Houston officials are proposing significant changes to city sidewalk regulations for new home construction. As reported by the Houston Chronicle, a set of city council members, led by District J's Edward Pollard, are seeking to eliminate the existing sidewalk fee and construction requirements on new home builds. Less than two years after giving builders an option to pay a fee in lieu of constructing sidewalks, Pollard and his colleagues argue that neither the fee nor the sidewalks are fulfilling their intended purpose.
According to an interview conducted by KHOU 11 News, Pollard said, "Residents have been complaining that esthetically, it doesn't make sense, connectivity wise, it doesn't make sense. And then for the developers, they have to pay a fee not to put it there, but the fee costs so much that they go ahead and put it there anyways, which goes against the intended purpose." The collected fees, intended for a dedicated sidewalk fund, amounted to around $700,000, which Pollard claims is insufficient, providing funds for only a limited number of new sidewalks.
Critics of the proposed changes have voiced concerns about the city's walkability, one of which, Kevin Strickland of Walk and Roll Houston, told KHOU 11 News that the proposal could result in fewer sidewalks overall. "We should be working on figuring how to add sidewalks, not subtract," Strickland asserted, conveying potential negative impacts on city blocks that currently enjoy sidewalk access. On the other side of the debate, Pollard and others believe that eliminating the rule would better suit communities that do not desire sidewalks, as well as alleviate the burden on developers.
The proposal has sparked discussions on the balance between neighborhood desires and citywide connectivity needs. District C Council Member Abbie Kamin expressed concern to the Houston Chronicle, stating “I understand the sensitivity and the need to build and for that to be affordable, but we also need for those people to be able to walk safely in those communities,” Houston's city council is set to contemplate these regulatory changes tomorrow, while the public has been invited to comment on the proposed ordinance today.
