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After a long day at the office you now sit in rush hour traffic, you regret the fact that you did not take pubic transportation this morning. After several minutes you are now much closer to home. You make your way around the busy city and take a short cut though Chinatown, after a drive down Avenue of the Americas you pull into the parking garage and you are home free.  Once arriving to your New York influenced loft you enter the door and head to the windows over looking the city skyline, yet you are reminded that you are miles away from the city of New York.  To many Houstonians, owning a loft is now part of their lives. Houston’s downtown lofts house anyone from the single bachelor to the young trendy family. From their spacious living quarters, many Houstonian’s have perfect views of downtown skyline.

Yet this was not always possible, for many years downtown was primarily a place of work and just recently a place to find entertainment. Now just taking a drive, one will notice all the housing making a foundation. There are also many building once abandoned now bearing large banners, drawing individuals to lease or own housing space within. From the Museum to the Warehouse districts the grounds are continuously broken for new “loft” development projects. Houston’s downtown has evolved into a community within itself, now richly populated containing many of Houston’s upper class dwellers.

The idea of just living amidst of the city skyline brings a sophistication all its own. Houstonians are willing to pay great sums of their earnings to indulge in the feeling of living in a largely Loft populated city, such as New York. 

Is Houston becoming more like New York with upscale lofts, or are Houstonians just paying more money for urban influence apartments. For this answer we must look to Webster, A loft is defined as “one of the upper floors of a warehouse or business building especially when not partitioned.” Yet many of the most popular buildings donned ‘lofts’ in Houston do not fall within this definition. For example, one of Houston’s newest housing projects is the Lofts at the Ballpark, located on the southern most part of downtown.

As you walk into the Lofts at the Ballpark you are immediately drawn to the colorful patters of the sofas and the shine of the steel end tables.  The design of the main office is immaculate every item in the room, down to the candlesticks protrude New York class and elegance. In your personal loft you will find concrete floors, 10 ft ceilings and exposed air ducts, all elements bring the experience of living the city to life. The Management staff do their very best to make the community feel like that of inner city New York. From the offices urban like interior to the trendy music displayed on the Lofts main street or the young staff member dressed in trendy black attire trained welcome residence and new comers with a coffee bar. Yet is all this a facade? Do high ceilings and concrete floors make the Lofts at the Ballpark real Lofts?  Due to the fact that the Lofts were built in 2002 from the ground up, solely for the purpose of personal dwelling, does this change the lofts authenticity? These same questions can be asked of ‘The Sabine Street Lofts’ and many other Houston mid-rise communities that bare ‘Loft’ in their names. Since the mid-2000’s other “Lofts” have been springing up throughout the Houston Downtown area. More and more individuals are moving themselves and their families to the heart of the inner city. 

Many of the lofts claim to have the same characteristics as that of the Ballpark. High ceilings, and concrete flooring. Mostly all constructed from the ground up, hardly none in which were once old buildings, or warehouses. In an advertisement, the Sabine Street Lofts a newly constructed          property is described as “an all brick style warehouse”, even equipped with a loading dock for visual authenticity. Each loft contains several large windows, exposed ductwork and track lighting. Providing each residence with the look and feel of true urban living. These same amenities can be found in almost every loft property newly introduced to the city of Houston. So what exactly is it that draws Houstonian to this new wave of urban desire” When asked, a New York native stated, “I definitely feel more at home than if I lived in a suburban area, leaving New York I was definitely looking for things to not be so much of a culture shock. These lofts are great, I'm definitely feel a lot closer to So Ho.”  For native Houstonians the experience of city life is not much different. “ I loved it, walking outside my door to downtown took some getting use to but, the architecture of it all the was amazing, although I never lived in a big city I definitely felt like I could have been a true New Yorker.”  Now in the year 2004 architects are still erecting new mock lofts throughout the Houston area, not only on city streets but they can also be found in areas such as Mid-town, Uptown and even areas like Sugar Land. It is evident that whether they be true warehouse lofts or newly constructed apartments with a ‘lofty’ feel, the trend is defiantly spreading like wild flies.

The addition of this urban living has definitely sparked a rise in Houston’s economy. Each loft with its distinctive feel and class brings in anywhere from the 900’s to the four thousands, each month. Depending on the square footage, city view and personal amenities the prices of Houston lofts can differ greatly. Yet Many Houstonians are not intimidated with high dollar amounts when it comes to urban sophistication. In a March 2002 addition of the Houston Business Journal, Khan points out how only after three months of opening day the Sabine Street Lofts had already had 25 percent occupancy of the project. Many people looking to own or lease these urban style lofts are picking out floor plans and placing deposits on unbroken land. With all the growth sprouting though out the city streets land is disappearing under newly place offices and lofts constructions, getting a head start is a sure way of getting what you want.                       

It is clear that this new shift towards ‘urban dwelling’ has become a great trend among Houstonians. Whether it is for the true authenticity of each loft or for merely a tease into New York living the move has now hit the streets of once loosely populated areas. Downtown Houston is no longer just a place of business and nightly pleasure; it has become a place of home life and growth for families. Many suburban homeowners are now turning in their backyards for views of a growing Houston skyline.