Safety news

2 Houston neighbors rank among America's safest suburbs in 2025

Spring is one of the 20 safest suburbs in America.

Spring TX .com/Facebook

Two buzzy Houston neighbors, Spring and West University Place, have landed top-25 spots in a new SmartAsset ranking of the safest suburbs in America for 2025.

Spring came in at No. 19, and West University Place followed at No. 21.

To determine the safest suburbs, SmartAsset's experts ranked 360 U.S. towns based on violent crime rates, property crime rates, drug overdoses, traffic deaths, and the percentage of the population participating in "excessive drinking." Crime rates were measured by city, while the remaining three metrics were examined at the county level.

The report further narrowed the scope of the list by only choosing suburbs located within a 45-minute driving distance of a major city.

Salt Lake City suburb Lehi, Utah ranked as the nation's safest suburb for the second consecutive year.

This is the first time the two Houston suburbs have made it into the top 25. In SmartAsset's 2024 report, Spring ranked 147th on the list, and West University Place was 159th.

Previously, other Houston-area neighbors like League City, Sugar Land, and Pearland have all shared the spotlight as the safest cities in America.

According to the report's findings, Spring has the lowest property crime rate out of all 360 cities.

"Located in Harris County, Spring sees only five property crimes reported for every 10,000 residents," the report's author wrote. "After Spring, the Chicago suburbs of Orland Park, Northbrook, and Elmhurst, IL have the lowest property crime rates per capita."

Based on the county data, both Houston suburbs have a traffic fatality rate of 11.63 per 100,000 residents, and 17.41 percent of Harris County adults reportedly engage in excessive drinking.

West University Place is a desirable place to live in its own right. Its residents will surely agree that their community is a very safe place to be, considering it's one of the wealthiest suburbs in the country.

A city's safety and its cost of living are both major factors that must be considered when it comes to finding the right place to live, SmartAsset says.

"Many households are willing to pay a premium to be in a neighborhood they feel physically safe in, as valuable qualitative benefits may be at stake in establishing a sense of safety – particularly for families with children," the report said. "But safety trends can change due to economic, legislative and other factors."

The report also provided data for the median housing costs and median household income for the top 20 cities, and the median Spring household income comes out to $86,888 a year, while the median monthly housing costs add up to $1,583.

Elsewhere in Texas, two Dallas-Fort Worth cities – McKinney (No. 9) and Frisco (No. 10) – ranked among the top 10 safest U.S. suburbs.

The top 10 safest suburbs in America for 2025 are:

No. 1 – Lehi, Utah (Salt Lake City)
No. 2 – Bethesda, Maryland (Washington, D.C.)
No. 3 – Great Falls, Virginia (Washington, D.C.)
No. 4 – Rockville, Maryland (Washington, D.C.)
No. 5 – Dacula, Georgia (Atlanta)
No. 6 – Buford, Georgia (Atlanta)
No. 7 – Layton, Utah (Salt Lake City)
No. 8 – Edgewater, New Jersey (New York City)
No. 9 – McKinney, Texas (Dallas)
No. 10 – Frisco, Texas (Dallas)

suburbs safest suburbs smartasset houston spring west university place

flight cancelled

Historic Houston air terminal museum closes due to budget shortfall

Photo courtesy of 1940 Air Terminal Museum

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A beloved Houston museum has closed its doors — at least for now. The 1940 Air Terminal Museum announced this morning (Monday, March 2) that it has ceased operations.

Located next to Hobby Airport, the 1940 Air Terminal Museum showcases Houston’s aviation history. Designed by local architect Joseph Finger, the museum’s Art Deco building is a protected landmark that’s listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Museum president and director Karen Nicolaou tells CultureMap that the problem is simple. The museum’s revenues don’t match its expenses. Previously, the museum raised $100,000 or more per year from raffles on Facebook, but that stream dried up.

It generates some money from admissions and more from hosting private events, but it hasn’t been enough. Being far away from the Museum District means it doesn’t get the cross traffic that its more centrally-located peer institutions do.

Still, the museum occupies a unique space in Houston. “It’s one of the coolest places for kids to see airplanes,” Nicolaou says. “There’s no other place where someone can walk onto the ramp and take a picture of plane taking off with nothing in the way.”

While the museum is closed for now, Nicolaou says its board has been in contact with the Texas Historical Commission about taking over operations. One issue is that the commission would want to take ownership of the building from Houston Airports, according to Nicolaou.

“That’s going to take coordination between the city, the airport system, and the Texas State Senate. There’s a lot of politics involved,” Nicolaou says.

Of course, she has a simple proposal for Houston Mayor John Whitmire that would move the process along.

“Mr. Mayor, sell the historical commission the building for a dollar and be done with it,” she says with a laugh.

Whether it’s operated by the City of Houston, the Texas Historical Commission, a university, or some other entity, Nicolaou hopes the public will be able to visit the museum again soon and for many years to come.

“We want a permanent solution. We’ve tried for one for years,” she says. “It belongs to the city. It belongs to the residents of the city of Houston. They should have it to go to for years.”

CultureMap has contacted Mayor Whitmire’s office for comment about the museum’s future and will update this article when we receive a reply.

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