Upper Kirby is a commercial district in

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. It is named after Kirby Drive, so indirectly takes its name from

John Henry Kirby John Henry Kirby (November 16, 1860 – November 9, 1940) was an American businessman whose ventures made him the largest lumber manufacturer in Texas and the Southern United States. In addition to serving two terms in the Texas Legislature, ...

. Upper Kirby contains many businesses, including restaurants. Upper Kirby is east of the

Greenway Plaza Greenway Plaza is a business district located along Interstate 69 ( U.S. Highway 59) within the Interstate 610 loop in southwestern Houston, Texas, west of Downtown and east of Uptown. The district is located immediately west of Upper Kirby ...

, southwest of

Neartown Montrose is an area located in west-central Houston, Texas, United States and is one of the city's major cultural areas. Montrose is a area roughly bounded by Interstate 69/U.S. Highway 59 to the south, Allen Parkway to the north, South Shepher ...

, north of the city of

West University Place West University Place, often called West University or West U for short, is a city located in the U.S. state of Texas within the metropolitan area and southwestern Harris County. At the 2020 U.S. census, the population of the city was 14,955. ...

, and south of

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 ...

. Upper Kirby is considered to be in an area west of South Shepherd Drive, east of

Buffalo Speedway Buffalo Speedway is a street in Houston, Texas. It starts in the upper class River Oaks neighborhood on the west side of Houston at an intersection with Westheimer Road. The south terminus was previously located at West Bellfort Street on the sou ...

, north of

Bissonnet Street Bissonnet Street is a major arterial road in Houston, Texas, United States. Bissonnet begins at Main Street in the Museum District of Houston and travels west-southwest through West University Place, Bellaire, Gulfton, Sharpstown, and Al ...

, and south of

Westheimer Road Westheimer Road () is an arterial east–west road in Houston, Texas, United States. It runs from Bagby Street in Downtown and terminates at the Westpark Tollway on the southern edge of George Bush Park, stretching about long. The street was n ...

.Harris County Improvement District #3
." (se
map
) ''Upper Kirby''. Retrieved on December 10, 2008.

History

The River Oaks Garden Club Forum of Civics, located in Upper Kirby, is listed in the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

as the "Forum of Civics" on October 13, 1988.Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone - 19
." ''Upper Kirby''. Retrieved on December 10, 2008. Formerly a county schoolhouse, the building is currently the administrative center for the River Oaks Garden Club.The Forum
" ''River Oaks Garden Club''. Retrieved on December 11, 2008. The Texas Legislature created the Harris County Improvement District #3, also known as the Upper Kirby Management District, which governs the Upper Kirby area. In 1999 the Houston city council created the Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone 19, which covers . Prior to the formation of these districts, the area did not have a distinct identity. The usage of the British decor and the name were calculated to give the area a specific identity. At one time the red phone booths were operational, and there was a

double decker bus A double-decker bus is a bus that has two storeys or decks. Double-deckers are used primarily for commuter transport, but Open top bus, open-top models are used as sightseeing buses for tourists, and there are Coach (bus), coaches too for long-d ...

that shuttled patrons to various restaurants. In 2006 the Upper Kirby district had plans to establish a "

teen center A teen center is a community center serving adolescent Adolescence () is a transitional stage of human physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to th ...

" at Richmond at Wake Forest geared towards students at Lamar High School, Lanier Middle School, St. John's School, and other Upper Kirby schools and schools near Upper Kirby. Funding issues have delayed establishment of the center.

Cityscape

In 2017, about 53% of the housing units were constructed post-1999.

Economy

Several businesses are located in the district. The studio for

KTRK-TV KTRK-TV (channel 13) is a television station in Houston, Texas, United States. It is owned and operated by the ABC network via its ABC Owned Television Stations division, and maintains studio facilities on Bissonnet Street in Houston's Upper ...

ABC 13, the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

station for the Houston area, is located at 3310 Bissonnet Street. Solvay America has its headquarters in the district.

cPanel cPanel is web hosting control panel software developed by cPanel, L.L.C. It provides a graphical interface (GUI) and automation tools designed to simplify the process of hosting a web site for the website owner or "end user". It enables adminis ...

has its office in Upper Kirby. "CPANEL, INC. " "Mailing Address 3131 W ALABAMA ST STE 100 HOUSTON, TX 77098-2030"District Map
"
Archive
. Upper Kirby District. Retrieved on April 7, 2014. Restaurants Acquisition I, L.L.C., the operator of

Black-eyed Pea The black-eyed pea or black-eyed bean is a legume grown around the world for its medium-sized, edible bean. It is a subspecies of the cowpea, an Old World plant domesticated in Africa, and is sometimes simply called a cowpea. The common commerci ...

restaurants in Texas, is headquartered in Upper Kirby. In addition a

Pakistan International Airlines Pakistan International Airlines, commonly known as PIA, is the flag carrier of Pakistan. With its primary hub at Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, the airline also operates from its secondary hubs at Allama Iqbal International Airport ...

booking office is in Suite 805 at 3730 Kirby Drive. CBS Radio Houston which houses

KHMX KHMX (96.5 megahertz, MHz, "Mix 96.5") is an American commercial adult contemporary music#Hot adult contemporary, hot adult contemporary radio broadcasting, radio station in Houston, Texas. It is owned by Audacy, Inc. and serves the Greater H ...

