The Pinemont Park & Ride Town Hall is 7 p.m. tonight, April 16, at the Life Center at Advent Lutheran Church at 5820 Pinemont Drive. If you believe that government has a duty to act transparently, to fully vet and study the impact of proposed projects on neighborhoods, and to engage communities directly affected by major decisions, please attend this town hall to learn more.
METRO is seeking authorization to sell the Pinemont Park and Ride to the Houston Housing Authority (HHA) to build a 300-unit “affordable” housing complex. There are reasons why Super Neighborhood 12 residents are concerned about this proposal.
There was little attempt, if any, to notify residents directly affected that METRO was going to sell the abandoned Park & Ride to the HHA to build something that would add 1,000+ residents to the area. The Super Neighborhood 12 Council was not notified, nor were the property owners associations of abutting or nearby neighborhoods. In the past, private developers of "affordable" and/or subsidized/tax-credit apartments in the area have sought input from SN Council 12, while sharing designs and tenant requirements, allowing neighbors to fully understand the intent and impact of such projects.
This sale was a fait accompli until nearby residents packed a METRO Real Estate Committee meeting last week to voice concern. The METRO committee had opted to skip seeking private bids on the open market and instead sell the project to the HHA. After the METRO committee eventually agreed to open up the bidding process – so that taxpayers could get the highest value for this property – the Chair of HHA, Lance Gilliam, threatened to use eminent domain powers if a private investor won the bid.
Curiously, this property is more than a half-mile from the nearest bus stop on the soon-to-be-enacted Reimaging METRO routes. It is also not very near service providers that low-income residents can utilize to improve their lives.
The Pinemont Park HOA, along with several other homeowners associations, are asking METRO to postpone the sale until:
- An assessment is completed on the current value of the property and the expected increase in value once 290 construction is completed.
- An environmental impact study has been done to identify how a residential build of this magnitude will impact infrastructure and livability, including areas such as traffic, transportation, sewage and school crowding.
- There is greater transparency and community engagement in this process.
The Pinemont Park HOA Board has announced that it is not anti-development nor against affordable housing. There are other affordable apartment complexes in the area, plus Section 8 housing.
The Pinemont Park HOA board believes, however, that the HHA’s proposal is not the appropriate site for a project of this magnitude that could impact existing infrastructure. Other residents believe METRO has a fiduciary responsibility to taxpayers to seek the highest possible bid and best use for this property, while seeking affordable housing properties that allow residents to directly access transit lines and nearby service providers.
Consider the strident opposition to the luxury Ashby high-rise apartments slated near the Museum District. There are parallel concerns: infrastructure impacts of adding numerous residents and best property use.
A petition asking METRO to halt this sale can be signed here: http://bit.ly/PinemontParkRide_petition.
Upcoming Events
Town Hall Meeting, 7 p.m. Thursday April 16, 2015, at the Life Center at Advent Lutheran Church on 5820 Pinemont Drive. Mr. Jim Robinson, Metro Board Member and Deputy Director for Special Projects, will be in attendance. An open and respectful dialogue is requested.
Metro Board Meeting: METRO's Real Estate Committee deferred a final decision on the sale to the full METRO Board meeting at 9 a.m. Thursday, April 23, at 1900 Main Street. Residents can speak at the meeting by signing up 48 hours in advance; call 713-739-4834 to speak. Concerned neighbors can send an email to Rosa Diaz, Director of Board Support for METRO, at rosa.diaz@ridemetro.org