It's been over 12 years since Houston last planned for denser development patterns, but an updated code is on the way to lure an ever growing population away from the suburbs.
"Developers at a City Hall public hearing on the ordinance last month said the proposed changes would allow them to easily develop single-family homes while also giving protections to neighborhoods. However, neighborhood activists were divided on the proposed changes, saying they had not been able to fully review them.
'I think there are some members of the alliance that are suspicious that it affords developers the opportunity to exploit or take advantage of less organized parts of town,' said David Robinson, president of the Super Neighborhood Alliance.
Some residents have said the updated code would not require enough guest parking for high-density developments while others have called for requirements for developers to provide more infrastructure improvements to prevent flooding and other "unintended consequences" of such properties, Robinson said."
FULL STORY: Plan could alter housing density outside Loop
Nowhere to Build but Up
An old way of doing municipal business—generating development fees by opening farmland to development—is no longer paying dividends. Mississauga, Ontario serves as a cautionary tale for the bottom line of sprawl.
Evaluating the Washington Growth Management Act
The state law that set urban growth boundaries around the state is in its fourth decade as suburban sprawl expands urban growth boundaries around Washington.
Miami-Dade Wants to Add 13 Miles to the Dolphin Expressway
The extended tollway would cut beyond the Urban Growth Boundary into the Everglades.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin
People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.
US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico
A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.
5 New England states march closer to 800 megawatt wind energy project
Securing federal approval for the project may be complicated under the Trump administration, which has historically been hostile towards domestic wind power.
Baltimore to break ground on $50 million Transit Priority Project
The project will bring faster bus trips, safer streets and better bike connections to Baltimore.
Airbnb launches $250 million 'last-dollar financing' housing accelerator, makes first investment in Austin
The company will put $6.4 million towards affordable housing development in Texas’ capital.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association