Westheimer Road () is an

arterial An artery (plural arteries) () is a blood vessel in humans and most animals that takes blood away from the heart to one or more parts of the body (tissues, lungs, brain etc.). Most arteries carry oxygenated blood; the two exceptions are the pul ...

east–west road in

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. It runs from Bagby Street in

Downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business distric ...

and terminates at the

Westpark Tollway The Westpark Tollway, also Fort Bend Westpark Tollway, is a limited-access toll road in Texas, serving western Houston and Harris County, and northeastern Fort Bend County. Construction on the facility began in 2001 and portions of the road we ...

on the southern edge of George Bush Park, stretching about long. The street was named after Michael Louis Westheimer, a German immigrant and flour salesman.

Route description

Westheimer Road's eastern terminus is at Bagby Street. At this point, traffic heading east on Westheimer either turns southwest on Bagby Street or jogs right and southeasterly, continuing on Elgin Street into Midtown and into Third Ward near the

University of Houston The University of Houston (UH) is a Public university, public research university in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1927, UH is a member of the University of Houston System and the List of universities in Texas by enrollment, university in Texas ...

. From Bagby west, Westheimer jogs mostly westerly, through Neartown, forms the south boundary of the

River Oaks River Oaks is a residential community located in the center of Houston, Texas, United States. Located within the 610 Loop and between Downtown and Uptown, the community spans .Archive Established in the 1920s by brothers Will Hogg and Michael H ...

community and then passes under Interstate 610 (I-610) west. The portion spanning from I-610 west to the Westpark Tollway is designated as a part of

Farm to Market Road 1093 A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used fo ...

(FM 1093). From I-610 west, Westheimer Road traverses through Uptown and then west-southwest to Chimney Rock. From Chimney Rock west, Westheimer is straight along a

cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

east–west line. Westheimer passes north of

Alief Alief is a working-class suburb in Southwest Harris County, Texas, Harris County, Texas, United States. Most of Alief is within the city limits of Houston, while a portion of the community is in Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated ...

and Westchase when passing under

Beltway 8 Beltway 8 (BW8), the Sam Houston Parkway, along with the Sam Houston Tollway, is an beltway around the city of Houston, Texas, United States, lying entirely within Harris County. Beltway 8, a state highway maintained by the Texa ...

. After intersecting State Highway 6 (SH 6) and passing west of West Oaks Mall, Westheimer Road and Westheimer Parkway split, with Westheimer ''Parkway'' continuing west through George Bush Park and Westheimer ''Road'' (also known as "Old Westheimer Road") turning southwest. Westheimer Road terminates when FM 1093 becomes the feeder road of the

just west of

FM 1464 Farm to Market Road 1464 (FM 1464) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Texas that stays within Fort Bend County. The highway starts from State Highway 99 (SH 99) in Sugar Land and goes north to FM 1093 at Clodine. The four-lane div ...

and just inside Fort Bend County.

Character of Various Segments

John Nova Lomax of the ''

Houston Press The ''Houston Press'' is an online newspaper published in Houston, Texas, United States. It is headquartered in the Midtown area. It was also a weekly print newspaper until November 2017. The publication is supported entirely by advertising ...

'' said in a 2006 article that Westheimer Road, "more than any other thoroughfare, embodies Houston's car-enamored, zoning-free ethos, a damn-near phantasmagoria of strip malls, storage facilities, restaurants, big-box retail, office parks, apartment complexes, strip clubs, malls, supermarkets and the occasional church." In another article, he referred to Westheimer as "mainly about the fetishes, broken dreams and vanities of Anglo whites." In a post on the ''Houston Press'' website during the same year, he called the stretch of Westheimer west of Chimney Rock Road and east of Fondren Road, which he refers to as "Mid-Westheimer", "The

Testosterone Testosterone is the primary sex hormone and anabolic steroid in males. In humans, testosterone plays a key role in the development of Male reproductive system, male reproductive tissues such as testes and prostate, as well as promoting secondar ...

Zone". Referring to a photograph of a shopping center on that segment, Lomax added that "This strip center is the essence of that—Evans Music City, an army surplus store, a titty bar and a liquor store within of each other. Now that's one-stop shopping." In ''Houston Architectural Guide'', Stephen Fox said the following about the stretch of Westheimer between Chimney Rock Road and South Gessner Road: Lomax said that the segment of Westheimer in Westchase is "virtually all chains—a ''Geography of Nowhere'' wasteland of

Boston Market Boston Market Corporation, known as Boston Chicken until 1995, is an American fast casual restaurant chain headquartered in Golden, Colorado. It is owned by the Rohan Group. Boston Market has its greatest presence in the Northeastern and Midweste ...

