Where Affordable Housing and Transportation Meet in Houston
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Where Affordable Housing and Transportation Meet in Houston A joint report by May 2020 A study, report and tools by and LINK Houston in partnership with Rice University’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research Funding support from The Cullen Foundation ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Acknowledgements INK Houston and Rice University’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research gratefully acknowledge The Cullen Foundation for funding the LAfordable Housing + Transportation Study. We also gratefully acknowledge the following organizations and individuals who volunteered their time, experience and passion to collaborate as part of LINK Houston’s Afordable Housing + Transportation Task Force (in alphabetical order). AARP Houston Habitat for Humanity Sandra Rodriguez Avenue CDC Houston Housing Authority Sarah Shams BakerRipley Houston Housing Finance Corporation SEIU Texas BikeHouston Houston ISD SERjobs Change Happens! CDC Houston LISC Sophie Elsner Chinese Community Center Houston Mayor’s Ofce for People with Disabilities St. Paul’s United Methodist Church Covenant Community Capital Houston METRO Tanya Debose Credit Coalition Houston Planning & Development Department Tejano Center Debra Walker Houston Housing & Community Texas A&M Transportation Institute Fifth Ward CRC Development Department Texas Children’s Pediatrics Greater Houston Fair Housing Center Janis Scott Texas Housers Greater Houston Partnership Lone Star College Texas Organizing Project Greater Northside Management District Mardie Paige The Houston Community Land Trust Harris County Housing & New Hope Housing Trevor Reichman Community Development Department Nour Maher Ghadanfar Urban League Harris County Transit On The Road Lending Wells Fargo HOME Coalition The Rev. Linda Davis West Houston Association Houston Bike Share Rowhouse CDC Westchase District LINK Houston LINK Houston is a 501 (c) (3) nonproft organization that advocates for a robust and equitable transportation network so that all people can reach opportunity. We envision a world in which all people in Houston can easily access not only jobs, but also educational experiences, medical appointments, grocery stores, greenspace and other important destinations, regardless of their mode of transportation. To make that vision a reality, we support transformative and inclusive policies, systems, initiatives and infrastructure development that connect people to opportunity by transit, walking and biking. We move ideas into action through community engagement, research and shaping public policy. Kinder Institute for Urban Research The Kinder Institute for Urban Research is a multidisciplinary think-and-do tank housed at Rice University in central Houston, focusing on urban issues in Houston, the American Sun Belt and around the world. Through informed research, data and policy analysis, the Kinder Institute hopes to engage civic and political leaders to implement solutions to critical urban issues, including education, governance, housing, mobility and transportation, resilience and demographics. Use of Terms This report avoids the use of technical terminology as much as possible. Figures and tables enhance concise narrative. Phrasing in the report is present tense, in most cases. Direct questions to LINK Houston: www.linkhouston.org. Disclaimer LINK Houston is responsible for the facts and accuracy of Where Afordable Housing and Transportation Meet in Houston. The contents are believed to be accurate and rely on current information. Sources are cited. Suggested Citation LINK Houston and Rice University: Kinder Institute for Urban Research (2020). Where Afordable Housing and Transportation Meet in Houston. Rice University. Rice University Kinder Institute for Urban Research EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Executive Summary here Afordable Housing and Transportation Meet in Houston examines where Wafordable housing and high-quality, afordable transportation presently co-exist. This report provides policy recommendations to help government and nongovernment stakeholders in the City of Houston address afordability issues in the region. This report also aims to help individuals and families make well- informed decisions about where to live to minimize their expenses while accessing social and economic opportunity using quality, afordable transportation—walking on good sidewalks, biking on protected bikeways and riding frequent transit. Houston faces a decreasing supply of afordable housing Facilitation Guide and Individual Workbook: Considering to buy and skyrocketing rents. Additionally, people living Transportation in Your Housing Decision. These assess- in the region continue to spend an exorbitant amount on ment tools facilitate connections between future aford- transportation—refected by increasing rates of vehi- able housing investments and afordable, high-quality cle ownership per household—which only compounds transportation options and guide individuals and families the growing afordability challenge. While local deci- to consider transportation in their housing decisions. sion-makers and individuals tend to view housing and Based on the research and observations in this report, transportation separately, efectively addressing aford- only 44% of rental units in Houston are afordable to mod- ability for Houstonians means considering housing and erate-income households (i.e., a family of four in Houston transportation expenses together. in 2019 spending no more than $1,907 per month on hous- This report relies on the Quality Afordable ing plus utilities) and only 1 out of 3 of those afordable Transportation Index (QATi), a metric co-developed dwellings is near high-quality, afordable transportation. by LINK Houston and Rice University’s Kinder Institute To address afordability issues in Houston, we recom- for Urban Research, to determine where quality, aford- mend the following steps to align housing and transporta- able transportation exists today for people walking, tion development: biking and riding transit. The report also compares where 1. Preserve and build afordable housing in areas afordable housing—of any type—occurs and identifes with high-quality, afordable transportation. recommendations to improve both housing and transpor- Local government and other afordable housing tation quality and afordability. stakeholders must create policies, incentives and Additionally, LINK Houston formed the Afordable resources to prioritize afordable housing developments Housing + Transportation Task Force to collaborate and improvements in areas where people can access with community members, housing stakeholders and frequent and low-cost transportation. This requires transportation stakeholders to create the Housing + housing stakeholders to coordinate activities and Transportation Decision-maker Scorecard, the Counselor investments with transportation stakeholders. Where Affordable Housing and Transportation Meet in Houston 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2. Increase opportunities to walk, bike and use regarding transportation expenses and housing transit near afordable housing. Transportation decisions. The Individual Workbook: Considering stakeholders—transit ofcials, regional planning Transportation in Your Housing Decision helps ofces, special districts and local government—must people to further understand their transportation prioritize sidewalk, bikeway and transit improvements needs, consider their goals and identify questions to in areas where afordable housing exists now and will guide their decision. expand in the future. Houston stands at an infection point. While local gov- 3. Map and monitor afordable housing and ernments now hold funding for housing recovery and afordable transportation to demonstrate and afordable transportation improvements, more and direct the benefcial impacts of policies and more households struggle to cover their basic needs. investments in afordability for residents. Stakeholders must tackle the afordable housing crisis Local governments in the Houston region need and afordable transportation access together, not inde- to lead in collecting, maintaining and publishing pendently. Policymakers can lead by uniting planning and accurate, current data about afordable housing implementation of housing and transportation. Public, and transportation. Understanding the geographic private and nonproft stakeholders can prioritize invest- intersection of housing and transportation helps to ments to create more “Housed and Connected” areas and target investments, incentives and policies to preserve to educate individuals and families to consider location and develop afordable housing in locations that allow and transportation when deciding where to live. Truer people to walk, bike and use transit, thus maximizing afordability through housing and transportation will benefts to residents. The research team created the improve quality of life and economic resilience in all con- Quality Afordable Transportation & Afordable Housing ditions, such as during and after disasters or disruptions 2020 Map as a starting point. The map enables such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Individuals and families afordable housing decision-makers and developers will spend less time and money accessing opportunity. to identify locations where quality, afordable Employers will have a more stable employee pool. Every transportation exists today. Houstonian will be able to live a fuller and productive life. 4. Assess, compare and prioritize potential The fnal report and all tools are available on LINK Houston’s afordable housing sites to improve access to website,