, KILT-AM,

KILT-FM KILT-FM (100.3 MHz "The Bull 100.3") is a commercial radio station in Houston, Texas. It is owned by Audacy, Inc. and airs a country music radio format. The studios and offices are in Greenway Plaza in Southwest Houston. KILT-FM serves as a co ...

KLOL KLOL (101.1 FM, "Mega 101") is a commercial radio station in Houston, Texas. It is owned by Audacy, Inc. and airs a Spanish-language Latin pop format. KLOL serves as the Spanish-language flagship station for the Houston Texans football team. ...

, KKHH,

KIKK KIKK () is a daytime-only station, licensed to Pasadena, Texas, which broadcasts a sports gambling format under ownership of Audacy, Inc. Its studios are located in the Greenway Plaza district of Houston, and its transmitter is located in Pasa ...

, is also located in Upper Kirby.

Government

Local government

The Upper Kirby Management District is headquartered in Suite 250 in the Upper Kirby District Center at 3015 Richmond Avenue. Upper Kirby is a part of the Houston City Council District C. Upper Kirby also makes up a large portion of Harris County Precinct 139, which is the smallest political subdivision in Texas. The current Precinct Chair of Upper Kirby/River Oaks is Louis Molnar (D), and Mr. Molnar also serves as the Presiding Judge of Precinct 139. The community is within the

Houston Police Department The Houston Police Department (HPD) is the primary municipal law enforcement agency serving the city of Houston, Texas, United States, and some surrounding areas. With approximately 5,300 officers and 1,200 civilian support personnel it is the fi ...

's Central Patrol Division, headquartered at 61 Riesner. VOLUNTEER INITIATIVES PROGRAM - Citizens Offering Police Support
." ''City of Houston''.

County, state and federal representation

Two Harris County precincts, 3 and 4, serve sections of Upper Kirby.Precinct Maps : All Precincts
." ''Harris County, Texas''. Retrieved on December 10, 2008. As of 2008 the precincts are represented by Steve Radack and Jerry Eversole, respectively. Patrol services are contracted to the Harris County Precinct 1 Constable's Office. The

Texas Department of Criminal Justice The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) is a department of the government of the U.S. state of Texas. The TDCJ is responsible for statewide criminal justice for adult offenders, including managing offenders in state prisons, state jails ...

(TDCJ) operates the Houston II Parole Office in Upper Kirby. At one time the

Texas Youth Commission The Texas Youth Commission (TYC) was a Texas state agency which operated juvenile corrections facilities in the state. The commission was headquartered in the Brown-Heatly Building in Austin. As of 2007, it was the second largest juvenile correc ...

Houston District Office was located in Upper Kirby.Facility Address List
" Texas Youth Commission. February 2, 2002. Retrieved on May 6, 2010. Upper Kirby is in

Texas's 7th congressional district Texas's 7th congressional district of the United States House of Representatives comprises a small area of southwestern Houston and Harris County, along with a northern portion of suburban Fort Bend County. As of the 2000 census, the 7th dist ...

. The

United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or simply the Postal Service, is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the executive branch of the federal governmen ...

operates the Greenbriar Post Office in Upper Kirby.

Harris Health System The Harris Health System, previously the Harris County Hospital District (HCHD), is a governmental entity with taxing authority that owns and operates three hospitals and numerous clinics throughout Harris County, Texas, United States, includ ...

(formerly Harris County Hospital District) designated

Martin Luther King Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister, civil rights activist and political philosopher who was a leader of the civil rights movement from 1955 until his a ...

Health Center for the ZIP code 77005 and Northwest Health Center for the ZIP code 77098. The nearest public hospital is

Ben Taub General Hospital Ben Taub Hospital is a public hospital located in Houston, Texas within the Texas Medical Center. Having opened in May 1963, the hospital is owned and operated by the Harris Health System and is staffed by the faculty, residents, and students fr ...

in the

Texas Medical Center The Texas Medical Center (TMC) is a List of neighborhoods in Houston, neighborhood in south-central Houston, Texas, United States. It is immediately south of the Houston Museum District, Museum District and west of Texas State Highway 288. Over 6 ...

Culture, parks and recreation

Katharine Schilcutt of the ''

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

'' said that the founders of the district desired to "forge a connection with the U.K. based solely on sharing the same initials and installing anachronistic red phone booths on random street corners".Shilcutt, Katharine.
Top 10 Restaurants in Upper Kirby
." ''

''. Wednesday March 31, 2010. Retrieved on July 25, 2012. The Upper Kirby

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It has nearly 90,000 staff, some 920,000 volunteers and 12,000 branches w ...

