Sugar Land, Texas
Sugar Land (sometimes spelled as Sugarland) is the largest city in Fort Bend County, Texas, United States, located in the southwestern part of the Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan area. Located about 19 miles (31 km) southwest of downtown Houston, Sugar Land is a populous suburban municipality centered around the junction of Texas State Highway 6 and Interstate 69/U.S. Route 59.
"Sugar Land" redirects here. For other uses, see Sugar Land (disambiguation).
Sugar Land, Texas
Mayor Joe R. Zimmerman
William Ferguson
Jennifer J. Lane
Suzanne Whatley
Naushad Kermally
Stewart Jacobson
Carol K. McCutcheon
Mike Goodrum
42.90 sq mi (111.12 km2)
40.47 sq mi (104.81 km2)
2.44 sq mi (6.31 km2)
100 ft (30 m)
111,026
2,927.94/sq mi (1,130.49/km2)
UTC−5 (CDT)
Mostly 281 also 713, 832, and 346
8.25%[3]
1348034[4]
Beginning in the 19th century, the present-day Sugar Land area was home to a large sugar plantation situated in the fertile floodplain of the Brazos River. Following the consolidation of local plantations into Imperial Sugar Company in 1908, Sugar Land grew steadily as a company town and incorporated as a city in 1959. Since then, Sugar Land has grown rapidly alongside other edge cities around Houston, with large-scale development of master-planned communities contributing to population swells since the 1980s.
Sugar Land is one of the most affluent and fastest-growing cities in Texas. The 2020 United States Census reported that the city's population had grown more than 40% in the preceding 10 years following the annexation of the Greatwood and New Territory communities in December 2017.[5] Over the same 10-year period, the number of employed persons living in Sugar Land increased by 61%.[6]
Sugar Land is home to the headquarters of Imperial Sugar; the company's main sugar refinery and distribution center were once located in the city. The Imperial Sugar crown logo is featured in the city seal and logo.
Constellation Field, Home of Space Cowboys Minor League Baseball Team
Houston Natural Science Museum at Sugar Land
Sugar Land has a largely white-collar, university-educated workforce employed in Houston's energy industry.[79]
In 2004, the city was named one of the top 100 places to live, according to HomeRoute, a national real estate marketing company which identifies top American cities each year through its Relocate-America program. Cities are selected based on educational opportunities, crime rates, employment and housing data. The magazine started with statistics on 271 U.S. cities provided by OnBoard LLC, a real estate information company.
Sugar Land was awarded the title of "Fittest City in Texas" for the population range 50,000–100,000 in 2004, 2005 (in a tie with Round Rock) and 2006. The "Fittest City in Texas" program is a part of the Texas Roundup program, a statewide fitness initiative.[80][81]
Local sports are popular both at the recreational and competitive levels. Sugar Land formed its first community swim team, the Sugar Land Sharks, in 1967, and it is still competing as of 2016.[82][83]
Sugar Land is home to the Smart Financial Centre, an indoor concert hall that is the only such venue of its kind in Greater Houston, and can seat 6,400 seats for multiple events including concerts, cultural events and graduations. An outdoor arts plaza is also being constructed around the concert hall, and will be incorporated with a new mixed-use development that will include two hotels, a conference center, office and ground-level retail, and an age-restricted senior living multifamily complex.
Sugar Land is the home of the Sugar Land Space Cowboys Minor League Baseball team, founded in 2012, who play at Constellation Field in the Imperial master-planned community, located between the Sugar Land Regional Airport and the former Imperial Sugar property.[84] Originally known as the Sugar Land Skeeters, they won the 2016 and 2018 championship in the independent Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. In 2021, the Skeeters joined the Triple-A West as the Triple-A affiliate of the Houston Astros.[85] After the 2021 season, the team rebranded as the Sugar Land Space Cowboys.[86]
In 2014 the Sugar Land Youth Cricket Club, a children's cricket club, was established. In 2016 it played its home games at Everest Academy in Stafford.[87]
Architectural landmarks[edit]
Lakeview Auditorium, located on the campus of Lakeview Elementary School, is the oldest public building still standing in the area. Originally one of eleven buildings that composed the campus of the old Sugar Land Independent School District, the auditorium was a focal point for a vibrant and growing community. The stately auditorium still stands today and is a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, as of 2002.
In 1912, Imperial Sugar Company built a small building at the corner of Wood Street and Lakeview Drive (then known as Third Street) to serve as a school. The original campus consisted of 11 buildings arranged in a semicircle with the large, airy auditorium in the center. The buildings were connected by a covered walkway supported by large, white columns. There was a circular driveway for buses and automobiles. All the buildings were finished in white stucco on the outside and had large windows that allowed fresh air to circulate and cool the buildings. The auditorium was a hub of community activity.
Sugar Land Library Branch
First Colony Library Branch
University Library Branch
Media[edit]
Movie references[edit]
A portion of the 1974 movie, The Sugarland Express, takes place in Sugar Land. Many of the movie's earliest scenes were filmed at the nearby Beauford H. Jester prison pre-release center. Other parts of the set were filmed in and around Sugar Land. The movie's title parses the name of the city as one word rather than two. It was among Steven Spielberg's first films before he became famous. The film was the first theatrical feature film directed by Spielberg.[108]
In 2010, The Legend of Action Man was filmed in Sugar Land. The film was produced by Dingoman Productions, a sketch comedy group formed by Sugar Land residents Andy Young, Derek Papa & James McEnelly that got their start attending Austin High School together. The story takes place in the Sugar Land area and makes use of many of the landmarks there. Action Man is famous for being one of the least expensive films ever made, made on a budget of $200. Director Andy Young has written about the experience for Moviemaker magazine.
Music references[edit]
Folk musician Lead Belly's song "Midnight Special" discusses his arrest in Houston and his stay at the Sugar Land Prison (now the Beauford H. Jester pre-release Center) in 1925.