April 15, 2000
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GULF COAST GROWTH NEWS


Regional News

Main Street ambitions
At the Main Street Town Hall Meeting this week, City of Houston Planning Director Robert Litke noted that the architects would present "dramatic new ideas," then went on to say "If we pull this off 100 percent, it'll be the greatest street in the world. If we only pull off 50 percent, it'll still be the greatest street in the world." The biggest proposals (other than the light rail line): a new, diagonal boulevard from the George R. Brown southwest to Main and complete reconstruction of the I-59 spur near Richmond to resemble Allen Parkway. Also, the Main Street Coalition announced the expansion of the project north to Quitman and beyond.

Highway funds diverted
Only about 40 percent of all 1999 Texas transportation fees went to transportation projects, according to a presentation made by Metropolitan Planning Organization Director Alan Clark. Speaking at a recent Technical Advisory Committee to the Transportation Policy Council (TPC) meeting at the Houston-Galveston Area Council, Clark noted that nearly 38 percent of money from the State motor fuel taxes was diverted to other uses, primarily the Department of Public Safety. Apparently the Texas Legislature began nibbling at the funds in the early 90s. The TPC will encourage the next Legislature to restore much of the funding to transportation purposes. Transit advocates at the meeting encouraged Clark to note that, since it's obvious the legislature it willing to divert funds from highways, if the money is returned to the transportation fund, transit projects should receive priority consideration.

Smart Growth Initiative news
The Transportation Task Force met for the first time and adopted the working title of Houston Gulf Coast Transportation Coalition. The meeting was spent hearing each of the participants' visions and concerns. The group will meet the first Wednesday of each month at 5 pm at the Gulf Coast Institute office. Next meeting is May 3. All area citizens are welcome to participate. Let the Institute know if you plan to attend: crossley@gulfcoastideas.org. The State of Condition Task Force also met and James Hill, former American Institute of Architects president, agreed to chair the committee. Reports will be given at the next Houston Gulf Coast Smart Growth Initiative meeting, April 26 at 11:30 at the Houston-Galveston Area Council, 3555 Timmins, second floor.

Transportation and Air Quality
A transportation symposium called "Transportation and Air Quality in Houston: Real Benefits or Mirage?" will be held at the Prater Auditorium in the School of Technology at Texas Southern University, 3100 Cleburne. The event is April 20, 6-8 pm. Participants include Shirley DeLibero, METRO CEO & President; Lee Waddleton, Federal Transit Administration Regional Director; and Leonard Spearman, Jr., TNRCC Regional Director, Field Operations Division. The event is co-sponsored by Transportation-On-The-Go and the TSU Center for Transportation Research and Training.


Texas

FTA gives Austin light rail high marks
A recent report by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) found that Austin has a strong financial plan and good justification for building a light rail in the area. Federal transit planners noted that rail projects closely tied to smart growth policies are more likely to receive funding. More than 190 light-rail projects are competing for "New Starts" funding in the nation.

Gramm will help San Antonio rail project if voters agree
Sen. Phil Gramm announced that he would help seek federal funds for the San Antonio light rail plan if voters approve it on May 6. VIA Metropolitan Transit seeks a 1/4-cent local sales tax increase that would provide local funding for the $1.5 billion, 54-mile rail system. Economist Wendy Gramm, who is married to Senator Gramm, is the chairwoman of the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a conservative policy group that recently challenged VIA to a debate over the light rail proposal.


Notes From Other Places

Smart Growth applauded
In a recent column on Smart Growth, Real Estate Forum's "Critic at Large" Sanford R. Goodkin said "I have always felt that builders should be businesspeople rather than specialists in bricks and mortar, that they must improve the community rather than focus on opportunity. Indeed, they must become a part of the community, not apart from it. And with smart growth this is finally happening. So what is smart growth? It is really smarter growth - a wisdom gained from experience, awareness, sensitivity, communication, education, and trust. Stupid frequently makes more noise, just like thunder gets all the credit while lightning does all the work. We need more lightning."

