December 23, 2002
___________________________________________________________________
A publication of the Gulf Coast
Institute
“Our communities can
no longer afford to grow by chance. They must grow by choice.”
-Richard Rosan, President, Urban Land
Institute
Next Meeting: January 22, 2003.
The subject will be ideas for the redevelopment of Midtown that are being
generated by the Midtown Management District’s Urban Planning Committee.
The meeting, which is open to the public, is Wednesday, November 20, at 11:30
am at the Houston-Galveston Area Council, 3555 Timmons, second floor. Bring
your own lunch.
Outreach consultant selected
The Blueprint Houston initiative to build community support for a planning
process to improve the quality of life and place in the City of Houston has
agreed on a national consultant to facilitate the public outreach effort. ACP
Visioning & Planning, of Columbus, Ohio, and New York City, will be engaged
to assist the Steering Committee in the overall design and coordination of
Blueprint Houston. For more on the firm, go to http://www.acp-planning.com/.
For more on Blueprint Houston, go to http://www.blueprinthouston.org.
Save the date: Leadership Conference
The first public event of the Blueprint Houston initiative is scheduled for
Saturday, February 1, 2003. Blueprint Houston requests that people interested
in participating save that date. The event will occupy about 6 hours that day.
More information will be forthcoming soon.
DeLibero to leave Metro
Metro President Shirley Delibero has told the Metro board that she plans to
leave shortly after the Main Street rail line is finished in January of 2004,
according to a news story on Channel 13. She came to Metro in 1999 with the
goal of building the light rail. It'll be done the same month her contract is
up, but she's getting a three-month extension through April 2004 to tie up
loose ends. The board also voted last week to give her a nearly $17,000-a-year
raise to almost $255,000 a year.
HGAC public meeting for
private property acquisitions not so public
Citizen groups opposed to several area road projects were miffed recently
when the Houston-Galveston Area Council (HGAC) posted a notice on its website
for public comment on an amendment number about right-of-way acquisitions that
failed to mention the names of the affected projects. Turns out they included
three of the most controversial: the Katy Freeway expansion, Grand Parkway, and
the bridge to the Bolivar Peninsula.
Apparently, residents or citizen groups of the affected areas weren’t
contacted and half of the 30-day public comment period for the amendment had
already passed, says Polly Ledvina with the Katy Corridor Coalition. Those who
did attend the meeting protested the lack of information and notice and as a
result, HGAC has extended the public comment period until February 5, 2003.
http://www.hgac.cog.tx.us/transportation/notices/pub121802.htm.
Contact Pat Waskowiak to learn more or to comment: Phone: (713) 993-2456,
Mail: Pat Waskowiak, Houston-Galveston Area Council, P.O. Box 22777, Houston,
Texas 77227; Email: pwaskowiak@hgac.cog.tx.us
Source: The Katy Corridor Coalition, http://www.katycorridor.org/
Katy Freeway expansion plan petition
The Katy Corridor Coalition recently started a petition drive to let
officials in the greater Houston area know that many citizens are opposed to
the current Katy Freeway expansion plan. Residents and mobility advocates
who make up the Coalition believe that adding lanes to existing freeways will
not increase mobility and safety, but will increase pollution, flooding, noise
and collateral congestion. The petition currently has about 760 signatures.
It is available online at: http://www.PetitionOnline.com/Corridor/petition.html
PLANNING
Promoting a more active lifestyle
Americans are not as active as they used to be and it shows.
Americans are making half as many trips on foot as 25 years ago,
two-thirds are over-weight and one-third are dangerously obese, according to
Dr. Michael Pratt of the Center for Disease Control. Dr. Pratt and other
health officials joined planners, architects, and designers at a recent
conference to discuss how communities can be designed for a more active
lifestyle. http://www.citistates.com/2002_12_01_archive.html#90059884
Trends in the U.S.
