September 1, 2004

G U L F  C O A S T  G R O W T H  N E W S

A publication of the Gulf Coast Institute

NOTABLE QUOTES

≥It's still early in Midtown's evolution. Yes, some of the retail type stuff is disappointing because it's so oriented to the automobile. But I think it's too early just to hang our head in shame."

- Guy Hagstette, Houston Mayor Bill Whiteπs special assistant for urban design, quoted in the Chronicle. http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/printstory.mpl/metropolitan/2769616

LIVABLE HOUSTON / SMART GROWTH INITIATIVE

Next meeting September 29

The next Livable Houston meeting is Wednesday, September 29, noon-1:30 pm, Houston-Galveston Area Council, 3555 Timmons, second floor. Subject to be announced. 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.  http://www.livablehouston.org

At the last Livable Houston/Smart Growth meeting, we looked at Regional Transportation Plans from Denver, San Diego, and Atlanta with a view toward finding models for the future.  That presentation is available online along with the Gulf Coast Instituteπs draft of a document that begins to outline a basis for Houstonπs 2028 plan. http://www.livablehouston.org.

REGIONAL NOTES

Houston slips in individual-household income rankings

Cities, including Houston, tend to have a lower percentage of high-income households than do suburbs, according to ≥The Shape of the Curve,≤ a study by the Brookings Institution. One-fourth of households in the 100 largest cities have incomes that, adjusted for regional cost-of-living differences, put them in the bottom-fifth of households nationally. By contrast, only one-sixth of large-city households inhabit the nation's top income quintile. The proportion of households with high incomes declined in 79 of the 100 largest cities between 1979 and 1999. Houstonπs percentage of high-income households fell 6.9% during this period, and the city is now rated as a ≥low-moderate≤ income city, as are Chicago and New York. Dallas is rated ≥middle class,≤ and Austin is ≥balanced.≤ The study attributes Houstonπs slippage to the oil bust of the 1980s, in which high-income households either lost money, moved, or didnπt come to Houston in the first place. http://www.brookings.edu/metro/pubs/20040803_income.htm

Communities battling to keep Grand Parkway away

In June, the Woodlands Community Association and The Woodlands Association, two Woodlands-area homeowners associations, passed a joint resolution supporting three proposed Grand Parkway segments stretching from US 290 to US 59. Then a coalition in Spring fighting the portion of the Parkway that would go through their community proposed that, since the Woodlands groups wanted it, the Parkway route should be moved north – to run through the Woodlands.  Now, the Chronicle reports, the Woodlands group is hiring a lobbyist to help prevent that from happening, among other responsibilities. After the Woodlands resolution, state Rep. Debbie Riddle, R-Tomball, who represents the Spring area, said "I stand with them. Put it in The Woodlands. They have a congestion problem up there, so it's solved." The Spring coalition, called United to Save Our Spring, has said that it would sue involved transportation agencies if the Grand Parkway Association does not conduct a supplemental environmental impact study in Montgomery County, where The Woodlands is. http://mypeoplepc.com/members/chrisodonnell/unitedtosaveourspring/id76.html

Exhibit scheduled for historic Armory

The Houston Hispanic Forum (HHF) will share its vision for the historic Houston Light Guard Armory at 3816 Caroline with an exhibit called  ≥Shining Light on Hispanic Heritage,≤ which will be on display in Heritage Hall at the JPMorganChase  Building from September 1-October 15.  HHF plans to restore the local landmark as the Hispanic Cultural and  Educational  Center.  The exhibit includes historic architectural drawings, images of the buildingπs details, and plans for the restoration. The Armory is now owned by the City of  Houston.  Houston Hispanic Forum is raising $2.6 million to renovate and restore the 19,000-square foot building, which will include exhibit areas, classrooms, offices, and space for public functions.  Heritage Hall, 707 Travis, is open 8 am-5 pm Monday through Friday. http://www.hispanicforum.org.  

