Guanabee & More on Gentrification

Hey! My blog is NYC famous. Guanabee.com referred to my blog entry on gentrification today. Of course they put a funnier twist to it. I think it's so funny that people have found my observation interesting.

Although when I think about it I must agree that it is an interesting phenomenon. As our neighborhoods in the inner city change so does the clientele of our businesses. I need to ask Matamoros Meat market on Irvington if they too have experienced a change in business.

Usually it's the Mexican restaurants who see it first. Like Teotihuacan, one of my favorite restaurants, on Airline near N. Main. Go there on any given day for lunch or dinner and 90% of the clientele is non-Hispanic. Of course that location is really close to the Heights. I wonder if the Irvington location has seen a difference too.

I personally love what's happening in our neighborhoods. I love the diversity. I do find it sad that it makes areas near town, that were once still affordable, expensive. I also hate it if the property taxes are going up. But that comes with improving the neighborhood.

Something interesting that I've noticed in my neighborhood is that they aren't building any of the 3 story town home complexes that you see all around Houston. I wonder if it's because Lindale has deed restrictions and maybe the civic club isn't allowing that to happen. Which if that's the case, I think it's great.

They are building one of those mini complexes nearby. Actually, it's right around the corner from my friend's dad's house. It was such a shock to see them go up. It looked weird actually.

I think that different groups can move into our neighborhood and make it diverse without having to build. We have some really charming houses in our neck of the woods. Of course this is coming from someone who loves old houses with character, rather than the new suburban homes.

Sometimes I get impatient with our lack of initiative to remodel. I tell Rey that I want to sell and move away. Then I look at my house, really look at it. I look past the needed changes. I look at the neighborhood, and most importantly, I look at the access to every major freeway and to the Hardy Toll Road, and I realize I'm talking crazy.

I LOVE living in the city. I think I would be so miserable if I had to drive any further than I already do each day. I would hate to have to drive into the city to go to the places I love here.

Thank goodness for the Magnet program in HISD because I feel confident that my kids will always have a good education. Besides, like I've said before, it's my job to educate them. Schools are just there to provide an outline for you to follow.

I know there are a lot of people who don't understand this. I remember when I bought my house I had people (especially family) who were surprised, and maybe even looked down, on my buying this house. But now that the city is changing even more I wouldn't trade it for anything. I love these old houses with all their quirkiness.