The Westchase District is one of Houston’s economically illustrious master-planned communities. An oil and petroleum business magnet, Westchase is a special district unto itself, planned and regulated by a longstanding tradition of beautification, economic opportunity, and structured planning.
Unlike most master-planned communities in Houston, Westchase caters to businesses equally as much as residents—or even more so, in some cases. This area has boomed because of large corporate interests, and like anything in Houston, it grew idiosyncratically from other similar communities.
Friendswood Development (of Exxon Mobil), responsible for Friendswood, Clear Lake and Kingwood, had a hand in the initial development of the Westchase district in 1969. The Westchase Corporation bought 760 acres adjacent to it in 1973 and development of the community was rigidly planned in earnest by these two companies. Eventually, big names like Chevron began to set up offices in the area.
But, prior to its illustrious planning, Bob Smith, an oil tycoon responsible for bringing the Astros to Houston (then called the Colt .45s), owned nearly 11,000 acres of land around Westheimer—the street he saw as Houston’s central connecting hub. When he died in 1973, his total net worth was over $500 million. His widow sold 763 acres to the Westchase Corporation when he passed.
However, parts of the expansive area changed hands several times even before Smith came into the picture. The Spanish and Mexican governments gave out land grants to early settlers, and then it was purchased again from Christiana Williams by Clifford Mooers in 1934. In 1988, traffic to the area improved with the construction of the Sam Houston Parkway. By 1995, however, the area was christened as a “special district,” the Westchase District.
Families can embrace this neighborhood for its safety, with extra patrols, using unmarked cars, bicycles and undercover surveillance. Plus, Westchase District maintains their own crime database to ifentity hot spot areas of crime quickly and there is camera surveillance in commonly frequented shopping centers, apartment complexes and restaurants.
Getting around the area and to other parts of the city are also a breeze with most major destinations within a 30 minute driving range. METRO bus routes and two Park & Ride centers also make it easy to use public transportation.
However, there are plenty of things to do in the Westchase District with more than 2 million square feet of shopping options, plenty of unique restaurants, jogging trails, parks, churches, country and advanced education opportunities.
The concentration of the Westchase District comes with comprehensive “long-range” planning by the district board who adopted guidelines for aesthetics (both architectural and in landscaping), and have set plans for what to do about community setbacks as well as individual community associations to ensure that this vision remains uniform and beneficial for businesses and residences alike. Another one of Houston’s busy nooks, Westchase is just another facet of Houston’s diverse history and infrastructure.
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