NOTES FROM OTHER PLACES

URBANISM

Jane Jacobs recognized

Jane Jacobs, who triggered a profound shift in the way we look at cities, was recently profiled in Business Week as part of the magazineπs Great Innovators series. The article briefly explains how Jacobs became a highly influential urban critic despite not having any training in planning or architecture, or even a college degree. After she moved to New York in 1938, she got a job at Architecture Forum magazine, married an architect, and became an amateur expert on cities. She was appalled by the urban renewal projects of the 1950s and å60s, with their leveling of urban neighborhoods and imposing of bland, out-of-context buildings in their place. When Robert Moses announced plans to build an expressway through her beloved Greenwich Village, Jacobs opposed him by writing her famous book, The Death and Life of Great American Cities. Her work eventually helped to bring about the planning shift to Smart Growth and New Urbanism. Jacobs continues to rail against what she sees as sterile planning, particularly in US suburbs. "Never before have normal human beings been consigned to such poverty of imagination and disrespect for function,≤ She said. http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/04_33/b3896028_mz072.htm

Jane Jacobs reviewed

The Nation reviewed Jane Jacobsπ latest book, The Dark Age Ahead, a collection of her essays. According to reviewer Ben Adler, the book doesnπt develop a central thesis, but instead is a series of critiques of contemporary American culture. According to Adler, the ≥Dark Ages≤ of the title refers to Jacobsπ notion that, because suburbs have ≥lost even the memory of valued traditions,≤ large areas of suburbia have entered a period of darkness, just as Rome did after its fall to barbarian invaders. Adler finds that Jacobs ≥overreaches in her broadest assertions,≤ but is convinced by her assessment of suburbia. http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml?i=20040816&s=reading

The return of urban parks

Using Atlanta's Cabbagetown neighborhood as an example, a USA Today editorial discusses the benefits of urban parks and their revival in communities around the country. Urban parks flourished in the 1920s and å30s, but with the rise of the suburb, city parks went into decline. As cities grappled with budget shortfalls, park funding was often the first item cut. But as people move back into the cities, parks have again become a priority. Increasingly, cities are looking to private/public partnerships (such as Houstonπs Friends of Hermann Park) to revitalize the green spaces, using grants and donations, rather than tax dollars. http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2004-08-06-urban-parks_x.htm?POE=click-refer

The suburbanization of the imagination

What is the best land use for mass transit? In terms of increasing urban density, mixed-use neighborhoods, and transit ridership, the answer is clear: people should be able to walk to their transit station. But today mass transit often depends on people getting in their cars and driving to the train.  Once in the car, many drivers will decide to keep on driving. But if planners understand that urban density and mass transit go hand-in-hand, why do they keep joining transit with suburban parking lots?  Charles Smith, a San Francisco expert on housing and urban design, mostly blames lack of imagination. Americans love dense Parisian neighborhoods, but simply canπt imagine living in one themselves. Smith also blames a lack of coordination between local governments. Smith notes that one Oakland transit-oriented development took a decade of planning and the assembling of 30 different public and private funding sources before it could break ground. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2004/08/01/CMGTL7G20O1.DTL

TRANSPORTATION

California accidentally bans many SUVs

Many SUVs are banned from driving on neighborhood streets in California, according to Andy Bowers, writing in Slate,  but nobody seems to realize this is so.   Bowers writes that many neighborhoods, including the most exclusive, have posted weight limits of 6,000 pounds for vehicular traffic.  These ordinances were intended to keep trucks from exiting the crowded freeways and cutting through neighborhoods.  But this weight limit would apply to many cars and SUVs, bower says. The Chevy Suburban, Tahoe, and Range Rover; the Cadillac Escalade; the Ford Excursion; the GMC Yukon; the Toyota Land Cruiser and Sequoia; the Lincoln Navigator; the Mercedes M Class; the Porsche Cayenne S; and the Dodge Ram 1500 pickup all exceed 6,000 pounds. Then thereπs the Hummer. The H2 weighs in at 8,600 pounds, while the original Hummer tips the scales at 10,300. Ironically, the residents of these upscale neighborhoods often drive these overweight vehicles. Bowers points out that businesses that use 6,000-pounds-plus vehicles for work can deduct their purchase price up to $100,000 (raised recently by Congress from $25,000), and that tax consultants routinely suggest their clients buy the heavy vehicles for the deduction.  Bowers suggests that SUVs under 6,000 pounds be treated as cars in terms of fuel efficiency requirements, and that heavier vehicles be allowed their deductions and lower efficiency, but be banned from city streets. http://slate.msn.com/id/2104755/

