Officials hope pear sculptures bring sense of place to Pearland

Officials in Pearland are increasingly eyeing beautification projects, including a series of entryway markers along the city's border. The first one -- shown in this rendering -- will be on Cullen Blvd. Officials in Pearland are increasingly eyeing beautification projects, including a series of entryway markers along the city's border. The first one -- shown in this rendering -- will be on Cullen Blvd. Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Officials hope pear sculptures bring sense of place to Pearland 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

Pearland city officials are increasingly looking to develop a "sense of place" in the suburb of nearly 100,000 residents south of Houston.

The city is working on an art project that would place giant pear sculptures around the city -- possibly in some sort of trail that people could follow.

The Pearland Economic Development Corp., is also working on cleaning and landscaping major thoroughfares and on launching a project to put "entryway" markers around the city's borders.

All of the projects fall under the umbrella of "beautification," with the ultimate goal of sharpening the city's identity and making Pearland distinct.

Experts say such projects have economic benefits and improve residents' general experience of living in the city.

Read the full story on houstonchronicle.com.