It's no secret that I'm a huge Houston fan. I couldn't be happier that we are hosting the Super Bowl this year. The hype about this big event makes me wonder: Why hasn't Houston been picked to host the Olympics yet? We've been brought up as an idea in the past, but have never made it as an option. Why are we being snubbed?
Houston is a global city -- we are extremely diverse and are known for our restaurants of all different types. We have cuisine and elements of culture that would make any visitor feel comfortable here. The city is extremely spread out, so there would be plenty of room for the huge influx of people we would be receiving. This also means that we would have plenty of room to build any new attractions or stadiums that we would need, even though we are already equipped with a lot of the necessary arenas. In addition, we are close to the coast, and would easily be able to host sailing and boating events in Buffalo Bayou or off the coast.
At this point, Houston is definitely on the global map, but I don't think it would hurt to introduce Houston to the rest of the world in a huge way. Some say that the Olympics hurt the economy of the host city, but Houston is known for bouncing back from recessions and for being largely unaffected by anything that isn't oil and gas related.
To be fair, Houston's public transportation system is notoriously bad. The city has been working recently to improve the Metro system, but between the slow buses and the Lightrail that doesn't actually extend that far outside the city, it would be hard for masses of people to get around. Houston is such a driving oriented city, and it would be hard for people coming from all around the world to get cars. Also, can you imagine the traffic? It would definitely be a problem we'd have to address before hosting the games.
Maybe it wouldn't be the most practical thing for Houston, but I think Houston hosting the Olympics would be our ultimate triumph. L.A., Atlanta, and other big cities across the country have hosted the Olympics, so why not us? I would argue that Houston is better than all those other cities (oops... bias), and I think we have the resources, creativity, artistry, and means to do it.