Streetcars in Seattle

Seattle City Council voted unanimously to set conditions for developing a South Lake Union streetcar line. They approved $2 million for preliminary design, and $360 thousand to study possible future extensions.  The line is expected to cost $45 million, and private property owners have pledged $25 million. Transportation Committee Chair Richard Conlin said that the streetcar line was not essential to the new lakeside developmentπs growth, and that new buses would be more cost-efficient. But he agreed that the streetcars would be a ≥helpful amenity.≤ http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002007247_streetcar17m.html

≥Field of Dreams≤ effect

In his Richmond Times-Dispatch column, A. Barton Hinkle compares the Richmond areaπs solution to traffic congestion to ≥insanity.≤  ≥One familiar definition describes insanity as doing the same thing over and over again while expecting a different result.≤ When it comes to dealing with sprawl and congestion, Hinkle says that Richmond should try a new approach, rather than simply building more roads. He describes ≥induced demand≤ as the ≥Field of Dreams≤ approach to congestion.  ≥If you build it they will come.≤ That is, in order to ease congestion, regions build more roads. But the new roads encourage more people to drive, and the new roads become equally congested. Hinkle urges Richmond to try new approaches, including ≥alternative transits,≤ such as commuter rail, and ≥better land-use policies≤ which would not encourage sprawl. http://www.timesdispatch.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=RTD%2FMGArticle%2FRTD_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1031777066408&path=%21editorials%21oped&s=1045855935007

Public support for mass transit

Despite the state legislatureπs resistance to funding public transportation, voters in 13 Michigan counties voted overwhelmingly to either increase or maintain local property taxes to support local bus systems, according to a report by the Great Lakes Bulletin News Service.  Proponents of mass transit hope lawmakers will increase state support for bus transit. ≥Public transportation is valued and people are willing to step to the plate and fund their fair share at the local level,≤ said Clark Harder, executive director of the Michigan Public Transit Association. ≥It is critically important that the Legislature step up and maintain the stateπs fair share as well.≤ Despite public enthusiasm, state legislators are considering a series of bills that could dramatically reduce state transit funding. http://www.mlui.org/transportation/fullarticle.asp?fileid=16738

PLANNING

≥Fix-it first≤

According to a statement from the National Governors Association, states are increasingly turning away from the development patterns of the past 50 years, and are focused on fixing and enhancing existing infrastructure, rather than building new roads, schools, and utilities. In this way, governors hope to revitalize communities even as they control spending. The goals of the ≥fix-it first≤ movement are to spend more efficiently, and to increase the statesπ competitiveness. Their strategies include ≥creating incentives for communities to pursue coordinated development goals and the removal of barriers to the construction and rehabilitation of schools in established areas.≤ http://www.nga.org/center/divisions/1,1188,C_ISSUE_BRIEF^D_7181,00.html

≥Fix-it first≤ in Massachusetts

Republican Governor Mitt Romney Announced a $1.2 billion statewide construction plan, according to reports in Boston-area media. The spending will be concentrated on ≥fix-it first≤ projects, which call for upgrading and developing already existing properties. Projects include the redevelopment of former mills and military bases. Governor Romney said in a statement that this capital spending "reflects my administration's focus on fixing the state's aging infrastructure and investing in new projects that have been developed to work with our Smart Growth agenda." http://www.harvardhillside.com/Stories/0,1413,108~5342~2342115,00.html

