Rail-related Development Lagging

[Subdude]

Jan. 16, 2005, 12:46AM

One year later, Metro rail still a dividing line

Some point out lots sitting empty; others say change, developers need time

By DAVID KAPLAN and NANCY SARNOFF

Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle

Depending which way you turn your head at the Ensemble/HCC stop on Metro's light rail line, it appears great things are starting to happen - or the area is going nowhere.

In one direction, stylish shops and eateries are popping up. There's the cosmopolitan Julia's Bistro with its violet and mango interior and glass windows overlooking the train. Tacos A-Go-Go, a hip taqueria sporting a statue of Carmen Miranda, will open in several months.

But look in another direction, and the neighborhood seems full of empty lots, boarded-up buildings and panhandlers.

Both optimists and pessimists can make their case about how the 1-year-old light rail will shape development along the route.

Some believe the rail will generate something new for Houston: dense "urban villages" where people live, work and play. And some don't.

Since the Main Street light rail opened, no major development has sprung up along its seven-mile corridor. Experts advise that patience is required; it takes five years or more for such growth.

But Houston, a city with no zoning, could pose a challenge: Unlike in many other cities with rail lines, no rules here encourage urban environments combining residential, office and retail space.

Developing in time

In the late 1990s, when city and Metro leaders were trying to sell Houstonians on a light rail line along Main, they emphasized the economic benefits of new development.

Today, a year after the rail line opened, the adjoining landscape looks much as it did before the line was built.

"It's incredibly disappointing that nothing has happened on Main Street of significance," said David Crossley, president of the Gulf Coast Institute, a nonprofit group promoting quality-of-life issues.

Metro Chairman David Wolff counsels patience: "I'm not at all disappointed. These things take years."

Michael Bayard, a senior research fellow at the Urban Land Institute, agreed. In Washington, D.C., he said, it's taken from five to 28 years for development to take off around subway transit stops.

"Development is a complicated business

[bachanon]

we need fifty adams doing the same thing (not wishing for a smaller piece of the pie for him by any means). "mixed-use" thinking on every level of redevelopment is key for the betterment of our city. increased reporting on these issues may, eventually, create a swell of more intelligent land use and planning. (city council? are you listening?) recent reports of a development committee and stories like this are good news.

[Talbot]

^yes, and this is why its very important that the new guidelines and development committee pass. Im very excited about it, and I hope it does.