The bucolic tree-lined streets of the Museum District witnessed gunfire Thursday morning when a member of the Caroline Collective warded off a group of robbers with a handgun.

Jodi Silva with the Houston Police Department tells CultureMap the shooting occurred at 7 a.m. just outside the shared co-working office and art studio space at Caroline and Rosedale.

The as-of-yet unnamed victim was stepping out of his Jeep Cherokee when three armed men approached and demanded money. Saying that he needed to get cash inside the SUV, the victim reached in and grabbed his own personal firearm instead and shot two of the robbers.

"It could have been much, much worse."

The suspects fled the scene, grabbing the man's gun in the process. On the run, one robber collapsed with a bullet wound to the abdomen while the two others escaped and tossed aside the victim's revolver. Blocks away, police later recovered a hooded sweatshirt and bandana as well as another handgun.

Silva reports that the man shot in the stomach was rushed to Ben Taub Hospital, where his condition remains unknown. Another robber was spotted soon after the incident at a West Alabama convenience store, where he told people he had been shot in the hand. He and the third suspect are still missing.

"It could have been much, much worse," Caroline Collective co-founder Ned Dodington tells CultureMap.

With the organization having called the Museum District home for the five years, Dodington (who was not involved in the shooting) notes an uptick in incidents this past year, including an October break-in and a recent confrontation just outside the building. He and his colleagues have ramped up security.

"Development seems to be happening at a faster and faster pace and the neighborhood is definitely changing," Dodington says, describing the new houses and condos popping up throughout the area.

"Violence like this is distressing, but, ultimately, it doesn't change the way I feel about neighborhood safety . . . I think this is still a great place."