Smart Growth in Alabama

The Mobile Register reports that Mobile City Council has approved a package of smart-growth guidelines to spur higher-density, pedestrian-friendly redevelopment throughout the city.  Laura Clarke, director of Urban Development, said that ≥Smart Growth is an option≤ for developers, but ≥not a requirement.≤ The city will offer developers a points-based incentive program. Developers will get points for each urban feature, such as alleyways, streets on a grid, on-street parking, and transit-oriented development, that they include in their projects. Depending on the points accumulated, developers can save between 50-100 percent of fees, among other benefits. http://www.al.com/news/mobileregister/index.ssf?/base/news/109273609680680.xml

Land inventories in Maryland

Republican Governor Robert Ehrlich has signed an executive order directing the Maryland Department of Planning to complete a statewide analysis of land inventories. Working with local officials, developers and environmentalists, the department will coordinate and direct the stateπs future growth based on statewide development capacity analysis, or ≥buildable lot≤ inventory. http://www.smartgrowth.org/news/article.asp?art=4233&state=21

Anti-sprawl sentiments in Nebraska

Growth is good and desirable, but rural Douglas County west of Omaha ''is a case study in urban sprawl,'' says The Omaha World-Herald.  The editorial warns that sprawl degrades the city's surroundings and strains its resources.  Noting that the Douglas County Planning Commission just put on hold a 211-acre subdivision of 128 homes in the $500,000 price range, because the local creek couldn't absorb additional waste, the newspaper urges officials to pursue infill housing in Omahaπs established neighborhoods, and to pursue other ideas from the Omaha by Design project and other community groups to make the city more appealing. http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_pg=608&u_sid=1174849

Planning for emotions

What makes a neighborhood or street feel safe or attractive to a passerby? How do these emotional reactions to our environment affect the way we live and work?  In ≥Mapping Peoplesπ Feelings in a Neighborhood,≤ a study published in Planum: the European Journal of Planning, Dr. Yoden Rofe, professor of desert architecture and city planning at Ben-Gurion University in Israel, says he has developed a method for answering these questions. Dr. Rofeπs method, which roughly speaking consists of having people answer a questionnaire as they navigate a neighborhood, shows that ≥professionals and laymen≤ have similar responses to environment.  Dr. Rofe says that his research can be helpful in urban planning. http://www.planum.net/topics/quality-survey-technique.html

Retail growth through cosmopolitan touches

Most current retail growth is coming through the lifestyle-center concept, even though lifestyle-centers make up only a fraction of the retail market,  according to a report published in REIS Insight. In 2001, according to Piper Jaffray research quoted by National Real Estate Investor, the average return on investment in the third year of lifestyle-center operation was 60%, compared to 49% for malls.   What are ≥lifestyle centers?≤ They reverse the mall concept. The mall is a closed space, while the lifestyle concept is open air, often with porch roofs that lend a theme look, such as Old West or Old London. Most malls cater up and down the economic scale, while lifestyle centers play to the upscale communities where they are located. And where the mall is purely suburban, lifestyle centers seek to create a cosmopolitan atmosphere with their curbside parking, sidewalks, lampposts and their strategic use of fountains and public gathering spaces. http://www.reis.com/insights/insights.cfm?id=3949&rc=1

HOUSING

Workers salaries can't keep up with housing costs

The lack of affordable housing has "hindered the ability of many teachers, police, and firefighters to live in the communities they work in," said Angelo Kyle, the president of the National Association of Counties. Two recent reports released by the National Housing Conference clearly establish a link between the low incomes of many workers and soaring housing costs. In 2003 the average cost nationally of a 2-bedroom apartment was $791, which is beyond the reach of a family living on $18,000, the median national income for janitors and sales clerks. Moderate-income professionals such as teachers, nurses, and police were hurt too. They can often afford to rent, but not buy, in the cities where they work. Eighty-five percent of county officials surveyed said ≥most of the new housingäwas targeted at middle- and upper-income families rather than low-income families.≤  75 percent of officials blamed these trends on lack of public funding and NIMBYism. http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2004/07/21/affordable_housing_survey_finds_low_income_workers_marginalized/

