Houston's Asiatown: One of the largest in the country

HOUSTON, TX (KTRK) -- This week, our ABC13+ series is exploring Asiatown.

We're talking about the area bounded by Gessner to the East, Westpark Drive to the North, Beltway 8 to the West, and Beechnut to the South.

If it's easier, think of it as between Alief and the City of Bellaire.

"It's sort of an area where any culture can just like blend and accept one another the way they are," explained Houstonian Danny Tran. "A lot of cultural appreciation."

"You start to see signage in Chinese characters, in Vietnamese, in Korean, so that gives you the signal, "Hey, we're getting very diverse here,'" explained Chi-mei Lin, the CEO of the Chinese Community Center. "The Bellaire corridor - you have everything. As a result, it attracted more than just Chinese immigrants. I love to see the new features coming to this area. You can feel the vibrance."

"I was born in Houston many decades ago, so I've seen Asiatown grow and thrive over the many years. Chinese developed the area first. Then the Vietnamese came. Now you see Korean and Filipino influence as well," explained Rogene Calvert, a local volunteer and community advocate. "It's probably the largest Asiatown in the country."