PEARLAND, TEXAS

'Pearland, Texas'

Seal of Pearland, Texas
''City nickname: "Six Shooter Junction"; "P-Town"''
''City slogan: "Where Town and Country Meet"''
'Official website:' www.cityofpearland.com/
Location
Location of Pearland, Texas Location within the State of Texas
Government
County	Brazoria, Harris, and Fort Bend County
Mayor	Tom Reid
Geographical characteristics
Area	101.9 km² (39.4 mi²)
Land	101.9 km² (39.4 mi²)]
Water	0.1 km² (0.04 mi²)]
Population	5,539,949 (metro area)
Total (2007)	80,5031 (city proper)
Density	1391.45 mi² / 3 603.84 km²
Latitude	29°33′16″N
Longitude	95°17′45″W
Time zone	Central (UTC-6)
Summer (DST)	Central (UTC-5)

'Pearland' is a city located along the Gulf Coast region in the U.S. state of Texas within the Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown metropolitan area and is partially in Brazoria County, partially in Fort Bend County, and partially in Harris County. As of the 2000 U.S. Census, the city population was 37,640. The city's estimate of the population within the city limits as of January 1, 2007 is 81,524.
The city's name is pronounced "pear" land (like the fruit), not "peer-land" or "pearl-land".
In 2007, Forbes Magazine ranked Pearland as the 34^th fastest growing suburb in the nation. It is therefore the fastest growing suburb in the Greater Houston area, and the 10^th fastest growing in the state of Texas.¹

Contents

Geography

Demographics

History

Economy

Growth & Development

Education

Primary and secondary schools

Public schools

Private schools

Colleges and universities

Public libraries

Neighborhoods

Postal service

Community information

Trivia

Notable People from Pearland

Sister Cities

External links

Geography

Pearland is located at (29.554349, -95.295959).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 101.9 km² (39.4 mi²). 101.9 km² (39.3 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (0.08%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2005, there were 37,640 people, 13,192 households, and 10,659 families residing in the city. The population density was 369.5/km² (957.0/mi²). There were 13,922 housing units at an average density of 136.7/km² (354.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 82.62% White, 5.33% African American, 0.42% Native American, 3.65% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 6.12% from other races, and 1.82% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 16.22% of the population.
There were 13,192 households out of which 43.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.6% were married couples living together, 9.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 19.2% were non-families. 15.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.84 and the average family size was 3.17.
In the city the population was spread out with 28.8% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 34.2% from 25 to 44, 21.2% from 45 to 64, and 8.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 96.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.8 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $64,156, and the median income for a family was $70,748. Males had a median income of $49,359 versus $34,570 for females. The per capita income for the city was $26,306. About 3.4% of families and 4.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.1% of those under age 18 and 3.5% of those age 65 or over.

History

The area that is now Pearland had its humble beginnings near a siding switch on the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway in 1882. When a post office was established in 1893, the community was originally named 'Mark Belt'. The name was changed to Pearland in November of that year because of the abundance of pear trees in the community. Pearland was promoted by some developers as an "agricultural Eden." The Galveston hurricane of 1900 destroyed most of the fruit trees and slowed growth for a considerable period of time, as well as desertificated the area. In 1914, with agriculture rebounding and the end of desertification, Pearland had a population of 400, but a devastating freeze in 1918 was another setback to the local farming enterprises. Oil was discovered nearby in 1934, though this did not spur a large amount of growth, as the population fluctuated from 150 and 350. From the 1960's the town has grown steadily to today's population. Today even though officially a suburb, the town is culturally rural.

Economy

Pearland does not have any major industry. The largest employers are a reflection of Pearland's suburban economy, with some businesses related to the oil industry. The largest employer is the Pearland Independent School District, employing 1800 people. The second largest employer is Wal-Mart, which operates several stores in town and employs 800 people. The city of Pearland is the third largest employer in town at 429 employees. Rounding out the top 10 are Randall's (Grocery), 250; Kemlon (Oil field services), 275; TurboCare (Turbo machinery manufacturing and repair), 175; Target Stores (Retail) 150, Tele-Flow (Heating/ventilation/air conditioning) 140, Lowe's (Building materials), 132.[1]
Though formerly an agriculture-based town, Pearland is now predominantly white-collar(71%). "Professional and Related Occupations", "Sales and Services", and "Management, Business, and Financial Operations" are the three primary fields of employment (23%, 30%, and 18 respectively).²

Growth & Development

Current Large-Scale Projects include:

★ 'Pearland Town Center' - A 700,000 sq. ft. lifestyle center. Construction underway, opening slated for July 2008.