Hispanics spreading out
Hispanics are increasingly spreading from big cities to second tier cities like Milwaukee, Kansas City, and Cleveland, according to the Urban Institute. Only about 60 percent of the U.S. Hispanic population live in 10 major metro areas. "That dispersal is one of the big stories," says immigration expert Michael Fix of the Institute.

Fuel cells only as clean as energy source
"Fuel cells will provide a major environmental step forward only if we choose the cleanest methods to manufacture and deliver the hydrogen," says a report from a study by The Pembina Institute for Appropriate Development, based in Alberta, Canada, and the David Suzuki Foundation, based in Vancouver. "If the right decisions are not made, this revolutionary technology will perform only marginally more efficiently than current engines, we will simply shift much of the pollution from the tailpipe to hydrogen production plants, and our vehicles will continue to contribute to global warming." The report said only hydrogen derived from renewable energy such as solar or wind, can be pollution free. Of other sources, gasoline was the worst and natural gas the best. "By making the mistake of powering our fuel cell vehicles with 'dirty' hydrogen, we will entrench the role of vehicles as the biggest and fastest growing contributor to global warming," the report said. The study is available at http://www.davidsuzuki.org/climatereports.htm

Interest rates slowing affordable housing
Affordable housing developers warn that higher interest rates are having a hugely adverse impact on their sector. The spike in interest rates makes borrowing more expensive, which is putting many developers of low- and moderate-income housing in a pinch.
They cannot pass on the increased borrowing costs on to tenants through higher rents, as this will invalidate the federal and state tax credits that help to finance their projects. As a result, as many as 4,500 affordable housing projects containing tens of thousands of apartments could be put off, scaled-down, or even canceled between 1999 through December 2000. - Wall Street Journal (www.wsj.com) (04/03/00) P. A2

Big box stores meeting opposition
Around the country, more and more communities are banding together in an effort to keep big-box retailers like Best Buy and Wal-Mart from opening stores nearby. Social historian Edward Ayers views the growing opposition as a sign of support throughout the United States for preserving neighborhood identity in a rapidly change world. He adds that the proliferation of such super-sized retailers in America represents "a symbol of standardization and a loss of heart" for many opponents. Of course, such companies as Home Depot and Kmart would not be able to expand if their formats were not popular. For instance, an estimated 100 million Americans visit a Wal-Mart each week. - Christian Science Monitor (www.csmonitor.com) (03/28/00) P. 1.

Real Estate group calls for smart growth policies
The Real Estate Roundtable recently submitted its legislative and regulatory recommendations to Congress and the White House in a report titled, "America's Real Estate: 2000 National Policy Agenda." The organization said that any federal policies that undermine state and local efforts to revitalize communities through smart growth initiatives need to be amended or rescinded as soon as possible. It also hopes that U.S. tax policies will be modified to improve the efficiency of rehabilitation tax credits for historic buildings, and advocates changing federal tax laws to allow the costs of demolishing and reconfiguring building space for tenants to be depreciated over a shorter period of time than is currently required. -"Telecom Access to Buildings, Internet Sales Tax and Smart Growth Issues Top ... Agenda" PRNewswire (www.prnewswire.com) (03/31/00)


Events

Next Houston Gulf Coast Smart Growth Initiative meeting: Apr 26, 11:30 am, Houston-Galveston Area Council, 3555 Timmins, 2nd Floor. http://www.gulfcoastideas.org

Advancing Community Sustainability: June 1-3, Hotel Roanoke, Roanoke, Va. Virginia Tech's School of Public and International Affairs. For more info, urban@vt.edu or 540-231-6078.

CNU 200 - The Politics of Place: Jun 15-18, Portland, Oregon. Congress for the New Urbanism. http://www.cnu.org

The Practice of Environmentally Sensitive Development: June 22-23, San Francisco. An Urban Land Institute workshop on balancing environmental protection with economic return. 800-321-5011.

Rail~Volution 2000 - The Livable Metropolis: Prospects and Profits: Oct 4-8, Denver Colorado. http.railvolution.com

Note to readers: If you have news to share or have reports from events, please let us know at issues@gulfcoastideas.org


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