Extension is located in Upper Kirb

LevyParkUpperKirby

Upper Kirby is also home to Levy Park, operated by the City of Houston. Leon Levy gave the land that became Levy Park to the city government in 1941. The Upper Kirby district implemented a two-phase renovation project. The first, completed in 2003, included the installation of a community garden. The event to celebrate the completion of Phase II was held on September 30, 2006.Levy Park
." City of Houston. Retrieved on May 7, 2010. Another $15 million renovation was completed in a two year period, with a grand reopening on February 25, 2017. The park also includes a dog park and a softball field. The park is located in the

area. Constructed in 1939, the historic Alabama Theatre (Houston), Alabama Theatre was a primary entertainment venue of the district until it was closed and later reopened as a Bookstop bookstore.

Barnes & Noble Barnes & Noble Booksellers is an American bookseller with the largest number of retail outlets in the United States. The company operates approximately 600 retail stores across the United States. Barnes & Noble operates mainly through its B ...

acquired the Bookstop chain and, decades later, closed the story in 2009. The theater is now a

Trader Joe's Trader Joe's is an American grocery store chain headquartered in Monrovia, California, with 597 locations across the US. The first Trader Joe's store was opened in 1967 by founder Joe Coulombe in Pasadena, California. In 1979, the chain was s ...

. Most restaurants in Upper Kirby are chain restaurants. Shilcutt said that the restaurants in Upper Kirby were one of the aspects of Upper Kirby that she liked, that "there are some wonderful independent Houston restaurants in the mix, too" and that "while many of the restaurants are some variation on plain Jane American food ..there's a good variety of ethnic restaurants for the adventurous." The Islamic Society of Greater Houston (ISGH) has its headquarters in the Eastside Main Center in Upper Kirby.

Education

Primary and secondary schools

Lamar High School, a public secondary school, and St. John's School, an independent K–12 school, are located in Upper Kirby. Residents in Upper Kirby are zoned to schools in the

Houston Independent School District The Houston Independent School District (HISD) is the largest Public school (government funded), public school system in Texas, and the eighth-largest in the United States. Houston ISD serves as a community school district for most of the ci ...

. Upper Kirby is divided between Trustee District V, represented by Dianne Johnson as of 2008, and Trustee District VII, represented by Harvin C. Moore as of 2008. Johnson will no longer serve as a board member after 2009. Several elementary schools, including Poe,

, and West University serve sections of Upper Kirby. Lanier Middle School and Pershing Middle School serve separate sections of Upper Kirby.Pershing Middle School Attendance Zone
." ''

''. Retrieved on May 31, 2009. Pin Oak Middle School is an option for Pershing-zoned residents.Pin Oak Middle School
" ''The Southwest District''. ''Houston Independent School District''. February 14, 2002. Retrieved on May 31, 2009. All of Upper Kirby is zoned to Lamar High School.Lamar High School Attendance Zone
." ''

''. Retrieved on May 31, 2009.

Public libraries

The community is served by the Adele B. Looscan Neighborhood Library of

Houston Public Library Houston Public Library is the public library system serving Houston, Texas, United States. History Houston Lyceum and the Carnegie Library The Houston Public Library system traces its founding to the creation of the second Houston Lyceum in ...

.Downing, Margaret. "Judging Books and Their Covers." ''

''. August 21, 2007
1
. Retrieved on August 11, 2009. The current Looscan Branch building opened in September 2007. The former

Americans with Disabilities Act The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 or ADA () is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. It affords similar protections against discrimination to Americans with disabilities as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, ...

non-compliant library, which was established in 1956, closed on August 27, 2005 and was demolished in February 2006. The previous Looscan branch had around 61,000 visitors in the fiscal year 2005. The original plans for Looscan called for the library to get a $5.37 million renovation. An Upper Kirby group proposed a new site near the Upper Kirby

. Around that period the group Friends for Neighborhood Libraries began raising funds. The replacement library, with a cost of $6.2 million, had twice the staff and two and one half times the size of the previous facility. Friends of Neighborhood Libraries had raised $1 million in four months, and around $2.5 million in total to help fund the new library; the group spent about $30,000 for the expenses.

Media

The ''

Jewish Herald-Voice The ''Jewish Herald-Voice'' is a weekly community newspaper serving the Jewish community of Houston and the Texas Gulf Coast for more than 115 years. The newspaper is the longest-running Jewish paper in the Southwest. Commonly known as the ''JHV ...

'' has its offices in Upper Kirby. The '' River Oaks Examiner'' is a local newspaper distributed in the community.About Us
" '' Examiner News''. The ''

Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, 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''. ...

'' is the area regional newspaper.

, the

ABC News ABC News most commonly refers to: * ABC News (Australia), a national news service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation * ABC News (United States), a news-gathering and broadcasting division of the American Broadcasting Company ABC News may a ...

-owned news outlet for the Houston-area, is located in the neighborhood on Bissonnet Street.

Gallery

File:SolvayAmericaUSoffices.jpg, Solvay America offices File:UpperKirbyBusSHelt.JPG, Upper Kirby bus shelter

References

External links

Upper Kirby website

Kirby All Stars
- A Kirby Coalition project in Upper Kirby {{coord, 29.736, -95.419, region:US-TX, display=title Neighborhoods in Houston