★ 'Shadow Creek Town Center' - A 640,265 sq. ft. retail center. Construction underway, rolling openings until Fall 2008.

★ 'The Spectrum at Clear Creek' - A proposed 750,000 sq. ft. lifestyle center. Currently in planning stages.

★ 'The University of Houston Clear Lake at Pearland' - Proposed construction of a 30,000 sq. ft. facility for UHCL's Pearland campus. Opening slated for December 2008.

★ 'Waterlight District (Presidential Park)' - A proposed 50-acre mixed-use development. Will house restaurants, retail centers, and a sculpture park. Opening slated for Summer 2008.

Education

Primary and secondary schools

Public schools

Most of Pearland is a part of the Pearland Independent School District. Other portions of Pearland are part of Alvin Independent School District (including most of Shadow Creek Ranch), Fort Bend Independent School District (including some of Shadow Creek Ranch), Clear Creek Independent School District, and Pasadena Independent School District. The small portion in the Houston Independent School District has no residents.
Since Pearland is located in several school districts, the school assignments are explained below.

★ All schools in Pearland ISD serve the Pearland ISD portion of Pearland

★ The Alvin ISD portion is served by several elementary schools as well as Manvel Junior High School (in Manvel) and Manvel High School (in Manvel).

★ The Clear Creek ISD portion is zoned to Weber Elementary School (unincorporated Harris County), Westbrook Intermediate School (Friendswood), and Clear Brook High School (Friendswood).

★ The Fort Bend ISD portion of Pearland is zoned to [2]: Blue Ridge Elementary School (Houston), Christa McAuliffe Middle School (Houston), and Willowridge High School (Houston). FBISD plans to open a new elementary school in the FBISD section of Pearland [3]

★ The Pasadena ISD portion of Pearland is zoned to several different schools

★
★ Some areas are zoned to Moore Elementary School, Morris 5th Grade Center, and Beverly Hills Intermediate School (both schools are in Houston)

★
★ Some areas are zoned to Frazier Elementary School, Morris 5th Grade Center, and Thompson Intermediate School (both schools are in Houston)

★
★ All areas of the Pasadena ISD portion of Pearland are zoned to Dobie High School in Houston

Private schools

St. Helen Catholic School, a K-8 Roman Catholic School operated by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston and the Carden-Jackson School (http://www.greatschools.net/cgi-bin/tx/private/8244) are located in Pearland.

Colleges and universities

The Pearland ISD and Alvin ISD portions are served by Alvin Community College (ACC), and the Pasadena ISD portion is served by San Jacinto College.
ACC operates the Pearland College Center in Pearland.

Public libraries

The Pearland Library is a part of the Brazoria County Library System.
A second library has been proposed in the area of the Shadow Creek Ranch master-planned community.

Neighborhoods

Eighty-three percent of Pearland is residential, which is the one big contributing factor to the high population. The city is home to many master-planned communities—Silverlake, Sunrise Lakes, Southern Trails, and Shadow Creek Ranch are among the most popular master-planned communities in Brazoria County.

Postal service

The United States Postal Service operates two post offices in Pearland:

★ Pearland Post Office at 3519 East Walnut Street, 77581-9998

★ Silverlake Post Office at 2700 Cullen Boulevard, 77584-9998

Community information

C.V. 'Vic' Coppinger Family YMCA Branch is located in Pearland.

Trivia

★ Around 2:00 a.m. on December 14, 2000, members of the Texas 7 robbed a local computer store and an adjacent Radio Shack in Pearland, stealing tools that would help them pull off their infamous Christmas Eve robbery in Irving, Texas. That Radio Shack has since closed down.

★ A car explosion scene at the end of the pilot episode of ''Houston Knights'' was filmed in an airfield in Pearland, Texas, much to the surprise of several Pearland residents. It was filmed around midnight and the explosion was heard for quite some distance. The remains of the car were left on the property for a week or two before being towed away, offering Pearland residents and other passersby a look at it as it sat in full view of State Highway 35, which runs through the center of town. This was at least the second time Pearland was used as a location for filming a movie or television show, following ''Urban Cowboy'' and preceding Arlington Road.

Notable People from Pearland

★ Steve McGrew, comedian

★ The Judy's, musical group

★ Clay Hensley, baseball pitcher (San Diego Padres)

Sister Cities

★ Markham, Ontario, Canada

★ Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico

★ Lopez, Quezon, Philippines

★ Palencia, Spain

External links

★ City of Pearland, Official Website

★ Pearland Economic Development Corporation

★ Pearland Area Chamber of Commerce



★ Meetup Groups - Pearland TX

★ Pearland, Texas Community Information

★ Handbook of Texas article about Pearland

★ Pearland Journal
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