Urban Edge

Insights, perspectives and stories about building better cities and better lives

As districts confront staffing shortages, centering equity can make a huge difference

Teachers are the most important resource in a school campus, and ensuring students have access to highly qualified teachers is essential. Unfortunately for PK-12 students in Texas, too many teachers have been leaving the profession and too few highly trained and experienced teachers are taking their place. At the same time, some schools have greater access to highly qualified teachers than others, which poses an obstacle to closing achievement gaps.

Third Ward EV shuttle offers a way to close the first-and-last-mile gap in transit

Third Ward residents have recently gained increased access to grocery stores, health care, public transit and other necessities, thanks to an electric vehicle shuttle service that transports residents at no cost. It is part of a 12-week pilot program that could help close a critical transportation gap in Houston communities facing transit disadvantages and low vehicle ownership.

Pathways to homeownership: Collaborative aims to open doors in Houston, Harris County

The dream of homeownership remains an enduring aspiration for countless individuals and families across the United States. However, the reality often falls short, especially in urban areas grappling with housing affordability challenges, including Houston.

With community action plan, Settegast takes next step toward lasting change

Following a three-phase, 18-month project, Harris County Public Health has released a community action plan for Settegast, a historically Black neighborhood in northeast Houston with the lowest life expectancy in Harris County, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s U.S. Small-Area Life Expectancy Estimates Project.

United Way data shows where Houstonians are struggling to make ends meet

According to the United Way of Greater Houston, more than 1 million households in the Greater Houston area are considered asset-limited, income-constrained and employed (ALICE) or are below the federal poverty level. These households — as many as 8 in 10 in some neighborhoods — are unable to afford basic necessities.

Renting in Harris County is increasingly unaffordable and fraught with other challenges

This year’s State of Housing in Harris County and Houston focuses on renters and renting. A majority of Houston households rent, as does a soon-to-be majority of the county’s households. This means renting and rental policy play an increasingly important role in determining the region’s quality of life.

Community Bridges fellows continue to advance equitable solutions for Houston

In partnership with 16 nonprofit partner organizations, the 27 fellows in the 2022-2023 Community Bridges cohort grappled with urban inequality and poverty issues within Greater Houston communities.

What should the future of transportation look like in American cities? A new book invites you to have a stake in it.

Houston is a city for cars today, but that doesn’t mean it has to be one in the future. In a new book, “Inclusive Transportation: A Manifesto for Repairing Divided Communities”, Veronica O. Davis makes the case that reorienting communities toward people rather than automobiles is in the hands of everyday people as well as policymakers.

'You betta do somethin’': How seven artists helped Third Ward reclaim itself 30 years ago

In honor of the 30th anniversary of Project Row Houses' debut, the Urban Edge asked author and artist Lindsay Gary to reflect on the impact of this project on Third Ward, on Houston and on her own journey.

With new youth facility, Harris Center takes community-based approach to avoid recidivism

One of the central aspirations of The Harris Center for Mental Health and Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities is to reduce the footprint of criminal justice in the lives of people with mental health concerns. After providing services to over 90,000 individuals in 2022, it recently opened a facility specifically dedicated to juveniles between the ages of 13-17 with the launch of its Youth Diversion Center.