FOOD

Think global, eat local

According to a report in The Boston Globe, the ≥local food≤ movement, which consists of eating locally grown foods whenever practical, is the ≥next big thing≤ for the ecologically conscious consumer. There are a number of benefits to ≥local food.≤ It keeps local farmers in business, and may even lead city-folk back to the farm. And itπs environmentally friendly, as transportation-related pollution is minimized. The movement also fights sprawl by helping small family farms stay in business, rather than selling fields to developers.  The biggest obstacle to making local food more readily available, says Michael Rozyne, founder of Red Tomato, a Canton, Massachusetts-based local food broker, is the transportation and distribution system, which favors large agribusiness suppliers and long-haul trucking. http://www.planetizen.com/news/item.php?id=14079&rf=e

ENVIRONMENT

Cities and states are going green

Cities and states across North America are increasingly ≥going green,≤ according to a Neal Peirce column. Peirce notes that the Western Governors Association, led by governors Arnold Schwarzenegger of California and Bill Richardson of New Mexico, has made a commitment to move toward renewable energy sources. New England states and provinces in Eastern Canada have made similar commitments. Cities are setting similar priorities. Los Angeles, San Francisco, Austin, Boston, Seattle, Portland, and Phoenix have noteworthy ≥green≤ programs, Peirce says. Mayor Richard Daly is intent on making Chicago ≥the greenest city in the country.≤ For these leaders, going green is not about quality of life for its own sake. Instead itπs about getting a ≥competitive edge.≤  Activists Jack Werner of the Climate Institute and Carol Werner of the Environmental and Energy Institute say that going green leads to ≥cascading benefits≤ to cities and states. http://www.postwritersgroup.com/archives/peir0802.htm

ENERGY

California plans to install solar power in one million homes

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger campaigned on a promise to have solar energy in one-half of all new homes. Solaraccess.com reports that, under a new plan released by California EPA, the state will offer incentives to homebuilders that could allow that goal to be reached within 10 years, and that one million homes would have solar power in 13 years. This would represent the output of 36 polluting energy plants, and would avoid the release of 50 tons of carbon dioxide. If the incentives-based plan falls short, the bill would mandate solar power in five percent of all new homes by 2010, and 50 percent by 2020. Such a major commitment from California could help create a consistent demand that would allow solar energy the opportunity to go mainstream and lower its costs through increased production. "This is the whole enchilada. California is the incubator that will bring solar in to the US," said David Hochschild, director of policy for Vote Solar, a solar energy advocacy group. http://www.solaraccess.com/news/story?storyid=7265

EVENTS

REGIONAL AND STATE

Neighborhood conference, Sept. 11, Houston. The City of Houston Planning Department hosts a city-wide conference for neighborhood entitled ≥Directions & Connections: Charting a Path for Your Neighborhood≤ at the George R. Brown Convention Center. http://www.houstonplanning.com

Transportation Improvement Plan Open House, Sept. 14,  Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC), 3555 Timmons, 2nd floor, conference room A from 6-8 pm.   http://www.h-gac.com/transportation or  lynn.spencer@h-gac.com

First Ring Suburbs, Sept. 23, 30, Oct. 7, Dallas. The Greater Dallas Planning Council hosts a symposium to explore ≥first ring suburbs.≤ http://www.txplanning.org/EdOp/GPDCsymposium.pdf

NATIONAL

Rail~Volution, Sept. 18-22, Los Angeles. The 10th annual Rail~Volution conference that will explore how regions reinvent themselves as more livable places with transit. To register, visit http://www.railvolution.com

New Partners for Smart Growth, Jan. 27-29, 2005, Miami Beach. The 4th annual conference sponsored by the Local Government Commission and Penn State.  http://www.outreach.psu.edu/C&I/Smart Growth/