I went back to my old neighborhood to make a Vlog about an experience that I had recently remembered in detail of walking across a set of pipes crossing Buffalo Bayou.
Looking around the area, which had grown and changed so much, starting with the big bridge that was not there back there made me wonder...
The area we lived in was close in at the time, but it was only recently developed in the 1970s because it was a Boy Scout camp site, Camp Hudson through the 40s, 50s and 60s when Houston was smaller. In 1954, two adjoining cities were incorporated, Piney Point Village and Bunker Hill Village. Both went right up to Camp Hudson, but with deed restrictions allowing it only to be a Boy Scout camp, no development was expected. Of course that was before the Houston boom of the 70s when Houston became the fastest growing city in the US.
So in 1973 when the Boy Scouts moved out, this prime parcel of land in the Spring Branch ISD adjoining two "Memorial Villages" became available. Before the locals knew it, the land which was therefore part of the City of Houston with no zoning restrictions (unlike the Memorial Villages which were all single-family homes of a certain size) became a hot property.
The land was purchased by Christiana Southwest, Inc. who first developed 100 acres now on the south side of the existing Briar Forest Drive, which was only a short quarter mile spur to the gate from Memorial Drive. They bought the whole camp in 1973, about 200 acres, for $8 million.
Due to Houston's growth and the new desirable land now for development, I think people like my parents saw it as an investment opportunity. Their house in Briargrove had appreciated from the $25,000 they paid for it. They sold that for a big profit and were able to buy a larger home in a more desirable part of town, which I am sure they expected would appreciate nicely as well.
The new house was a townhouse, with adjoining wall, in a "California contemporary" style. 3 bedroom, 2.5 bath, 2 stories with a nice back deck overlooking the forest. The area was a gated community with security. Others like Mom and Dad must have had the same idea, because for a townhome community there were a lot of children our age there. The good schools must have been a big draw.
My sister and I walked down the street to the bus stop on Memorial Drive. To get there, we had to cross through a fence with a hole in it. At some point someone closed up the hole, but some local person opened it again.
There were houses under construction the whole 3 years we lived there. As the area we lived in expanded, a swimming pool and tennis courts were built. It was about a half mile walk to there and we enjoyed those facilities a lot during the summer. Because we were kids, there was usually not anyone there and we had them to ourselves during the week.
As you walked near the swimming pool area, there was a lot of woods. I remember exploring and finding the Scout facilities long disused: a sitting area with benches for presentations, an old dining hall cabin. That was nearby the bayou where I discovered the water pipes crossing and figured that I could get to the Plitt Woodlake 3 theater and go to the movies without having to get anyone to take me and pick me up. I suppose I could have ridden my bike the long way but Houston drivers back then did not cotton to bike riders, particularly 13 years olds.
We ended up moving to Austin that summer of 1979. I am sure that the prospect of a quick and profitable sale of the townhome was a factor in that move. About that time, the area north of our townhomes was started to be developed into condos. I am sure the locals in the Villages looked on this adjoining development with dismay.
Now if you go back there, you can hardly tell what it was like in the 1970s. The trees are still grown and the condos and townhomes just blend in to the area. In fact, a lot of excess land has since been developed (larger lots made into new lots) and new and larger streets like Briar Forest Drive have been put in. Where traffic used to go slower, it moves faster now and you don't think to look to the sides and think "What did this use to be?"
You'd have to find someone like me who grew up there to tell you this story. As I like to say, every place and time is unique in some respects. Being one of the first residents of "Hudson" as a young teenager is one of those times.
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