A substantial contributor to that heat is asphalt and concrete though (absorbs heat and releases it at night). And to make it worse there's no tree cover. Winter is also more manageable if you don't have to wait 20 mins for a bus in an uncleared snowbank just because non-car mobility is second-class
True. Another issue with all the concrete is that it doesn't absorb rain and has made the constant flooding worse. Zero tree cover is also a shame, there are hundreds of miles of concrete bike and walking paths along the bayous that would be great for commuting but most of it has zero tree cover so you're just baking in the sun.
The older parts of Houston have massive oak trees that provide a lot of shade (and acorns the size of walnuts). But the older houses aren't large enough for modern Houstonians (roll your eyes here); when you tear it down to build a McMansion the trees also have to go.
The elementary school near my friend's house had a playground that was 100% shaded by just two massive trees. They tore the school down for a modern replacement. The new playground has no shade at all, not even those stretched fabric triangles you see all over the southern US.
Caring about nature that you can't shoot or eat is for pansy leftist tree-huggers. Especially if you work in a manly field full of manly men like construction. /s
This seems unnecessarily bait-y, but you can probably assume that the people who planted those trees in Houston weren't tree-huggers either, they were just practical. And lived in an era where "wasting money" wasn't as socially acceptable as it is now.
Before air conditioning shade from trees was one of the only ways to endure the heat. I bought a 70yo house with trees nearly on top of the house, and the old neighbors said it was intended to combat the heat.
As someone who grew up playing in the bayous out in the suburbs of Houston, even away from the concrete the humidity and heat are oppressive in the summertime.
