Sunnyside, Houston

Sunnyside is a community in southern Houston, Texas, United States, south of Downtown Houston.

Sunnyside is outside of the 610 Loop and inside Beltway 8 off State Highway 288 south of Downtown Houston and is predominantly African American. The community's slogan is "Sunnyside Pride." Sunnyside included a landfill, an adjacent garbage incinerator, and several salvage yards; the incinerator has closed. The city of Houston describes Sunnyside's housing as "suburban-style." As of 2007 Sandra Massie-Hines is the honorary mayor of Sunnyside.

Thousands of enslaved African-Americans lived near Houston before the Civil War. Many of them near the city worked on sugar and cotton plantations, while most of those in the city limits had domestic and artisan jobs. In 1860, 49% of the city's population was enslaved.

African Americans started to settle in the community and it was founded by H. H. Holmes. Sunnyside, the oldest African-American community in southern Houston, was first platted in 1912. When the community opened in the 1910s, H. H. Holmes, the founder, gave the land the name Sunny Side. By the 1940s area residents established a water district and a volunteer fire department. The City of Houston annexed Sunnyside in 1956.

From the 1980 U.S. Census to the 1990 Census, many African-Americans left traditional African-American neighborhoods like Sunnyside and entered parts of Southwest Houston. Sunnyside lost 30% of its population in the decade prior to August 20, 1992.

Between 1990 and 2000 the Hispanic population of Sunnyside increased a little by between 5 and 10 percent. As of January 2007, according to a Houston Chronicle article, Sunnyside has many issues with recreational drug use. Phencyclidine (PCP) is cited by the article as a drug popular in Sunnyside.

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