Urban Land Institute President Richard Rosan recently spoke about real
estate, traffic, economic, and demographic trends in the U.S. Rosan
wrapped up his speech by saying “Our communities can no longer afford to
grow by chance. They must grow by choice.” http://experts.uli.org/DK/Who/ex_Who_Rosan_11_fst.html
NYC Mayor Bloomberg plans an “urban hamlet” for Lower Manhattan
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg plans to transform Lower Manhattan
from an “ailing financial center” to an “urban hamlet”
with neighborhoods brought together with large parks, pedestrian walkways,
schools, entertainment, libraries, and other businesses. Among the
projects is one to transform West Street into “a promenade lined with 700
trees, a Champs-Élysées or Commonwealth Avenue for Lower
Manhattan.” The mayor plans to use a new federal tax package to
fund part of the $10.6 billion plan. http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/13/nyregion/13DEVE.html
MOBILITY
Traveling made more suitable,
secure, and sustainable
Sharp cutbacks in air travel since September 11 have signaled a fundamental
change in the airline industry according to a recent report from the
Reconnecting America project. The report shows how some small to
medium-sized airports have cut flights by more than half over the past year.
The report is the first in a series that examines the
nation’s intercity travel post-September 11 and looks to find more
“convenient, secure, financially viable and sustainable” systems of
air, rail, and intercity buses. http://www.reconnectingamerica.org
Washington DC area dusting off bike plans
Washington DC area governments are dusting off bicycle plans and bike lanes
in an effort to help hold down the number of cars clogging the streets
according to a recent article in the Washington Post. While some
officials admit it may not lower street congestion, they do say that anything
that frees up parking spaces and takes cars off the road would help. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A59422-2002Dec15.html
Does a heavier vehicle really mean a safer vehicle?
Through analyzing fatality data per type of vehicle, two researchers from
the University of California Transportation Center investigated whether or not
reduced vehicle weight really translates into reduced safety.
http://www.citistates.com/2002_12_01_archive.html#90059884
URBANISM
More than just four feet of concrete
Sidewalks not only lead to a safer neighborhood, they also lead to a
healthier and less congested community by encouraging people to walk and stay
out of their cars, says Ahmed Rayyan, chief of the planning support branch of
Fairfax County's Department of Public Works and Environmental Services. A
recent article in the Washington Post describes the benefits of sidewalks and
how some people are fighting to have them in their neighborhood. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A43602-2002Dec12.html
Detroit making use of an underused waterfront
Detroit’ Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick plans to turn a span of ugly
waterfront along its Detroit River into a Michigan state park that will feature
a 3-mile walkway. The waterfront revitalization plan also includes residential
buildings, shops, restaurants, and entertainment venues. http://www.freep.com/news/locway/river11_20021211.htm
HOUSING
Housing America’s working
class
“Despite the economic expansion between 1997 and 1999, the number of
families with severe housing problems remained virtually unchanged at 13
million. From 1999 to 2001, a period of economic uncertainty, the total number
of families with critical needs rose 9 percent to 14.4 million,”
according to a recent National Housing Conference study. The study,
entitled “America’s Working Families and the Housing
Landscape,” describes how working-class Americans are having a harder
time covering expensive housing. http://www.nhc.org/comm_and_pubs_publication.htm
OTHER
New shape of the Old South
Washington Post writer Anne Hull examines the reconfiguration of the Old
South through the stage of an Atlanta Dairy Queen. Located at the
intersection where the Ku Klux Klan used to stand in their costumes at
lunchtime to collect donations, a Dairy Queen now bustles with mixed-race and
immigrant employees. “Atlanta is at the front edge of this new
pluralism. Some sociologists call it a mini-Los Angeles in the making.”
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A24908-2002Dec7.html
Republican Massachusetts Governor-Elect chooses Smart Growth
Republican Governor-Elect Mitt Romney of Massachusetts has chosen Doug Foy,
President of the New England Conservation Law Foundation for the past 25 years,
to head up a combined-agency effort to implement Smart Growth. Foy, an
aggressive opponent of automobiles, was a surprise pick to some people in the
area. http://nl9.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_action=doc&p_docid=0F80CA9B78CB94CF&p_docnum=1
New Partners for Smart Growth, Jan 30, New Orleans.
The main show in the Smart Growth movement. http://www.outreach.psu.edu/C&I/SmartGrowth
APA 2003 Planning Conference in Denver
The American Planning Association’s 2003 National Planning Conference
will occur March 29 thru April 2 in Denver, CO. The conference will
feature over 15 sessions on Smart Growth and growth management. Visit http://www.planning.org to see the full
conference program and register.
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
_____________________________
David Crossley
Gulf Coast Institute
3015 Richmond Suite 250
Houston TX 77098
Ph 713-523-5757
Fx 713-523-3057
http://www.livablehouston.org
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