Borders A border is a geographical boundary. Border, borders, The Border or The Borders may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * ''Border'' (1997 film), an Indian Hindi-language war film * ''Border'' (2018 Swedish film), ...

Kroger The Kroger Company, or simply Kroger, is an American retail company that operates (either directly or through its subsidiaries) supermarkets and multi-department stores throughout the United States. Founded by Bernard Kroger in 1883 in Cinci ...

Randalls Randalls operates 32 supermarkets in Texas under the ''Randalls'' and ''Flagship Randalls'' banners. The chain consists of 13 stores located around the Houston area and 15 stores located around the Austin area as of May 2020. Randalls today form ...

Taco Bell Taco Bell is an American-based chain of fast food restaurants founded in 1962 by Glen Bell (1923–2010) in Downey, California. Taco Bell is a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc. The restaurants serve a variety of Mexican-inspired foods, includi ...

, Citgo and Sonic. Several of the six CVS outlets we passed are there, as are a few of the uncountable

Starbucks Starbucks Corporation is an American multinational chain of coffeehouses and roastery reserves headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It is the world's largest coffeehouse chain. As of November 2021, the company had 33,833 stores in 80 c ...

." He added that the segment of Westheimer Road in Westchase does not have "the sleaze of the Highway 6 area and the tacky exuberance of mid-Westheimer, the area between Chimney Rock and Fondren." In 2007, Colliers International ranked Westheimer Road as the seventh most expensive retail streets in the US by rent per square foot; the group calculated the rent per square foot as $120 (). In 2007, Mimi Swartz of ''

Texas Monthly ''Texas Monthly'' (stylized as ''TexasMonthly'') is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Downtown Austin, Texas. ''Texas Monthly'' was founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy and has been published by Emmis Publishing, L.P. since 1998 and is ...

'' referred to a stretch of Westheimer between Claremont Lane and Kirby Drive as "the

socialite A socialite is a person from a wealthy and (possibly) aristocratic background, who is prominent in high society. A socialite generally spends a significant amount of time attending various fashionable social gatherings, instead of having traditio ...

's sector" due to the stores catering to residents of

and other nearby wealthy communities; in the article, she describes several places along the stretch of Westheimer. Between Willowick Road and Sage Road, Westheimer is lined with prestigious boutiques and high-end stores that feature

luxury goods In economics, a luxury good (or upmarket good) is a good for which demand increases more than what is proportional as income rises, so that expenditures on the good become a greater proportion of overall spending. Luxury goods are in contrast to n ...

. Among shopping centers in this section include

The Galleria The Galleria, stylized theGalleria and also known as the Houston Galleria, is an upscale mixed-use urban development and shopping mall located in the Uptown District of Houston, Texas, United States.River Oaks District and many others. Brands that feature boutiques include

Apple An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple fruit tree, trees are agriculture, cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus ''Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, wh ...

Tom Ford Thomas Carlyle Ford (born August 27, 1961) is an American fashion designer and filmmaker. He launched his eponymous luxury brand in 2005, having previously served as the creative director at Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent. Ford wrote and direct ...

Gucci Gucci (, ; ) is an Italian high-end luxury fashion house based in Florence, Italy. Its product lines include handbags, ready-to-wear, footwear, accessories, and home decoration; and it licenses its name and branding to Coty, Inc. for fragrance ...

Fendi Fendi () is an Italian high-end luxury fashion house producing fur, ready-to-wear, leather goods, shoes, fragrances, eyewear, timepieces and accessories. Founded in Rome in 1925, Fendi is known for its fur, fur accessories, and leather goods. ...

Christian Dior SE Christian Dior SE (), commonly known as Dior (stylized DIOR), is a French luxury fashion house controlled and chaired by French businessman Bernard Arnault, who also heads LVMH, the world's largest luxury group. Dior itself holds 42.36% shares ...

Dolce & Gabbana Dolce & Gabbana (), also known by initials D&G, is an Italian luxury fashion house founded in 1985 in Legnano by Italian designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana. The house specializes in ready-to-wear, handbags, accessories, and cosmet ...

