March 10, 2004
A
publication of the Gulf Coast Institute
³You
are going to have to pay billions of dollars more in infrastructure if we are
trying to get to the same place at the same time, rather than having staggered
and flexible working hours using modern technology.²
-Mayor Bill White in his State of the
City Address on February 26th http://www.ci.houston.tx.us/citygovt/mayor/2004stateofthecity.htm
³We need to improve the quality of life in this city to remain competitive
with other cities. Urban life is competition. And we can do it.²
-Mayor Bill White in the same State of
the City Address on February 26th http://www.ci.houston.tx.us/citygovt/mayor/2004stateofthecity.htm
"Now we've learned from that past that the way to breathe real life
into cities is to connect neighborhoods, create openness and intimacy where
residents can commingle and cross-fertilize."
-George Peterson, senior analyst at
the Urban Institute, http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0226/p02s01-ussc.html
The Regional Transportation Plan/100 Percent Plan
Part Three
The final draft of the long-term Regional
Transportation Plan, including the 100 Percent Plan, is set to be released next
week. This plan is the most comprehensive transportation plan in the Houston
region that goes well beyond the voter-approved Metro Solutions plan in
defining the future of transportation in Houston. This meeting will focus on
the major components of the plan and discuss how the public can get involved.
The Transportation Policy Council, the group of local elected and
transportation officials, will vote on the plan April 23rd. For a copy of the
plan, visit http://www.2025plan.org.
The Livable Houston meeting is Wednesday, March 24th, noon-1:30 pm,
Houston-Galveston Area Council, 3555 Timmons, second floor. Bring your lunch.
For more information call 713-523-5755. The Gulf Coast Institute and the
Houston-Galveston Area Council host Livable Houston/Smart Growth
bring-your-own-lunch meetings that are open to the public on the fourth
Wednesday of every month. For more information, visit http://www.gulfcoastideas.org
and click on the ³Livable Houston Initiative.²
Houston
exhibition held downtown
An exhibition titled ³Our Town: Houston
Past Present Future,² curated by David Crossley and the Gulf Coast Institute,
opened last weekend at the Joan Wich & Company Gallery in Downtown Houston
at 914 Preston at Main, opposite the Preston rail stop. The event is part of
FotoFest 2004, and a second opening for FotoFest will be this Friday, March 12,
6-8 pm. The exhibition includes photographs, drawings, maps, and text that
explore the complexity and contradictions of a gigantic but still-young city
just as it moves beyond adolescence. The show runs from March 6 to April 10. http://www.joanwichgallery.com.
Public comment on Regional Transportation Plan
delayed
Opportunities for the public to comment on
the Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) has been pushed back at least one week
due to the delay in releasing the final version of the 2025 RTP, the most
comprehensive transportation plan for the Houston region. The regional agency
that creates the plan, the Houston-Galveston Area Council, has said that they
estimate the RTP will be released at earliest this Friday, March 12, but more
likely early next week beginning March 15th. That will mean the public will
have to move fast to read and understand the massive, $74 billion plan by the
following week when the one public hearing for the plan is scheduled on March
23rd. This plan includes billions in road, transit, port, airport, and
pedestrian/bike expenditures which add up to an amount several times the Metro
Solutions transportation plan voted on last fall by the public. Unlike Metro
Solutions plan, the RTP does not go to a vote before the public, but rather
before a group of regionally elected and transportation officials called the
Transportation Policy Council that is chaired by Harris County Judge Robert
Eckels. To learn more about the RTP visit, http://www.2025plan.org/
Officials vote
against light rail line - potential double decking of Loop cited as one reason
Local elected and transportation officials
passed two out of three proposed light rail corridors, leaving one light rail
line in limbo until at least their next meeting. Although the public voted for
72 additional miles of rail transportation last fall, a regional group called
the Transportation Policy Council (TPC) made up of local elected and
transportation officials must approve the light rail lines to be included in
the Regional Transportation Plan before Metro can receive federal funds. The
lines the officials passed included one going north from downtown to the Bush
Intercontinental Airport and one going southeast from downtown via the
University of Houston, Texas Southern University, and Hobby Airport. The
rejected line was the Uptown-West Loop segment near the Galleria. TPC member
Art Storey, Executive Director of Harris Countyıs Public Infrastructure
Department, expressed a concern that the segmentıs proposed alignment would
preclude a double decking of the West Loop 610, a corridor where car traffic is
expected to worsen. Others, including mayorıs Chairman of the Office of
Mobility David Saperstein, expressed concern that an at-grade light rail would
disturb traffic and neighbors in the area. The city has not yet appointed
council members to the TPC and as such, no City of Houston Council members were
there to vote. The next meeting of the Transportation Policy Council is March
26.
