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| Vol. 23, No. 6 |
| April 15, 2001 |
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FROM THE PRESIDENT On April 23, the Texas Medical Center will be honored with the "Builder of the Year" award, presented by the South Main Center Association. The South Main Center Association is a nonprofit corporation founded in 1976 as the outgrowth of a study titled "Options for a Unique Texas Place," which was drafted by the Rice Center for Community Design and Research, funded by the National Endowment for the Arts. The SMCA's objective is to protect and enhance the diverse and vigorous South Main corridor while its institutions and neighborhoods change and grow. The SMCA's goal is a South Main area that is a haven for people of different backgrounds to live, work, learn, heal, play and worship - a special and uniquely Houston place that is valued and recognized as the cultural heart of this great city. The SMCA area is a thriving financial and commercial center, an intensely vital environment, not only for visiting but also for living, working and playing. Its geographic boundaries encompass a 12-square-mile area bordering Main Street from Midtown to Reliant Park. Within the boundaries the dynamic South Main corridor are major hotels, historical residential neighborhoods, abundant shopping and dining opportunities, and the Texas Medical Center - one of the world's leading medical complexes. The SMCA area includes some of Houston's most visited attractions, including the Houston Museum District, Hermann Park, the Houston Zoo, Miller Outdoor Theater, Reliant Park, Texas Medical Center, Rice University, and Astroworld, which collectively draw 19 million visitors each year. In addition, 40,000 residents and 25,000 students (16,860 attend TMC colleges and universities) live and study in the SMCA area, and that number is rapidly growing. Currently, projects under way are backed by $3 billion in public and private capital investment funds. Some of the projects, programs and activities include: * Creation of the first Houston Scenic Corridor protecting State Highway 288 and the most recent Scenic District for Gateway 59 protecting Midtown and the Museum District. * Creation of the Houston Museum District Association through which 11 museums publish an informational brochure, conduct annual open houses for the public and for educators, and facilitate collaborative projects. * Championing a project to plant 600 trees on Main Street from Braes Bayou to Loop 610 with a gateway to Reliant Park. * Seeking diverse accessibility improvements in highways, transit service, pedestrian and bikeways, and informational signage. * Supporting public health and safety measures to address traffic hazards, criminal activity, and the threat of flooding. The Texas Medical Center is honored to be a part of the history and future that make Houston the vital and diverse city that it is today.
©2006 Texas Medical Center E-Mail: tmcinfo@texmedctr.tmc.edu URL: http://www.tmc.edu/tmcnews/04_15_01/page_09.html |