A local nonprofit is urging the city to consider adding mixed-use development to the site, which city officials plan to turn into a stormwater detention facility.
In the Kinder Institute for Urban Research Urban Edge blog, Nancy Sarnoff writes that the future of a former Houston landfill is in question as the city and a local non-profit debate how to redevelop the site.
The city recently bought around half of the 143-acre site, with plans to acquire the rest. But a nonprofit called Houston One Voice is asking the city to consider a mixed-use proposal that would incorporate stormwater retention features and bring more economic development to the area.
According to a report from the organization and the University of Houston, “The project would act as a catalyst for new development while protecting area residents and businesses with needed stormwater detention.” The proposal could create thousands of housing units and 1,800 jobs.
The site has languished for decades since the landfill closed. “Bruce Race, an architecture professor at the University of Houston who worked with students on developing the master plan for Houston One Voice, said the public-private scenario can be a ‘generational opportunity’ to transform a former landfill site while balancing the community need for stormwater detention, economic development and recreation.”
FULL STORY: How a former landfill could help fight floods and reimagine a swath of southwest Houston
Promoting Infill Development for a Denser Houston
An advocacy group is calling for ‘sustainable, vertical’ mixed-use urbanism in the famously sprawling city.
Upcycling a Landfill into a Regional Park
Los Angeles County is working with a consultant team led by Studio-MLA to transform 142 acres of the Puente Hills Landfill into parkland, creating the first new regional park in the county in over 35 years.
From Dumps to Solar Farms, One Houston Neighborhood Is Planning its Own Future
After decades of fighting landfills and pollution in their community, residents of Sunnyside are working to build a more sustainable future.
Alabama: Trump Terminates Settlements for Black Communities Harmed By Raw Sewage
Trump deemed the landmark civil rights agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.”
Study: Maui’s Plan to Convert Vacation Rentals to Long-Term Housing Could Cause Nearly $1 Billion Economic Loss
The plan would reduce visitor accommodation by 25% resulting in 1,900 jobs lost.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Waymo Gets Permission to Map SF’s Market Street
If allowed to operate on the traffic-restricted street, Waymo’s autonomous taxis would have a leg up over ride-hailing competitors — and counter the city’s efforts to grow bike and pedestrian on the thoroughfare.
Parklet Symposium Highlights the Success of Shared Spaces
Parklets got a boost during the Covid-19 pandemic, when the concept was translated to outdoor dining programs that offered restaurants a lifeline during the shutdown.
Federal Homelessness Agency Places Entire Staff on Leave
The U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness is the only federal agency dedicated to preventing and ending homelessness.
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.
Caltrans
Smith Gee Studio
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service