GOVERNMENT Houston looks to address ‘missing middle housing’ with ordinance
2023 HOME EDITION
BY LEAH FOREMAN
Sorting out the details: Market-based parking—which would lower parking requirements at developments in certain areas based on their distance from public transit—is no longer being considered as part of the amendment. Also no longer being considered: Y-shaped driveways shared between two neighbors. Flag lots and other forms of shared driveways are still being considered. “After six months of engagement with neighborhoods, and many of you, we recognize that we do not have su cient support to move that proposal forward at this time,” Brown said of market-based parking at the hearing. “We would like to regroup and come back to council with a comprehensive look at our parking regulations in the future.” Those in favor: “I’m probably one of the few people here who supports all of the initiatives and the work that the planning department has done,”
for a series of homes with front-fac- ing garages and driveways spanning the length of the lots, Planning Department Director Margaret Wallace Brown said. The ordinance would set standards to improve walkability and drainage as well as neighborhood safety, she said. Backing up: At an April 18 public meeting, Aracely Rodriguez, a planner with the city of Houston, said Houston has ample stock of detached single-family homes and midrise apartments but lacks the housing options in between, a phenomenon known among urban planners as the “missing middle housing.” The changes in part serve to incentivize the construction of four types of housing: second dwelling units, multiunit residential, court- yard-style developments and narrow lot developments. The changes being proposed won’t override pre-existing deed restrictions.
said Garland Harris Jr., a real estate developer in Houston and the owner of Middle Housing Design Co. “I can tell you building townhouses and front-loaders and duplexes has got- ten pretty costly for us. But if we’re able to come in and build things like tiny houses or fourplexes or triplexes, we can meet a market that most people here don’t even think exists.” Those opposed: Erica Alvarado, a real estate agent who spoke June 21, said many rst-time homebuyers she works with are looking for more con- ventional homes, including private driveways and rst- oor living. “They will sacri ce the square footage if it means it aligns with the oor plan they’re used to in the suburbs,” she said. What’s next: Thecouncil could vote on amending the language on these housing ordinances in July.
Houston’s Livable Places commit- tee—a branch of the city’s Planning and Development Department that aims to make Houston more equi- table, walkable and a ordable—has proposed changes to housing rules, including updates designed to bring more midlevel housing options. The changes were discussed at a public hearing June 21. The overview: The concepts include amending current ordinances to allow for more midlevel housing, speci cally more street parking and water retention on public rights of way. The Livable Places Committee has been reviewing and workshop- ping the proposed changes for about six months, and the Houston Planning Commission approved its recommendations June 8. Under the current standards in the city’s code, the planning department is “obligated” to approve proposals
Proposed changes to Houston’s code of ordinances seek to make it easier to develop midlevel housing. Size and parking requirements are being considered for four housing types. HELP WITH HOUSING
Second dwelling unit
Multiunit residential housing
Courtyard-style developments
Narrow lot developments
What is it?
A second living space located on the lot of a single-family home, often above a garage or in a separate structure
Triplexes, multiple duplexes, fourplexes and multiplexes of up to eight units
Clusters of single-family homes located around a shared courtyard with shared parking
Refers to several di erent types of development, including ag lots and lots with shared driveways
Recommendations Size
Maximum 1,500 sq. ft.
• Minimum 3,500 sq. ft. • No more than four units along local streets • 30 ft. maximum height • 1,000 sq. ft. or less: one space per unit • Greater than 1,000 sq. ft.: two spaces per unit
• Maximum lot size: 3,500 sq. ft. • Maximum unit size: 1,800 sq. ft. • Height cannot exceed 30 ft. • 1,000 sq. ft. or less: one space per unit • Greater than 1,000 sq. ft.: two spaces per unit
• Lots less than 40 ft. wide along the street • Combined driveway maximum: 40 ft. • 1,500 sq. ft. or less: one space per unit • Greater than 1,500 sq. ft.: two spaces per unit
Parking
• If rst unit has two spaces, no spaces are needed for second unit if less than 1,000 sq. ft. and one space needed if more than 1,000 sq. ft.
SOURCE: CITY OF HOUSTON COMMUNITY IMPACT
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HEIGHTS RIVER OAKS MONTROSE EDITION • JULY 2023
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