Housing and Right to the City - Community Initiatives and Environmental Justice
Community Development Acronyms: CRIs, CDCs, EDCs, and CLTs
The course is shifting focus towards community-level solutions for affordable housing and community development.
CRIs (Community Research Institutes), CDCs (Community Development Corporations), EDCs (Economic Development Corporations), and CLTs (Community Land Trusts) are the four key acronyms.
Focus on Houston and Project Row Houses as a national model.
Robert Bullard and Environmental Justice
Robert Bullard is considered the father of the environmental justice movement.
Environmental Justice focuses on environmental racism and the disproportionate effects of pollution and industry on communities of color.
Bullard established the Environmental Justice Office under the EPA in the early 90s.
Environmental racism affects wealth accumulation and health outcomes.
Example: In Houston, waste management facilities were systematically placed in majority Black neighborhoods.
Hurricane Harvey and Environmental Impact
Hurricane Harvey in 2017 caused widespread flooding and released pollutants from oil refineries and wastewater treatment plants.
15 of Houston's 35 wastewater treatment plants were shut down, causing sewage backups.
Contaminated floodwaters led to health problems, disproportionately affecting certain neighborhoods.
Houston's Annexation History and Racial Disparities
Houston's unique shape is due to annexing unincorporated townships.
Annexations were often driven by economic motives or to make way for infrastructure projects.
Examples: NASA (1960s), Houston Intercontinental Airport (1965), Kingwood.
Humble, Texas, incorporated in the 1930s to institute Jim Crow segregation laws, preventing annexation by Houston.
Bordersville: A Case Study in Infrastructure Neglect
Bordersville was founded by Edgar Borders in the 1930s to rehire Black timber mill workers who were excluded due to segregation.
Despite being annexed by Houston in 1965, Bordersville lacked basic infrastructure for decades.
No running water until the 1980s.
Electricity was not available until the 1970s.
No underground flood drainage or sewage systems until 1999.
This infrastructure neglect exemplifies environmental injustice.
Community Initiatives and Gentrification in Bordersville
Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee delivered to Texas Southern University (TSU) to fight environmental injustice, benefiting the Bullard Center for Environmental and Climate Justice.
Bordersville residents still need home repairs from Hurricane Harvey, while white neighborhoods received assistance first.
Gentrification is a threat to Bordersville.
Harris County approved a affordable housing initiative, the Harris County Community Land Trust, to buy 100 homes.
Project Row Houses: A Model for Community Development
Project Row Houses is located in Houston's Third Ward, a neighborhood founded by former slaves.
Shotgun houses are a common architectural style in the Third Ward, originating from Africa and the Caribbean.
Rick Lowe, an art student at TSU, initiated the project in the early 90s to revitalize abandoned shotgun houses.
The project provides art studios, artist residences, and the Young Mothers Residential Program.
Partnerships with Rice University School of Architecture to design new affordable housing.
The Third Ward: History and Context
The Third Ward is located near Downtown Houston.
It has a rich history, including a Black Panther Party chapter in the 1960s.
George Floyd spent his youth in the Third Ward.
The Third Ward is undergoing gentrification, displacing long-time residents.
New developments lack community-oriented design.
John Biggers and His Influence
John Biggers, founder of the art department at TSU, was a significant influence on Rick Lowe.
Biggers' artwork often featured shotgun houses and themes of African culture and social justice.
He received a UNESCO grant to document African culture, which influenced his art and promoted cross-cultural understanding.
Biggers' work on the bombing of the church in Birmingham that killed 4 girls.
Project Row Houses: Development and Impact
Rick Lowe was inspired by Bigger's fascination with shotgun houses.
Project Row Houses developed an Economic Development Corporation and a Community Development Corporation to preserve affordable housing.
Partnerships with Rice University and University of Houston to design innovative housing solutions such as the "Mod Pod."
The "Mod Pod" is a modular unit containing a kitchen, bathroom, and HVAC system inserted into existing houses.
