The rivalry between Houston and Dallas isn't news — but media outlets in both cities occasionally try to make news out of it. The latest example: a story from KTVT in Dallas, which skims over the differences between the cities and comes to no real conclusion.
Bragging rights become most important when it comes to bringing in tourists.“Probably Houston has seen it's zenith if you will. In Dallas we have not peaked yet and that's a fun place to be,” said Phillip Jones, Dallas Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Jordi Tollet with the Houston Convention and Visitor’s Bureau says his city has substance. “You can't just say come look at my skyline or we have art someplace, that's not what a meeting planner is looking for.”
Dallasites obviously don't concern themselves with trivial things like punctuation and spelling (it's Jordy Tollett, with a Y and two T's). But they do get a little bragging in — in addition to the idea that Houston is past its prime and Dallas is on its way to world domination, the report highlights the $275 million Dallas Center for the Performing Arts, now being built in the Big D's downtown. In true Dallas style, CPA Foundation President Bill Lively calls the center "the finest performing arts center in the world." Well, maybe. Houston already has a strong performing arts center, but remember, we're past our peak.
The report points out that both Houston and Dallas are working to revitalize their downtowns. Though Houston's ahead in that department, leaders of both cities are still trying to figure out how to get people to keep coming downtown. Houstonist's Dallas friends often point to the West End Marketplace as an example of how vibrant Dallas's downtown is — and they do it with a straight face. Talk about things that are past their prime.
The summary of this episode of Dallas vs. Houston comes from Dallas Mayor Laura Miller:
"Houston’s always had their port and so they’ve had natural amenities. We've never had anything natural, it's all been because we made it happen, we made something out of nothing and after awhile that whole attitude becomes mythic and then it becomes reality,” Miller said.
Ah yes, Houston's naturally occurring port. Surely Miller doesn't mean the one we built 50 miles inland? Call us crazy, but that seems to qualify as making "something out of nothing," too. We know Miller's just doing her job and that the Houston-Dallas rivalry will probably never end. And what can you do — people in Dallas really seem to think they live in the best city on the face of the Earth. Let's not ruin things for them.
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