Monthly Planner
Updates from your City of Houston
 

 
January 2019
Happy New Year! 
  


The Planning & Development Department (P&D) wishes you a Happy and Prosperous New Year! We're looking forward to an exciting 2019, and working with you on initiatives that will make a big impact in your community. Some of these projects include developing recommendations for Walkable Places, implementation of on-street bike lanes, in partnership with Harris County and BikeHouston, and gearing up for the Census 2020. Stay tuned!   
2018 Year in Review
  
P&D was busy at work in 2018 on a number of programs and projects that affect neighborhoods citywide. Here's a snapshot of applications and requests that came through the department for processing in 2018. The upcoming annual report will provide final numbers and updates on programs and projects.

Subdivision Plats/Recordation: 2,353 subdivision plats, with 849 plats sent for recordation

Single Family Residential Plans: 12,766 SFR plans

Commercial Plans: 6,656 commercial plans
 
Cell Towers: 22 cell tower applications approved
 
Historic Certificates of Appropriateness: 354 COA applications approved

Special Minimum Lot Size: 45 applications received, 999 lots protected
 

Special Minimum Building Line: 2 applications received, 54 lots protected

Major Thoroughfare & Freeway Plan: 91 amendments approved

GIS Addressing: 21,398 addresses created 
Staff Highlight: International Mobility Conference Presentation
    
P&D Planner Abraham Zorrilla (second from left) presented on transportation and mobility issues from a Houston perspective at the TRANSED conference.
  
Transportation accessibility and mobility issues cross borders. Planner Abraham Zorrilla was a presenter at the 15th International Conference on Mobility and Transport for Elderly and Disabled Persons (TRANSED 2018), which was held in Taipei last November. TRANSED was created by the U.S. Transportation Research Board in 1978. The theme of this conference was "Mobility for All: Connecting the World with Accessible Transportation." The conference hosted more than 600 participants from over 40 countries, who work in fields related to aging and medical concerns that affect physical mobility, to discuss the latest research findings in accessible transportation.
 
Abraham participated in the International Table Forum as a panel speaker that included representatives from Thailand, Taiwan and Canada. He spoke about transportation and mobility issues in Houston and ongoing initiatives to improve safety and accessibility, including Complete Communities, METRO's accessibility bus stop program, Metrolift and the Americans with Disabilities Act.


Program Updates
 
Please visit our web site at www.houstonplanning.com for complete updates on our projects. 

Complete Communities: To support each Complete Community as they work to implement and execute their action plans, a training program was developed to support their activities - Complete Communities University (CCU). Classes were designed to strengthen the existing skills of community leaders as they implement goals, actions and project aspirations laid out in the plans. The first workshop was held on October 13, 2018. Visit the new Complete Communities University webpage to view the presentations from the session speakers. 

Major Thoroughfare & Freeway Plan (MTFP): City Council approved amendments to the 2017 MTFP map last month. The updated 2018 MTFP map will be available on the Planning Department's website soon. The next MTFP amendment cycle begins this month. Visit the MTFP page for more information.
 
 
Houston Bikeways: You are invited to attend a Houston Bikeways Stakeholder meeting to learn about a proposal to create safe, comfortable bikeways connecting Downtown, Midtown and the Museum District. The meeting will be held on January 10, 6:30 pm to 8 pm, at Houston Crime Stoppers, 3001 Main St. The bike implementation project is a partnership between the City of
Houston and Harris County Precinct One. For more information, contact peter.eccles@houstontx.gov.

 

Houston BCycle Expansion: Four Houston BCycle stations were installed in late November bringing the total number of stations in the bike share network to 86, that includes 500 bikes! The new stations are located in the Texas Medical Center area and University of Houston campus. The City's BCycle expansion project is funded by a federal grant. Ride a BCycle today!


 

 

Southeast Houston Mobility Plan: Two public meetings will be held in February to get your feedback on draft plan recommendations to improve how you get to work, school and other key destinations in your community. The meetings will be held on February 6, 6-8 pm, Sunnyside Multi-Service Center, 9314 Cullen Blvd, and February 9, 9:30-11:30 am, Charlton Community Center, 8200 Park Place Blvd. For more information, contact 832-393-6642  or melissa.beeler@houstontx.gov.

Walkable Places: The January 9 meeting has been cancelled. The next Walkable Places Committee meeting will be held on March 6, from 4 pm to 6 pm, in the City Hall Annex Chambers, at 900 Bagby. Click here to view the Committee's work in the Walkable Places pilot areas: Emancipation Avenue, Midtown, and Near Northside.

Digital Resources
  
Interested in a Commission or Committee meeting? These digital resources may be helpful: