New research looks into how commuting times in the Houston area effect on housing prices.
Most people would like to live close to the place they work, but, in a growing city like Houston, that can be an expensive proposition. For many Houstonians it's necessary to "drive 'til you qualify"—i.e., searching through suburban communities for homes in your price range. According to Paul Takahashi of the Houston Business Journal, "the average commute for Houstonians who own a $265,000 home is 30.5 miles."
This data comes from work done by Scott Davis of Meyers Research, whose investigation found "About 67 percent of these Houston homeowners have a commute that’s between 15 to 47 miles." In his work, Davis’s goal was to quantify the value of those miles in terms of the price of homes. We will see whether planners and developers are influenced by these findings.
FULL STORY: This is how far Houstonians are willing to commute for an affordable home
Infrastructure vs. Housing
Do shortages of infrastructure justify restrictive zoning?
Houston and San Francisco: Urban Development Patterns Gone Awry
With the media rightfully pointing to Houston's sprawling urban development patterns that exacerbated the epic flooding caused by Hurricane Harvey, Paul Krugman also finds fault with cities where urban development is too tightly regulated.
City of the Future: Houston?
Thanks to Planetizen, I found “Opportunity Urbanism,” a report that posits Houston as “an emerging paradigm for the 21st century.” (There's a related op-ed here.) The report, regrettably, is a manifesto as empty as the title -- which Kotkin clearly hopes will become a catchphrase. So why is it important?
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Map: Where Senate Republicans Want to Sell Your Public Lands
For public land advocates, the Senate Republicans’ proposal to sell millions of acres of public land in the West is “the biggest fight of their careers.”
Restaurant Patios Were a Pandemic Win — Why Were They so Hard to Keep?
Social distancing requirements and changes in travel patterns prompted cities to pilot new uses for street and sidewalk space. Then it got complicated.
California Homeless Arrests, Citations Spike After Ruling
An investigation reveals that anti-homeless actions increased up to 500% after Grants Pass v. Johnson — even in cities claiming no policy change.
Albuquerque Route 66 Motels Become Affordable Housing
A $4 million city fund is incentivizing developers to breathe new life into derelict midcentury motels.
DC Area County Eliminates Bus Fares
Montgomery County joins a growing trend of making transit free.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
JM Goldson LLC
Custer County Colorado
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)