Houstonıs crash
course in light rail
Are Houstonıs mounting number of light
rail crashes lessons for others to learn about at-grade rail transportation or
are they anomalies reflective of the cityıs car-centered culture, asks an
article in USA Today. "This is a car city - it was built by, for, and on behalf
of the automobile," said Rice University professor Stephen Klineberg in
the article. "The 21st century is configured for a different
reality," he said. Greg Hull, the director of operations for safety and
security for the American Public Transportation Association, indicated that the
crashes serve as lessons for those cities on "learning curves" such
as Houston that have had little light rail experience. http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2004-03-07-houston-rail_x.htm
Most efficient
City Hall in nation?
Mayor Bill Whiteıs State of the City Speech further stressed the mayorıs goal
to make City Hall the most efficient one in the nation. The first area he
talked about for improved efficiencies was also a main subject of his mayoral
campaign: transportation. Noting that the city has already completed ten
percent of the traffic light synchronization plan, White conveyed his desire to
get things done in a timely manner. Then, noting the surprisingly benign impact
of the Spur 527 closure, he relayed his goals to get the most out of the cityıs
existing resources. White said after actually reducing car capacity to downtown
with the 527 closure, cars were still able to run in a timely manner without
destroying neighborhoods: ³We were able to handle that without a significant
increase in commuting time for those that continue to come along the 59
corridor - without destroying the neighborhoods.² All this, he said came with
the help of transportation efficiencies including the timing of lights, driver
education, and better signage. The lesson of the day, he said, was that ³It
tells us that with this magnificent transportation infrastructure, the
replacement costs would be over $100 billion. And we ought to devote the time
and energy it takes in order to manage traffic better on that expensive
infrastructure.² http://www.ci.houston.tx.us/citygovt/mayor/2004stateofthecity.htm
Houstonıs
commuting times not so bad
Even though Houston is the 4th largest US
city, its commute times are only the 15th worst in the nation, according to the
US Census Bureau. Houstoniansı average commute is 25.6 minutes while the
largest city in the nation, New York, also has the longest commute at an
average time of 38.4 minutes. Houstonians spend an average of 4.5 total days
commuting to work while New Yorkers spend 6.7 days. Out of the 10 largest
cities, San Diego had the shortest commute, spending only 22.3 minutes
commuting, or a total of 3.9 days. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/american_community_survey_acs/001695.html
Friendswood
planning to spruce up its downtown
Friendswood has hired an architect to
develop a plan that will spruce up its town center around Main Street,
according to the Houston Business Journal. ³We believe the Main Street project
will raise our property values and attract the right businesses to
Friendswood,² said Friendswood Mayor Kim Wayne Brizendine. This move is one of
many across the nation to revitalize areas around main streets and create a
sense of place. http://houston.bizjournals.com/houston/stories/2003/03/17/daily45.html
Heightıs Stude
park gets shot of love for Valentines Day
Heightıs Stude Park, which lines White Oak
Bayou on the north side of downtown, received a present of 1,400 tree seedlings
on Valentines Day. A grassroots group called the Heights Beautification
Association wanted to shelter the parkís patrons from the nearby I-10 traffic
noise and air pollution. Nearly 50 volunteers showed up on Valentineıs Day to
plant the trees donated by the Houston Parks and Recreation Department. http://www.ci.houston.tx.us/pr/marnewsletter-3.html
Density by Design
conference scheduled
A conference called ³Density by Design²
will be held in Houston on May 19 to explore the value of dense urban
development in providing a range of benefits including saving natural lands.