These initiatives aim to keep families in the neighborhood and maintain affordable housing prices.
Rick Lowe's Vision
Rick Lowe viewed his community development work as a form of art.
His art resembles aerial views of neighborhoods and dominoes, reflecting his love for community building and the game of dominoes.
Dominoes serves as an example of community where people sit on their porches and play.
The course is shifting focus towards community-level solutions for affordable housing and community development. CRIs (Community Research Institutes), CDCs (Community Development Corporations), EDCs (Economic Development Corporations), and CLTs (Community Land Trusts) are the four key acronyms. The focus is specifically on Houston and the Project Row Houses as a national model.
Robert Bullard is considered the father of the environmental justice movement. Environmental Justice focuses on environmental racism and the disproportionate effects of pollution and industry on communities of color. In the early 90s, Bullard established the Environmental Justice Office under the EPA. Environmental racism affects wealth accumulation and health outcomes, exemplified by the placement of waste management facilities in majority Black neighborhoods in Houston.
Hurricane Harvey in 2017 caused widespread flooding and released pollutants from oil refineries and wastewater treatment plants. With 15 of Houston's 35 wastewater treatment plants shut down, sewage backups occurred, leading to contaminated floodwaters that resulted in health problems, disproportionately affecting certain neighborhoods.
Houston's unique shape is due to annexing unincorporated townships, with annexations often driven by economic motives or infrastructure projects, such as for NASA in the 1960s and the Houston Intercontinental Airport in 1965. Humble, Texas, incorporated in the 1930s to institute Jim Crow segregation laws, preventing annexation by Houston.
Bordersville, founded by Edgar Borders in the 1930s to rehire Black timber mill workers excluded due to segregation, illustrates infrastructure neglect; despite being annexed by Houston in 1965, Bordersville lacked basic infrastructure for decades, with no running water until the 1980s, electricity until the 1970s, and no underground flood drainage or sewage systems until 1999.
Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee delivered $50,000,000 to Texas Southern University (TSU) to fight environmental injustice, benefiting the Bullard Center for Environmental and Climate Justice. However, residents of Bordersville still need home repairs from Hurricane Harvey, while white neighborhoods received assistance first. Gentrification poses a threat to Bordersville, though Harris County approved a $15,000,000 affordable housing initiative through the Harris County Community Land Trust to buy 100 homes.
Project Row Houses, located in Houston's Third Ward—a neighborhood established by former slaves—was initiated by Rick Lowe, an art student at TSU, in the early 90s to revitalize abandoned shotgun houses. These shotgun houses are a common architectural style originating from Africa and the Caribbean, providing art studios, artist residences, and the Young Mothers Residential Program, partnered with Rice University School of Architecture for designing new affordable housing.
The Third Ward is situated near Downtown Houston, rich in history, having had a Black Panther Party chapter in the 1960s, with George Floyd spending his youth in the area. Yet, the Third Ward is undergoing gentrification, displacing long-time residents, with new developments lacking in community-oriented design.
John Biggers, founder of the art department at TSU, significantly influenced Rick Lowe. Biggers’ artwork often featured shotgun houses and themes of African culture and social justice, and he received a UNESCO grant to document African culture, promoting cross-cultural understanding and reflecting on events such as the bombing of the church in Birmingham that killed four girls.
Rick Lowe was inspired by Biggers' fascination with shotgun houses and developed Project Row Houses alongside an Economic Development Corporation and a Community Development Corporation to preserve affordable housing. Together with partnerships from Rice University and the University of Houston, innovative housing solutions such as the "Mod Pod," a modular unit containing a kitchen, bathroom, and HVAC system, were designed to be inserted into existing houses, aiming to maintain affordable housing prices and keep families in the neighborhood.
Rick Lowe views his community development as a form of art, likening his creations to aerial views of neighborhoods and dominoes, symbolizing community where residents engage with one another on their porches while playing dominoes.