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Mission Control

by Sharon King Hoge

One of the last U.S. cities to slip into recession and one of the first to emerge, Houston has a firm grip on its super-sized economy.

Start off with “the biggest city in the biggest state in the Lower 48,” and superlatives abound in the sprawling metropolis that is Houston, Texas: “energy capital of the world,” America’s No. 1 port in international commerce, an emerging leader in alternative energy, home of the world’s largest concentration of healthcare and research institutions. And its name was the first word spoken from the moon: “Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.”

Nicknamed the “Bayou City” for its 10 winding waterways, Houston has made the lists for Best Places for Business and Careers, Best Cities for College Graduates, Best Cities to Buy a Home and Best Cities of 2008. One of the last American cities to slip into recession and one of the first to emerge in January 2010, Houston is super-sized and super-ambitious.

Now expanded to 600 square miles, the original settlement measured only 6.6 acres in 1836 when two entrepreneurial brothers bought the site and named it for General Sam Houston. Initially a link to the nearby port at Galveston, Houston eventually developed its own manmade deepwater harbor. Fed by numerous railway lines, the city quickly emerged as a commercial and railroad hub for the export of cotton.

And then there was oil. The 1901 discovery at Spindletop spurred development of the petroleum industry. In addition to drilling, Houston built petrochemical refineries and manufacturing plants to supply pipes and oilfield equipment. Industry contributes to air pollution levels, but high oil and gas prices nourish the city’s economy. Six supermajor energy firms operate from here: ConocoPhillips, Marathon, Halliburton and El Paso Energy, as well as the U.S. headquarters for BP and Shell.

With the mid-20th century establishment of the Texas Medical Center, Houston became a leader in biomedical research. Almost 74,000 people work in its 49 not-for-profit institutions specializing in every aspect of healthcare: cancer, cardiology, organ transplantation, terminal illness, mental health, dentistry, wellness and prevention. More heart surgeries are performed at the Texas Medical Center than anywhere else in the world.

An additional major economic factor, the aerospace industry has grown up around NASA’s Space Center Houston, which opened in 1964. Home of Mission Control, it leads space race discoveries, training astronauts and developing space shuttles and space stations.

In the 1950s, the availability of air conditioning provided impetus for many companies to relocate to Houston, resulting in an economic boom that shifted the city’s economy toward the energy sector. Since the 1990s recession, Houston has made efforts to diversify its economy, reducing dependence on petroleum and focusing on aerospace and healthcare/biotechnology. Only New York City is home to more Fortune 500 headquarters within the city limits.

Manning all these activities is a highly literate, international population. More than 360,000 students study at the city’s more than 60 colleges, universities, medical schools and degree-granting institutions. At least 90 languages are spoken by the 2.2 million residents of the multicultural metropolis, which has the country’s highest percentage of Hispanic and Mexican Americans and a significant number of immigrants from Nigeria, China, Vietnam, India and Pakistan.

 

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