Harris County
Houston Becoming a Region of Renters
The area has seen a sharp increase in renters as rising housing costs put homeownership out of reach for more households and investors convert single-family homes to multifamily rentals.
‘Employment-First’ Program in Harris County Offers Work and Supportive Services
The Employ2Empower program pays participants $15 an hour to work on county projects and engage with service providers while they await housing.
Home Sales to Investors On the Rise
Sales of homes to investors and corporations, often in cash, are pricing out would-be homebuyers.
Houston Could End Homelessness With Less Than 2,000 Housing Units
Houston's homeless response program has yielded strong results in the last few years. Just 1,900 new affordable housing units could 'effectively end' homelessness in the city.
Flood Buyouts Exacerbate Inequality in Harris County, Texas
New research shows that less affluent households disperse farther to find affordable homes, leading to a loss of community and social capital.
The Link Between COVID-19 Deaths and Overcrowded Housing
Overcrowding and housing insecurity among Black and Brown communities led to disproportionately high COVID-19 fatalities, research shows.
Harris County Will Use Toll Road Revenue to Pay for Flood Control
A new Flood Resilience Trust will create a permanent source of funding for flood control purposes, but the county still faces a shortfall for planned projects.
New Park Opens as Part of Houston's Ambitious Bayou Greenways 2020 Plan
Bayou Greenways Park is part of a decade-long project building 172 miles of connected greenways around the city of Houston.
Renewed Efforts to Redevelop Houston's Historic Astrodome
A nonprofit hopes to create a viable plan for the iconic stadium—and find a way to pay for it.
Surprising New Research on Gentrification in Houston
Affluent areas face more demolitions than gentrifying areas in Houston and Harris County, according to the findings of a new report from the Kinder Institute of Urban research.
TxDOT Faces Lawsuit from Harris County Over I-45 Plan
The lawsuit over the controversial I-45 project, which has been plagued by local opposition, calls for a new environmental review.
Fifth Ward Residents Oppose Houston's Interstate Expansion
The downtown freeway expansion will displace thousands of housed and unhoused residents and hundreds of small businesses.
A Housing and Eviction Crisis Still Hangs Over the U.S., Just Like the Pandemic
Checking in with the numerous risks in the housing market as the economic fallout of the pandemic as approaches it approaches its second year.
California Hospitals Now Operating Under Contingency Care Guidelines
The three levels of care provided by hospitals: conventional, contingency, and crisis, were outlined in a letter sent to all hospitals. They must notify the state by Wednesday that they have adopted some version of crisis standards to ration care.
The High Cost of Rampant Evictions: $315 Million a Year in Harris County, Texas
Evictions incur immense costs for the public and nonprofit sector, according to new analysis from the Kinder Institute for Urban Research.
Challenging the Permitting Record of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
Zoning in the U.S. was originally intended to keep noxious uses out of residential areas. Around Houston, which famously lacks a traditional zoning system, polluting uses are still granted broad permission to operate in residential areas.
New Houston Housing Report Tells a Story of Under-Investment
A new report from the Kinder Institute for Urban Research highlights the state of housing the Houston and Harris County, and more specifically, the historically Black neighborhood of Settegast in northeast Houston.
California Rolls Back
The nation's most significant rollback to date of a state reopening plan occurred Monday when California Gov. Gavin Newsom closed seven categories of indoor businesses statewide and an additional six categories of indoor operations in 31 counties.
Report: Housing Choice Vouchers Fall Short of Intended Goals in Houston Region
The Housing Choice Voucher program is intended to provide new opportunities for low-income Americans to live in higher-priced neighborhoods, but few recipients of vouchers are taking full advantage of those opportunities.
Connecting the Issues of Flooding and Affordable Housing in Texas
A study released this week by the Greater Houston Flood Mitigation Consortium ( the University of Houston, the Kinder Institute, the Local Initiatives Support Corporation, and more) raises concerns that new floodplain regulations could harm renters.
Alamo Area Metropolitan Planning Organization
City of Kingsville
Princeton Planning
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Spearfish
City of Lomita
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.
