For nearly 68 years, a Spring Branch Management District-based business has been battling two of the Houston area’s biggest enemies.
No, not the Dallas Cowboys and the New York Yankees.
“Hands down, most of our calls are about roaches and ants. We just have a great climate where they can thrive,” said Kimberly Barton of Long Point Pest Control.
Barton took over as head of the longtime area business in 2022 after her father, Randolph “Randy” Barton passed away. Randy Barton took it over in the early 1980s from his father, Charles “Charlie” Barton, who started the business in 1957 and named it after the Spring Branch area’s busy thoroughfare, Long Point Road.
“It was a way for Houstonians to know where we are located,” Kimberly Barton said.
Not only is the business located in the Spring Branch area but the Bartons are longtime residents. Barton said her grandfather settled in the area in the early 1950s.
Now located at 2219 Blalock Rd., Long Point Pest Control has expanded its service area through the years to include all of Houston and the surrounding areas.
Barton said the firm also now offers more services than ever before, including bat removal, animal exclusion (the process of preventing animals from accessing a space by blocking off their entry points), bed bug eradication and Formosan subterranean termite treatment.
Sister company Houston Fumigation Services was added in the 1980s, performing structural fumigations on residential and commercial properties.
The core business of serving residential customers remains a priority.
“Many pest control companies are switching to exterior-only services,” Barton said. “While we want to grow doing exterior service, we are not going away from doing interiors as well. Most customers have expected that from us and we are not changing it on them.”
Long Point Pest Control’s technicians have been visiting the same customers for many years, dealing with many interesting issues while also watching families grow and change, Barton said.
“I love seeing reviews that pop up saying that someone has been with us for more than 30 years, which is awesome. I used to answer the phones a lot more, and I’d get someone who said that they knew the owner,” Barton said. “I’ve heard some great stories about my dad or my grandad.”
Being in business for so many years doesn’t come without its difficulties. Currently, Barton said, the company is working on improving their storefront, which had been damaged in severe weather.
As long as there are bugs in Houston, though, it seems Long Point Pest Control will be here to serve.
“Customers can count on us and know we will solve their problems,” Barton said.
Long Point Pest Control, Inc.
(713) 468-2883
www.longpointpest.com
Houston Fumigation Systems, Inc.
(713) 468-0492
www.houstonfumigation.com