The conference is sponsored by the Gulf Coast Institute,
Houston-Galveston Area Council, and Texas Sea Grant/Texas
Cooperative
Extension, with sponsorship by Galveston Bay Estuary Program and the
American Institute of Architects Houston chapter. For more, go to http://www.densitybydesign.com.
Houston
Wilderness lunch at Central Market
Rosie Zamora of Houston Wilderness, a
coalition of business, environmental, and governmental groups organized to
protect and promote Houstonıs ecological capital, will speak at a lunch on
March 17 about the group. The American Planning Association lunch begins at
11:30 am and the presentation at 12 pm. Central Market is located at Westheimer
and Weslayan. The presentation is free and open to the public. For more
information, visit http://www.houstonapa.com/
Stuck in a Jam:
The Problems and the Future of Transportation in Houston
Rice Universityıs Environmental Club will
host a conference called ³Stuck in a Jam: The Problems and the Future of
Transportation in Houston,² this Saturday, March 13th. Key speakers include Dr.
Elizabeth Deakin, Associate Professor of City and Regional Planning and
Director of the University of California Transportation Center; Dr. Matt
Fraser, Assistant Professor at Rice University; David Crossley, President of
the Gulf Coast Institute; Dr. Polly Ledvina, Chairperson of the Katy Corridor
Coalition; Alan Clark, Manager of the Transportation and Air Quality programs
for the Houston-Galveston Area Council; James Blackburn, Adjunct Professor at Rice
University and Environmental Lawyer and Activist. The conference is free to the
general public (free lunch also provided). For more information, visit http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~enviclub/conference/index.html
PLANNING
Founding
fathers on urban design
The buildings should be "low and
convenient, and the streets light and airy," said former US President
Thomas Jefferson of Washington DCıs urban design, according to an article in
the Washington Business Journal. Jefferson thought the cityıs building height
should mimic that of Paris, where he once lived, and which also has buildings
at medium-height. President George Washington enacted the first height limits in
1791, says the article, as much out of concern for fire and structural safety
as urban design. The cityıs current height limits state that no building may be
more than 20 feet higher than the width of the street in front of it. The
article examines advantages such as sunlight on the streets and disadvantages
such as limited office space of having a city at medium-height versus unlimited
skyscraper-height. http://washington.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2004/02/16/focus5.html?page=1
Public plans for
downtown Phoenix
Phoenix Future, a group of downtown
business leaders in Phoenix, Arizona, are creating a profile of what the cityıs
downtown should look like in the future with the help of local business and
residents. According to the Arizona Republic, a recent townhall meeting about
downtownıs plans featured more than 750 people, many of whom said they wanted
trendy, all-night cafes, a lively arts community, unique shops, shady walkways
and renewed neighborhoods that won't push the poor out of their homes. http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/northeastvalley/articles/0218phxdowntown0218Z7.html
URBANISM
Borders
books breaks into underserved neighborhoods
In what may be part of a larger trend, the
national book chain Borders is moving into underserved urban neighborhoods,
reports the New York Times. The company has opened two stores in retail-poor
areas in Chicago and Detroit banking on what it hopes will be timely entries
into up and coming areas. http://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/25/business/25prop.html?ex=1078716959&ei=1&en=3b2cfe42c16fce37
Michigan Gov.
directs brownfield dollars to urban cores
Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm (D)
recently changed a decade-old brownfields tax credit program by switching funds
from sprawling suburbia to inner cities, according to the Detroit News. The
move is part of her ³cool cities² initiative that aims to transform old urban
areas to ³economic powerhouses² whose vibrant downtowns will attract businesses
and young professionals. While the move is exciting some, others
including suburban city leaders - are not too happy, ³Weıre treated so
badly by the state now, whatıs another nail in our coffin?² said Thomas Yack,
supervisor of Canton Township, a sprawling bedroom community in the state. He
noted that the small towns have been slighted by Republican and Democrat
administrations alike in recent years.
