s and 1970s, the Montrose was known for its Bohemian flavor - this would spawn both the Westheimer Colony Art Festival in 1971, and the subsequent street fair in 1973, which would become known as the Westheimer Street Festival.
The Montrose, like Haight-Ashbury, is still a central location for teen runaways in the southeast Texas region. In recent years, many young gay and lesbian runaways have made their way to Montrose.
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Places of interest
The Menil Collection art museum is in the Montrose neighborhood, along with the Consulate for the People's Republic of China.
Montrose is also the central location of KPFT 90.1 FM, a Pacifica Radio affiliate, located at 419 Lovett Blvd., along with the Houston GLBT Community Center and the Pride Committee of Houston. The last-remaining festival in the Montrose, the Greek Festival, is usually held in October on the grounds of the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral located on Yoakum Boulevard.
History
Houston's urban real estate boom starting in the 1990s transformed the Montrose and significantly increased housing costs. The neighborhood went from being a place with lots of abandoned buildings, sexually-oriented businesses, and low rent, to a neighborhood full of yuppies and new condominium construction. Inner Loop neighborhoods, before the Fall of Enron, has been a prime market for redevelopment - older multifamily complexes, primarily run-down apartments, neglected businesses, and/or undeveloped/abandoned greenspace were considered as commodities for companies such as Perry Homes.
A majority of townhouses were built in the Midtown area east of Montrose; right before the Westheimer Street Festival's demise in the early 2000s, some Neartown residents have voiced their concerns about the festival affecting their quality of life issues, ranging from street parking to traffic gridlock.
From the United States Census 2000 demographics, about one quarter of the residents are homeowners, whereas three quarters consists of renters: including many students from the University of Houston, Rice University, and the University of Saint Thomas, as well as for those employed in the Texas Medical Center, Downtown Houston, and Greenway Plaza.
The City of Houston's Planning Department refers to the Montrose neighborhood as a mixed-use, diverse community which serves as a model for other neighborhoods to follow. Since the 1990s gentrification, the demographics of those renting have changed; because of higher rent due to redevelopment, musicians and artists have been replaced with yuppies and professionals (attorneys, educators, medical professionals). Other Houston neighborhoods, such as Meyerland and Westbury have become popular places for the artistic and gay and lesbian communities to move when Montrose becomes too expensive.
Education
The area is the location of the Houston Independent School District schools Wilson Elementary School, Wharton Elementary School, Lanier Middle School and High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, as well as the University of Saint Thomas.
Pupils living in Montrose are zoned to either MacGregor Elementary, Poe Elementary, Wharton, Wilson, or Gregory Lincoln Education Center for elementary school. Pupils in Montrose are zoned to either Lanier or Gregory Lincoln for middle school, and all Midtown pupils are zoned to Lamar High School.
See also
External links
- Map of Montrose (http://www.houstoncl.com/montrose/montrose.htm)
- Houston Gay and Lesbian Political Caucus (http://www.hglpc.org/)
- Houston GLBT Community Center (http://www.houstonglbtcommunitycenter.org/)
- Pride Committee of Houston (http://www.pridehouston.org/)