Monthly Planner January 2020
Welcome to the City of Houston Planning & Development Department's Monthly Planner News
Welcome to the City of Houston Planning & Development Department's Monthly Planner News
Welcome to 2020. I believe this will be Houston’s best year yet!
We began this year with an orchestral bang as Mayor Sylvester Turner and sixteen Council members were inaugurated. Nine of those Council Members are women, setting a new record for Houston’s City Council. This department looks forward to working with this new council and collectively finding solutions to some of Houston’s most pressing issues: affordability, mobility and resiliency.
On January 9, we unveiled the proposal for the Walkable Places and Transit-Oriented Development Standards. We look forward to a robust public comment period and discussion at Planning Commission in February.
About that time, we will kick-off a deep dive into residential development standards to help explore new ways to encourage the development and preservation of housing that meets all Houstonians’ needs.
As we move into April, we look forward to welcoming more than 5,000 of our planning colleagues to the national planning Conference. With more than 50 interactive sessions, and 45 mobile workshops, we are certain to give our visitors a view of our city that will educate and delight them. If you’re interested in helping with this conference, please email [email protected] to volunteer.
Sincerely,
Margaret Wallace Brown
Planning and Development Director
Using feedback from previous community workshops and other comments, the City and its technical team have developed concepts to improve and change TxDOT’s North Houston Highway Improvement Project (NHHIP).
Join us at the January 30, February 1 and February 3 community workshops to learn about and discuss alternative designs for connections, property impacts, parks, flood control and more. The input from these meetings will guide the City’s requests to TxDOT.
A 30-day public comment period opened January 9 and will close February 20 for the proposed Walkable Places and Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) ordinance amendments.
The Planning Commission will hold a public hearing February 20 for the ordinance amendments and one in March for the Walkable Place pilot area plans. City Council will consider both proposals this summer.
As we move into 2020, its time to start spreading the word about the upcoming census – and we are hoping we can rely on your help!
The census counts our population and households across the nation. Federal funds, grants and support to states, counties and communities are based on population totals and breakdowns by sex, age, race and other factors.
People in your community use census data in all kinds of ways:
• Residents use the census to support community initiatives involving legislation, quality-of-life and consumer advocacy.
• Businesses use Census Bureau data to decide where to build factories, offices and stores, and these create jobs.
• Real estate developers and city planners use the census to plan new homes and improve neighborhoods.
• Local government officials use the census to ensure public safety and plan new schools and hospitals.
Completing a census form is the most important civic duty a Houstonian has this spring. A complete count is critical to programs as wide-ranging from more school lunches, better roads and highways, or more housing assistance. Every Houstonian will benefit from a complete count.
Experts estimate that more than $10,000 is lost every year for each person not counted!
The City of Houston and Harris County have partnered, along with Houston in Action to have a unified Complete Count Committee to make sure everyone is counted.
Visit www.harrishoustoncounts.com to get more information about the 2020 Census campaign. You can also sign up to collaborate with local groups and receive training to educate and promote the Census.