MOBILITY
Federal
transportation act extended for the second time
Congress has extended the current transportation
law that governs federal funding for the second time in the past six months,
just barely avoiding a shutdown of the Department of Transportation. Congress
is supposed to create a new transportation act for the next six years, but
because of serious disagreements regarding levels of funding, the legislature
has instead just extended the current act that was first enacted in 1998. The
act is now set to expire in late April. The White House has told House of
Representative leaders that they will not sign an act over $270 billion, while
the House prefers an act at $375 billion and the Senate one at $318 billion.
Some Republican leaders are considering giving up on a full reauthorization
this year and, instead, passing a $90 billion two-year stopgap measure. This
measure would be a two-year extension from the original expiration date of
September 30, 2003, and would cover highway and transit spending for fiscal
years 2004 and 2005. This would also result in an increase in transportation
funding, as last year Congress approved $41 billion for highways and transit
for FY04.
Toll roads for
trucks
Toll roads exclusively for trucks could
improve the trucking industryıs productivity, suggests a report by the Reason
Public Policy Institute. The group analyzed proposed routes given to them by
trucking companies and came up with several recommendations for truck-only
tollways across the nation (none were in Texas). The group says that such toll
roads could also address congestion and fatal crash concerns. http://www.rppi.org/ps316.pdf
Congestion needs
regional coordination
Congestion is a regional problem that
needs regional solutions on both the demand and supply sides, suggests a recent
paper by Anthony Downs of the Brookings Institution. ³The Need for Regional
Anti-Congestion Policies² talks about how just building more roads or more
transit without also working density and congestion pricing will fall far short
of solving any congestion problems. To come closer to a solution, Downs
suggests that regional entities such as Metropolitan Planning Organizations
should be given more power to do more things. http://www.brookings.edu/dybdocroot/urban/pubs/20040220_Downs.pdf
METROPOLITAN ECONOMICS
When
less revenue marks the success of a city program
Londonıs congestion charging scheme has
been so successful that the city is seeing only a third of the projected
revenue, according to the Economist magazine. One year ago, the city began
charging a $9.50 fee to cars entering its central city to reduce traffic and
raise a little cash in the process. The toll has been so successful at
prompting drivers to utilize other methods of reaching the central city that
traffic has shrunk by 38 percent, taking with it some of the projected tolling
revue. The public has received the once highly controversial program with such
open arms, states the magazine, that the mayor of London is considering
expanding the program to other areas. The Economist, March 2004.
