Urban Edge

Stories, perspectives and insights from the Kinder Institute

Houston’s moment for transit-oriented development may have finally arrived

This week, the Board of Directors of the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County is expected to vote on an update to the agency’s development policies—a key step as the agency fundamentally rethinks how it can influence the urban fabric of Houston so that more people can live in proximity to public transit.

The Plant/Second Ward developers hope to balance walkability and affordability in Houston’s East End

A Houston-based real estate acquisition, development and management company is in the beginning phases of reshaping parts of the East End and Second Ward into a more walkable and equitable place that adds to the neighborhood’s diversity.

Metro seeks to bring inclusive, transit-oriented development to north Houston

After receiving a new federal grant to explore the potential for transit-oriented development at the Tidwell Transit Center in north Houston, Metro is now phasing into an “intense and aggressive public involvement strategy” for the site.

More Houston neighborhoods became majority-renter over the past decade

The share of renter households in the U.S. has doubled in the past 50 years—a trend that is reshaping how housing is built and distributed across cities and communities. In recent years, Houston has seen considerable growth in renters in a few concentrated areas.

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner emphasizes funding for infrastructure, public education

Several hours after rescinding a nearly 40-hour boil water notice, Mayor Sylvester Turner had a timely example for why he thinks there is a clear need for infrastructure investment in Houston and throughout Texas.

'The New Red Book' is a call to appreciate Houston as a bastion of Black heritage

A new book serves as a long overdue field guide to Black history in Houston, one that hearkens back to a century-old catalog of the city’s African American community. In “The New Red Book,” author Lindsay Gary takes readers to 50 sites, telling the stories about these important spaces and the people whose legacies remain relevant today.

Greener Gulfton effort plants seeds for alleviating neighborhood's nature inequity

In August of 2020, a heat mapping campaign identified Gulfton as the hottest neighborhood in Houston. The effort, co-led by The Nature Conservancy and the Houston Advanced Research Center, indicated that the southwest Houston neighborhood was 17 degrees warmer than the coolest neighborhood measured. A community-driven plan, “Greener Gulfton,” seeks to decrease the sweltering temperature, while adding an array of benefits to the immigrant-rich area that 45,000 residents call home.

Lone scarred state: Texas must contend with outsized death toll from COVID-19 and anti-vaccine attitudes

The United States of America leads all high-income nations in COVID-19 deaths, even though as a nation it had the greatest access to antiviral vaccines and therapeutics. To understand this disconnect, we can look to the COVID-19 deaths and disability in the state of Texas. Because of COVID-19, Texas is enduring one of the greatest human tragedies in its 186-year history. It did not have to be this way.

New trove of federal data clearly shows a growing racial gap in home appraisals

The government just released millions of records on residential appraisals. A pair of researchers who focus on racial inequity in housing analyzed the data. Here’s what they found.

With hybrid work here to stay, downtown Houston is looking for office conversion candidates

With the rise of a hybrid and remote workforce as a result of COVID-19, developers are looking for ways to be less reliant on office leases to keep people downtown.