Formed 18,000 years ago, the Buffalo Bayou is Houston prime’s waterway extending some 54 miles from the Katy area all the way down to the Ship Channel and Galveston Bay. Its history in Texas goes back to the early Anglo-American settlements and the Texas Independence with the Battle of San Jacinto. The docks in the Harrisburg area just East of Downtown Houston became the foundations of what became the modern Port of Houston.
Just in time for the holidays, Houston’s collaborative spirit is in full force with the launch of the “Choose Local” campaign. This initiative calls on residents of Houston and the surrounding areas, including Harris, Fort Bend, Montgomery, Brazoria, Galveston, Liberty, Waller, Chambers, Austin and San Jacinto counties, to patronize local businesses and support the local creative community.
Neighboring downtown Houston is the East End, a community with deep historic roots and entrepreneurship. It was in the East End that the Allen Brothers envisioned and built Harrisburg, Houston’s founding cornerstone for what has become today, the fourth largest city in the country. Almost 200 years later, this largely Hispanic community is charting a new vision: To become Houston’s primary makers hub.
Houston’s Buffalo Bayou Partnership (BBP) is launching a major planning effort along Buffalo Bayou’s East Sector that will continue the non-profit organization’s legacy of transformative parks, trails and open space. In revitalizing the waterway east of downtown (from US 59 to the Port of Houston Turning Basin), BBP seeks to establish a pioneering precedent where green space can be a catalyst for inclusive growth and community development.
The East End District recently partnered with the students and teachers of YES Prep East End to canvass the Magnolia Park community with door hangers. The door hangers educated residents of garbage, recycling, and tree/junk waste guidelines and specified their heavy trash pick-up day. The students and teachers were also joined by Council Member Robert Gallegos and his staff, representatives from the Department of Neighborhoods, Harris County Precinct 6, Houston Police Department, BARC, City of Houston Solid Waste. The event was additionally sponsored by Space City Credit Union and Frost Bank.
The Greater East End Management District and other local economic development organizations are seeking to improve the quality of life in the East End and nearby areas, including an appropriate range of grocery stores. Community participation in the following survey will provide valuable information regarding future grocery offerings in this part of Houston.