HOUSING
Needed
LA housing comes smart growth-style
In the land where housing demand far
outstrips supply, one developer wants to supply a smart growth-style
residential and commercial community for over 15,000 residents of northern Los
Angeles County. The massive development, called Los Lomas, would cover 558
acres and create a virtual town with a public school, grocery store,
mixed-income housing, public transit, post office, and other facilities. In an
interview with the Planning Report, developer Dan Palmer talks about planning,
design principles, and his reasons for looking forward with a new type of
development rather than in the ³rearview mirror for guidance² about
development. http://www.planningreport.com/tpr/?module=displaystory&story_id=972&format=html
PARKS/GREENSPACE
Paradise
returned to abandoned lots
³For long-term economic development, you
must have a beautiful neighborhood,² says Henry Hamilton of Milwaukee,
Wisconsin, ³Open space can enhance property values. And here, you wouldnıt even
have to tear down a house to get it.² Hamilton, who is the co-chair of the
areaıs NAACPıs environmental justice committee, is eying empty lots and
abandoned areas to create urban parks, according to an article in the Milwaukee
Journal Sentinel. The NAACP together with the nonprofit organization Urban Open
Space Foundation are pushing the city to give small parks a higher priority in
a neighborhoodıs comprehensive plan. http://www.jsonline.com/news/metro/feb04/209559.asp?source=tmj4
ENERGY
NYC
Mayor turns pollution into something useful
New York City will soon begin turning
waste gas into energy that will help power the cityıs wastewater treatment facilities,
according to a recent press release by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
According to the release, the process will entail using fuel cells to harness
the gas and then convert it into energy via a chemical reaction, rather than
combustion. The process is estimated to save 170 tons of regulated emissions
and more than 9,000 tons of greenhouse gas carbon dioxide annually. NYC Mayor
Bloomberg said, ³We are committed to implementing environmentally beneficial
technologies that will improve the health and safety of New Yorkers, and
decrease our reliance on fossil fuels.² http://www.nyc.gov/portal/index.jsp?epi_menuItemID=c0935b9a57bb4ef3daf2f1c701c789a0&epi_menuID=13ecbf46556241d3daf2f1c701c789a0&epi_baseMenuID=27579af732d48f86a62fa24601c789a0&pageID=mayor_press_release&catID=1194&doc_name=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nyc.gov%2Fhtml%2Fom%2Fhtml%2F2004a%2Fpr040-04.html&cc=unused1978&rc=1194&ndi=1
<http://www.nyc.gov/portal/index.jsp?epi_menuItemID=c0935b9a57bb4ef3daf2f1c701c789a0&epi_menuID=13ecbf46556241d3daf2f1c701c789a0&epi_baseMenuID=27579af732d48f86a62fa24601c789a0&pageID=mayor_press_release&catID=1194&doc_name=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nyc.gov%2Fhtml%>
REGIONAL
Culberson
talks transportation, March 22, Houston.
US Representative John Culberson will talk to the Greater Houston Partnershipıs
Transportation and Infrastructure Advisory Committee at a luncheon at the Four
Seasons Hotel. Contact Rachel Woods for more information rwoods@houston.org
Regional
Transportation Plan Public Meeting, March
23, Houston. Public hearing on the 2025 Regional Transportation Plan at
Houston-Galveston Area Council, 3555 Timmons Lane, second floor, 6-8pm. http://www.h-gac.com/HGAC/Departments/Transportation/Public+Hearing+on+the+Draft+2025+RTP.htm
Our Town:
Houston Past Present Future, Mar 6- April
10, Houston. An exhibition at the Joan Wich Gallery, 914 Preston at Main.
Openings March 6, 6-8 pm, and March 12, 6-8 pm. 713-227-2480. http://www.joanwichgallery.com
Annual Texas
Transit Conference, May 15-18, El Paso.
The annual Texas Transit Conference will highlight the new public transit
provisions at the state level. http://www.texastransit.org/
Nature field
trips, Houston. The Houston Audubon
Society is hosting field trips through May to Waller, Anahuac, Bolivar Flats,
High Island and Brazos Bend State Park. http://www.houstonaudubon.org/
Note to readers: If you have news to share, have reports from events,
or would like to add subscriber names, please let us know at issues@gulfcoastideas.org.
Prepared by Catherine Rentz Pernot
Gulf Coast Growth News is a publication of the Gulf Coast Institute. The Gulf
Coast Institute is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the quality
of life in Houston. To support the Institute, go to http://www.gulfcoastideas.org.
To join the Instituteıs 1000 Friends of Houston, go to http://www.1000friendsofhouston.org
_____________________________
David Crossley
Gulf Coast Institute
3015 Richmond Suite 250
Houston TX 77098
Ph 713-523-5757
Fx 713-523-3057
http://www.livablehouston.org