, John Hardy,

Cartier Cartier may refer to: People * Cartier (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) * Cartier Martin (born 1984), American basketball player Places * Cartier Island, an island north-west of Australia that is part of Australia' ...

Carolina Herrera Carolina Herrera (born María Carolina Josefina Pacanins y Niño; 8 January 1939) is a Venezuelan-American fashion designer known for her personal style, and for dressing various First Ladies, including Jacqueline Onassis, Laura Bush, Michel ...

Prada Prada S.p.A. (, ; ) is an Italian luxury fashion house founded in 1913 in Milan by Mario Prada. It specializes in leather handbags, travel accessories, shoes, ready-to-wear, and other fashion accessories. Prada licenses its name and branding t ...

Rolex Rolex SA () is a British-founded Swiss watch designer and manufacturer based in Geneva, Switzerland. Founded in 1905 as ''Wilsdorf and Davis'' by Hans Wilsdorf and Alfred Davis in London, the company registered ''Rolex'' as the brand name of ...

Versace Gianni Versace S.r.l. (), usually referred to as Versace ( ), is an Italian luxury fashion company founded by Gianni Versace in 1978 known for flashy prints and bright colors. The company produces Italian-made ready-to-wear and accessories, as w ...

, etc.

Lower Westheimer

Between Shepherd Drive and Bagby Street, the street is known as Lower Westheimer. The area is famous for its hipster culture, food scene, and nightlife. Thrift stores, tattoo shops, and bars dominate the area. Westheimer is the Main Street of the Montrose neighborhood which was dubbed as one of the greatest neighborhoods of the United States. The arts culture is widespread, with graffiti present in and on buildings throughout.

Westheimer Parkway

From its eastern terminus at Westheimer Road/FM 1093, Westheimer Parkway winds through George Bush Park and the

Cinco Ranch Cinco Ranch is a census-designated place and master-planned community located in the extraterritorial jurisdiction of the city of Houston within Fort Bend and Harris counties in the U.S. state of Texas. The population was 16,899 at the 2020 censu ...

neighborhood in Harris County and

Fort Bend County Fort Bend County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. The county was founded in 1837 and organized the next year. It is named for a blockhouse at a bend of the Brazos River. The community developed around the fort in early days. Th ...

. The Parkway then runs under

Grand Parkway State Highway 99 (SH 99), also known as the Grand Parkway, is a ring road in the U.S. state of Texas. Its first section opened on August 31, 1994. When the route is completed, it will be the longest beltway in the U.S., the world's seventh-lon ...

near

Cinco Ranch High School Cinco Ranch High School (CRHS) is a public school located in an unincorporated area in Fort Bend County, Texas, United States that serves grades 9 through 12 as part of the Katy Independent School District. It is located off Cinco Ranch Boulevar ...

. Westheimer Parkway's western terminus is in Fort Bend County approximately northwest of Grand Parkway. At this point, traffic heading northwest on Westheimer Parkway continues on Pin Oak Road near

Katy Mills Katy Mills is a shopping mall in Katy, Texas within the Houston metropolitan area, and it is one of the tourist destinations in Houston. It was developed by The Mills Corporation and is now managed by Simon Property Group, who owns 62.5% of it. T ...

, located in Katy.

History

Westheimer Road and Westheimer Parkway are named after Mitchell (Michael) Louis Westheimer, a prosperous

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

immigrant Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

and flour salesman who had settled in Houston in 1859.Smith, Brenda Beust.
Just who was...Westheimer/A guide to the people whose names grace the street signs of Houston
" ''

Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. , it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. With it ...

''. Sunday March 23, 1986. Lifestyle 1. Retrieved on January 23, 2010.Robertson, Dale.
Westheimer was a place for learning
" ''

''. Friday January 11, 2008. Sports 9. Retrieved on August 4, 2009. He purchased a farm west of Houston's city limits at the time, where Lamar High School and St. John's School are currently located. Having built a school on his land for his 16 children, other local children were invited to join the school, as a public school system was not established in the area. The road that led to his property was known as "the road to Westheimer's place" and wound through what would later be Neartown and

. In 1895, Westheimer allowed Harris County to build a right-of-way for a road stretching from Houston to

Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, capital of the U.S. state of Ohio Columbus may also refer to: Places ...

and Sealy; this road became Westheimer Road.

References

{{coord missing, Texas Roads in Houston