Houston Exodus? Survey Finds Residents Considering Leaving Due to Repeated Extreme Weather Events – Houston Public Media

David Smith

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Hurricane Beryl was not the first to hit Houston. The Houston area is no stranger to emergencies.

In fact, these floods have become all too common. In the past decade, the region has experienced Tax Day flooding, Memorial Day flooding, the prolonged devastation of Harvey, Winter Storm Uri in 2021, and the extreme heat and drought of last summer.

And this year, a surprise derecho and Hurricane Beryl hit the region.

All of this was enough to tell some Houstonians: “This is it. I’m out. I’m out.”

In fact, a Texas-leaving support meeting is planned for Thursday at Raza Persian Grill on Hillcroft Ave. for people considering such a move.

Houston Matters began asking: Are Houstonians considering leaving the area due to repeated weather emergencies?

On their behalf, researchers from the University of Houston’s Hobby School of Public Affairs posed an exclusive question to Houston Matters.

The survey found that 57% of respondents said they had considered leaving the Houston metro area in recent years, with more than half citing extreme weather as the reason.

Texas Monthly contributor Mimi Swartz and Houston Chronicle senior Enterprise reporter Sarah Smith joined Houston Matters Thursday to discuss the findings.

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Swartz said she’s hearing more and more rumors that Houstonians are considering shutting down.

“I’m afraid it will make me sad, but I think you can’t look around and think about it,” she said.

Smith said Beryl arrived as a Category 1 and didn’t stay in the area long, but the devastation outlasted the storm.

“I think people are upset and angry and didn’t expect this level of damage from a hurricane like this,” Smith said.

It’s not like Houston isn’t growing. While the pace of population growth has slowed compared to a decade ago, it seems more people are still inclined to move here than leave. Smith said she moved to Houston in 2018 and loves the city.

“It’s a vibrant, diverse city. It’s a place I’ll never fully know and I’ll never get tired of,” she said. “There’s job opportunities, a relatively low cost of living compared to other cities. There’s so much to love here and I think that narrative is often forgotten during disaster season.”

Swartz said she wonders if politics are also at play in the region.

“I wonder if, instead of packing up and moving, people are going to start demanding more from their public officials and companies like CenterPoint,” she said. “I mean, why should we be the ones packing up?”

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A Houston Matters listener named Ronnie called and said he was out.

“Insurance costs are going up, homeowners insurance is going up, this was just a Category 1 loss,” he said. “And I was without power for five days. I’m tired of paying for ERCOT, not doing the maintenance they’re supposed to do.”

Smith said there’s a running joke in Houston that the city doesn’t protest much, but that could change.

“I think people are starting to come together to demand more from our public servants and our businesses,” she said. “… I think there’s a groundswell of public anger and a desire to hold people accountable who are, essentially, not protecting us and not doing their jobs.”

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Another caller, Bruno, said he had lived in Houston for more than 20 years and things seemed to be getting worse, and that the May derecho and Hurricane Beryl had reinforced his decision to leave.

Some Houstonians have changed their attitudes and behaviors after the storms and no longer necessarily conform to the “Houston Strong” ethic. Swartz says the more severe the weather gets, the more those who decided to stay “have to face the reality of where we live.”

“And then, in turn, you start asking yourself: Can I do something about this? What can I do? So, hopefully, that will lead to more political engagement, otherwise it will be a ghost town,” Swartz said.

Swartz said she believes the next few months will determine whether or not the area will see many people leave in the years to come.

“This hurricane season is supposed to be tough,” she said. “I think climate change is here to stay and there’s no denying that. So I think our public officials and our businesses like CenterPoint need to do something about it or they’re not going to have any customers or voters.”