How Houston is Building Walkable Communities

In the last decade, Houston has made tremendous improvements to the region’s quality of life. In addition to its low cost of living, arts and culture amenities, and more than 125 miles of hike-and-bike trails, the City of Houston is taking steps to make communities more pedestrian-friendly.

We asked Margaret Wallace Brown, Director of the City of Houston’s Planning & Development Department, about what steps the city is taking to create walkable places.

 

How do you define walkability? How does it contribute to the overall quality of life here?

 

Walkability is more than a continuous sidewalk that allows people to get from one place to another. While safety is a critical component of walkability, so is comfort and interest.

The Walkable Places Program seeks to create a place where people want to be. With wider unobstructed sidewalks, a safety buffer, improved landscaping along the streets, more buildings with windows and doors right next to the sidewalk, and more mixed-use, compact development close by, it creates a more pleasant experience for pedestrians.

Walkability contributes to Houston’s quality of life in several ways.

First, it increases the wealth of businesses along walkable streets. Studies have shown that pedestrians or bicyclists can spend as much as 40% more than automobile users. High walkscores are often used by realtors to promote the sale of homes or business districts. Walkability also increases a community’s health by encouraging more heart-friendly activities. Finally, it’s one of the most equitable modes of transport.

Can you give a quick overview of the Walkable Places Program?  

The Walkable Places Program, along with the new Transit-Oriented Development standards, supports Houstonians’ desire for more walkable environments. It encourages pedestrian-friendly, mixed-use development with an enhanced, walkable public realm. This ordinance creates the following benefits:

• Property owners benefit because they get more buildable area and reduction in their required off-street parking requirements
• Pedestrians benefit because this program creates safer, more compact and interesting places to walk and enjoy
• Neighborhoods benefit from the creation of a more lively and activated area with more eyes on the street

This initiative is the result of two and a half years of intensive research and discussion by a committee comprised of residents, property owners, developers and other business leaders. They overwhelmingly agreed that this effort will provide a more sustainable solution, ensuring safe multi-modal transportation. This initiative was unanimously approved by Houston City Council on August 5.

 

Why would neighborhoods or areas seek out this designation?

 

We expect that the Walkable Places designation will be used primarily by commercial or mixed-use neighborhoods. Property owners who seek to support multi-modal transportation with a focus on walkability will realize great benefits from this program. It allows them to work with their neighbors and develop a unified plan to increase the area’s walkability. For businesses, this provides more pedestrian use, which studies have shown tends to increase retail sales.

Talk about the three pilot projects for the Walkable Places program – Emancipation Avenue, Midtown, and Hogan and Lorraine Streets in Near Northside. Why were these areas chosen for the pilot program?  

When selecting the pilot areas, we looked for a diversity of environments that could serve as role models for expanding the program. We sought out areas that have:

• Some existing urban and pedestrian activities
• High household/employment population density
• High intersection density
• A mix of land uses within walking distance and walking distance to transit services/ bikeways

We also sought out areas that would have community support, either through management districts or other community organizations.

What’s the difference between the “Walkable Places” designation and the “Transit-Oriented Development” Program?   

The Walkable Places Program and Transit-Oriented Development Program are similar in the following ways:

• Both promote pedestrian-friendly development tailored to the designated street(s)
• Both create mandatory and optional compliance tailored to the local context
• Their planning standards are very similar and are established based on street segments
• Neither program requires the property owner to update their property unless they construct something new or modify either the exterior or parking lot of an existing structure.

The main differences between the two:

• The Walkable Places program may be applied anywhere in the city, while the TOD standards are only applied along streets near established transit stations, including the new BRT route.
• Both City of Houston and property owners may designate Walkable Place Streets, while the TOD standards are applied by the City using an objective process that analyses the unique characteristic of that block.

What were the outcomes for both the Walkable Places and Transit-Oriented Development ordinances? What are the next steps?  

The Walkable Place program and TOD standards are effective on October 1, 2020.

The next step is to implement the ordinance. We expect Houstonians will see an increase in wider, unobstructed sidewalks with safety buffers and improved landscaping along the streets. They will also see more buildings with windows and doors right next to the sidewalk and it will be a much more pleasant experience for pedestrians.

 

What other steps do you think need to be taken to make Houston a more pedestrian-friendly city?

 

We are making great strides in moving Houston toward a more multi-modal city. Other on-going initiatives include:

• Vision Zero
• the Complete Street Program
• the Houston Bike Plan
• and, with our partners, installation of nearly 500 miles of connected, high-comfort bike lanes that have been constructed within the past few

The Partnership’s Quality of Place Advisory Committee focuses on developments that improve the way Houston looks and how Houstonians live. Committee members support advancements in local aesthetics, green spaces and public-private partnerships that benefit the nation’s most diverse city. Learn more about the Partnership’s Quality of Place Advisory Committee.