Westbury Square (Houston)

Westbury Square was a shopping center located on a 7.5-acre (3.0 ha) site near the intersection of Chimney Rock Road and West Bellfort Avenue, in the Westbury neighborhood in the Brays Oaks district of Southwest Houston, Texas.

In 1960 Ira Berne, the developer of the Westbury subdivision, had developed the center. The plot of land that would later house Westbury Square was originally undeveloped and a leftover from development of the subdivision; Berne was not sure what should be placed there. Gerry Berne, his wife, said that due to hay fever, Ira Berne had to be out of Houston in the months August through October, so he often vacationed in Italy. While there he became inspired by the architectural design and decided to create a similar atmosphere in a new shopping center in Houston. Berne had traveled to Europe and had a positive view of the European building styles which involved various facades of different time periods and materials next door to one another, and Berne hoped to create a similar atmosphere in his new shopping center.

Berne hired architect William F. Wortham, Jr. to design the complex. Berne traveled to Italy to take photographs and notes so he could model his center after European architectural elements. Alisa Rogillio-Strength of the Houston Business Journal said that Berne's "dream was to recreate a similar environment in Houston in a shopping center where people would come to spend the day, strolling down the brick boulevards, dining at cafes, treating themselves to ice cream and visiting master craftsman in their shops."

The center, built in 1962, became very popular after its opening. Some visitors came as far away as Port Arthur, Texas and Louisiana. Greg Hassell of the Houston Chronicle said "During the 1960s, it could justly be considered the premier shopping destination in the city."

The center included public events such as Christmas choir singing and glass-blowing demonstrations. The glass blowers performed in art festivals held in covered stalls around the fountain on weekends. A "lemon sale" occurred once yearly, where merchandise was sold at discount prices from back-alley booths. Owners of Westbury Square stores and people described by Alisa Rogillio-Strength of the Houston Business Journal as "hip urbanites" occupied the apartments. During the successful era, many apartment complexes of a similar style were being built around and near Westbury Square.

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Wikipedia