Tag Archives: Houstonians for Responsible Growth

Planning to plan

Not really sure what to make of this. “We’ve had a lot of planning in this city and most of us continue to do a great deal of it,” said Central Houston president Bob Eury. “What we haven’t had is … Continue reading

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Planning to plan

Everybody wants to help the judge rule on the Ashby lawsuit

I really don’t envy Judge Randy Wilson the task he has. Lawyers aren’t the only ones peppering the judge in the Ashby high-rise case with last-minute paperwork. A former city councilman, a pro-developer interest group and residents who live near … Continue reading

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Everybody wants to help the judge rule on the Ashby lawsuit

City asks court to let Ashby Highrise be built

Interesting. The city on Friday asked a judge to let the Ashby high-rise project go forward after seven years of wrangling and a recent jury verdict in favor of nearby residents who oppose the 21-story tower planned for 1717 Bissonnet. … Continue reading

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on City asks court to let Ashby Highrise be built

Ashby Highrise trial begins today

This has been a long time coming. The case in state District Judge Randy Wilson’s court will begin Tuesday and is expected to last four weeks. A jury will hear from the parties involved and experts on both sides to … Continue reading

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Ashby Highrise trial begins today

Wage theft ordinance back before Council

It should be up for discussion this week. “Wage theft is defined as a situation in which someone employs someone to perform a service, not intending to pay them wages. That’s an extreme offense,” [City Attorney David] Feldman said. “The … Continue reading

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Today is Chapter 42 day

Actually, today is almost certainly the day that the Chapter 42 revisions get tagged by multiple members of Council, thus pushing it back for a week. Nonetheless, this is the beginning of the end of a long, long journey. Here’s … Continue reading

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Today is Chapter 42 day

Keep Moving Houston Forward PAC poll on Metro and GMP

Yesterday I wrote about a poll commissioned by Houstonians for Responsible Growth on Metro and the General Mobility Program. That poll suggested that any changes to the GMP would be difficult for Metro to get, especially in the face of … Continue reading

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Keep Moving Houston Forward PAC poll on Metro and GMP

HRG poll data on Metro and the GMP

I mentioned on Friday that there had been a poll commissioned to measure voter attitudes towards Metro and the General Mobility Program. That poll was commissioned by Houstonians for Responsible Growth, and Joshua Sanders was kind enough to send me … Continue reading

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Joshua Sanders: Required Referendum Does Not Need To Be A Bump In The Road For A New Metro

The following is from a series of guest posts that I will be presenting over the next few weeks. The METRO Board should not risk its newfound goodwill by raiding its member entities’ General Mobility Program (GMP) funds after the … Continue reading

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Your vote on the Metro referendum may not matter

Unless of course you vote the way the developers want you to vote, in which case it’s all good. In an interview prior to Monday’s meeting, Joshua Sanders, the acting executive director of Houstonians for Responsible Growth, said the group … Continue reading

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Council taking up highrise ordinance

And the Chapter 42 overhaul gets underway as the revamped highrise ordinance makes it onto Council’s agenda. The proposed rules, inspired by a planned 23-story high rise at the corner of Ashby and Bissonnet, would require that buildings over 75 … Continue reading

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

More on directing density

We know that the city’s Planning Department is prepping a draft ordinance that would add some restrictions to highrise construction in parts of the city outside designated areas. Here’s the Chron story about it. The proposed ordinance was written in … Continue reading

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Public Hearing on Final Draft of Historic Preservation Ordinance

From the Inbox: Final Draft of Proposed Amendments to Historic Preservation Ordinance Released Houstonians, After a two-month process involving public input from stakeholders, I have released the final draft of proposed amendments to the City’s Historic Preservation Ordinance and a … Continue reading

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

The new Historic Preservation ordinance

From Swamplot: The mayor’s office is out with a “public comment draft” of proposed changes to Houston’s Historic Preservation Ordinance. The biggest (and most expected) change: There’ll be no more 90-day “compliance waivers” issued for historic-district properties. Under the previous … Continue reading

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Council may vote today to strengthen preservation ordinance

Last week, we heard that Houston City Council was considering a change to the historic preservation ordinance that would actually prevent structures from being torn down or moved if the Houston Archeological and Historic Commission denied the request to do … Continue reading

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Council may vote today to strengthen preservation ordinance

Design guide versus transit corridors ordinance

Not sure what to make of this just yet. Fallout from the long-dormant Ashby high-rise development emerged Wednesday as a potential obstacle to the city’s effort to promote walkable, urban-style development along Metro’s planned light-rail lines. Neighborhood opposition to the … Continue reading

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Where that new transit corridors ordinance came from

Christof takes another look at the proposed urban transit corridors ordinance, and asks a simple question. Days after the City of Houston’s draft corridor urban corridors ordinance was released, Houstonians For Responsible Growth – a developer group that generally opposes any new … Continue reading

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Where that new transit corridors ordinance came from