Browsing by Author "Walker, Kelsey"

Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
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    Filling Potholes: Analyzing the City of Houston's Response
    (Kinder Institute for Urban Research, 2016) Walker, Kelsey; Shelton, Kyle
    All mayors pledge to fix potholes. When Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner made the promise, he also created a website where citizens could track whether a pothole had been filled. The Kinder Institute conducted an independent analysis to verify the numbers collected on that site between January 4 and January 21, 2016.
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    Growing But Unequal: Mapping High Opportunity Areas and Implications for Affordable Housing
    (Kinder Institute for Urban Research, 2017) Nostikasari, Dian; Shelton, Kyle; Morin, Taylor; Walker, Kelsey
    This report looks at the relationship between LIHTC projects and areas receiving full points on the 2016 QAP compared to the 2017 QAP’s Opportunity Index. It finds that the bulk of LIHTC properties continue to be located in places where they represent large shares of multifamily units and that LIHTC properties remain separate from those areas of Harris County that could be called the highest opportunity areas. Finally, using the Census Bureau’s Longitudinal Employment and Household Dynamic dataset, it explores the employment opportunities to residents within and outside areas with LIHTC properties. The findings underscore the importance of balancing high opportunity housing with meaningful revitalization efforts.
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    Houston in Flux: Understanding a Decade of Bayou City Development
    (Kinder Institute for Urban Research, 2016) Walker, Kelsey; Shelton, Kyle
    This report quantifies, visualizes and analyzes new construction and demolition in Harris County between 2005 and 2015. By showing both demolition and construction, this report spotlights the effects of economic booms and busts, illuminates the locations where development pressures are either most extreme or nonexistent and draws attention to communities rebuilding themselves within a decade. These changes are often discussed anecdotally in Houston, but quantifying construction and demolition offers a concrete and nuanced look at how these processes affect different parts of the region. Redevelopment, preservation, outward growth and gentrification can all be spotted in the maps included in the report and in the accompanying interactive online map (www.houstoninflux.com). The report and accompanying interactive component serve two purposes. First, the report is an example of forthcoming Kinder Institute “landscape” analyses that will establish a baseline understanding of important critical issues facing the Houston area. Second, the interactive map provides an accessible public tool that citizens, public entities, businesses and community-based organizations can utilize to better understand their respective communities.
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    Shifting Gears: Framing Bike-sharing Trends in Sun Belt Cities
    (Kinder Institute for Urban Research, 2015) Walker, Kelsey; Shelton, Kyle
    While bike-sharing is typically framed as a means of transportation for weekday commuters, a new analysis of the programs in Austin, Denver, Fort Worth, and Houston indicates that users frequently turn to bike-sharing for recreational purposes in these cities. This finding is critical to our understanding of bike-share programs, which are poised to proliferate and expand in the Sun Belt and elsewhere in the coming years. As planners, policymakers, and program operators throughout the country develop bike-share systems, they can benefit from a richer understanding of how people use bike-share programs in lower-density, automobile-oriented urban environments. However, despite the rise of bike-sharing systems, comparative studies of bike-sharing activity are lacking, particularly for cities in the southern and western United States. To shed light on the role that bike-share systems inhabit in these areas, this study examines bike-sharing trips in Austin, Denver, Fort Worth, and Houston, comparing and visualizing the type and volume of trips in the four cities.
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    Taking Stock: Housing Trends in the Houston Area
    (Kinder Institute for Urban Research, 2017) Walker, Kelsey
    The Houston area confronts major demographic change and sustained population growth coupled with increasing economic inequality and quickly shifting development patterns. Providing a range of housing options that satisfy the preferences, needs and price points of all residents in this context is a major challenge. This report provides essential baseline information for answering that challenge by documenting the array of residential buildings available in Harris County today and tracking trends in how this pool has changed in terms of age, type and location over the past decade. An accompanying interactive map — www.takingstockhouston.com — allows users to explore this data and zoom into particular areas of interest.