Houston Planning on Walkable Places

[wilcal]

5 hours ago, dbigtex56 said:

Thanks for your recap on this meeting. 
I've been trying to get straight answers from the COH about sidewalks for forty years, and have been left with the impression that no one really knew or cared much about the various aspects.

From what I was told, enforcement is set up to be basically impossible. 

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(i.e., if the homeowner can remove an existing sidewalk without replacing it, who's responsible for construction and financing new sidewalks and repair of existing ones, if laws regarding the blockage of sidewalks are ever enforced, etc.). 

There is a way for homeowners to remove an existing sidewalk without replacing it, but it has to be specifically approved. Same thing with getting out of putting one in. This is mostly limited to long-established neighborhoods that don't have sidewalks and would typically just generate sidewalk stubs. There is talk about having these property owners pay into a fund instead which would be used to fund sidewalk improvements in their neighborhood in a more appropriate place. (bleh).

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I've been told that the regulations vary depending on in what part of town the sidewalk is located, as it varies from one subdivision to another. Did anyone raise this issue, or was I given misinformation?

Evidently some neighborhoods have deed restrictions that prevent the construction of sidewalks, they did address this, and basically, these deed restrictions don't apply in the city ROW, so basically the deed restrictions actually mostly don't apply. 

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Is there a chance that some Einstein can develop a Universal Sidewalk Constant? I'm so tired of the conflicting answers to simple questions. 

I'm still what I would consider an enthused layman, but I think sidewalks are basically implementation hell. There is shit in the way, if you want them to last a long time then they have to be designed thoughtfully, etc. They also update the standards. Now, on major thoroughfares they are supposed to be 6' wide and residential/other 5' wide. The designer for Asakura Robinson talked about how we kind of do the bare minimum for sidewalks in terms of slab thickness and exposed wood supports. 

I'm not sure if you saw the recent story about the Houston area losing $46 million in transportation funding. One portion was $1.6 million in sidewalk funding for the city of South Houston. A city with a whopping 3.1 square miles. And they couldn't manage to build some sidewalks and lost the funding. I'd like to think that it was because it was difficult and not because they didn't care, but I don't know. 

[kennyc05]

Does anyone know if any neighborhoods have applied for walkable place designation?

[wilcal]

14 hours ago, kennyc05 said:

Does anyone know if any neighborhoods have applied for walkable place designation?

I last asked someone knowledgeable back in April-ish and the application form wasn't even done IIRC.

[wilcal]

On 5/24/2021 at 2:06 PM, wilcal said:

This has been the de-facto thread on TOD, so I thought I would just post it here, but this is the first residential project I've found that appears to be taking advantage of the new TOD standards.

As a quick, recap, under TOD, there is no minimum parking required for SFR.

I noticed on the permit report an ADU going in on W. Alabama, and it is just inside the secondary TOD boundary.

It is a really small 3,132 sq ft lot with a small house and an ADU is being added. Normally, this would require 3 non-tandem parking spots, and while I don't KNOW that they won't provide them, I'm not sure how they would with how the property is aligned and gate is setup. 

Property:

Permit: 

 

 

 

Here it is: what I think is Houston's first ADU to take advantage of TOD standards.

 

[samagon]

On 9/23/2021 at 9:51 AM, X.R. said:

I was on the live zoom/google call, and I wish I could have given some affirmations or something. The museum district has benefited greatly from the city's initiative, and because of it we see more parents walking with strollers and kids than ever before. Also a lot of joggers, bladers, and walkers. We got significant improvements because of the bike lanes, the local elem school, and certain people requesting sidewalks and ADA improvements. I'm sure it came before other more deserving areas so it doesn't feel as equitable as I would like, but its so nice. I don't really understand why other neighborhoods aren't taking advantage of this, or why people are fighting it like the garden oaks peple: https://www.theleadernews.com/community/oak-forest-residents-at-odds-over-sidewalk/article_caa89f8a-1bd1-11ec-ab02-534e61a541e8.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=user-share

It feels like the COH is dedicated to the pedestrian experience in a very significant way and I hope it continues because it benefits people's quality of life in various ways and their property values (for those who don't engage in any of the above listed activities). 

I was disappointed that the article didn't show the concerns or questions of the people who were opposed.