Experiencing Houston as a Next City Vanguard

Editorial by Ennis Davis, AICP

Friday, May 13, 2016

From left to right: Riding METRORail with Juan Sebastian Mendive, Eric Shaw, Alison Joe, Bryan Lee, Jr. and Efrem Bycer.

Friday’s alumni track events started with a series of short “TED-style Talks” by alumni at the BioScience Research Collaborative (BRC) in Texas Medical Center. Access to Texas Medical Center was provided by Houston METRO. METRORail opened as a single, 7.5-mile light rail line in 2004. Today, the 22.9-mile light rail system includes three lines, carrying 48,000 passengers daily, making it one of the nation’s most traveled lines based on boardings per track mile. To this Jaxson, the short TED-style talks were intriguing for a variety of reasons. For example, a presentation by Alex Feldman, Vice President, U3 Advisors in Philadelphia, PA highlighting utilizing the assets of the Memphis Medical District to create better neighborhoods was directly applicable to UF Health Jacksonville and its potential ability to encourage revitalization in surrounding Jax neighborhoods. Furthermore, Sarah Mokuria’s, Senior Research Associate, UT Dallas Institute for Urban Policy Research, perspective on the role of planners on the Black Lives Matter movement, highlights why our success should be based on stimulating environments where vulnerable populations can thrive. My hope is to get a copy of short TED-style Talks uploaded on Modern Cities so that they don’t get lost as time passes by.

Guillaume Lavoie in the midst of his short TED-style talk on the Sharing Economy Challenges to Classic Urbanism.

Short Presentation Topics and Alumni Facilitators</b>

  • Taking Streetmix From Prototype to Thousands of Users - Lou Huang (2013), Project Lead, Mapzen, Brooklyn, NY

  • Sharing Economy Challenges to Classic Urbanism - Guillaume Lavoie (2015), City Councillor, Montréal, Québec, CA

  • Design as Protest: NOMA/Next City Collaboration - Bryan Lee (2015), Place & Civic Design Director, Arts Council of New Orleans, LA

  • How You Can Support the Movement for Black Lives as a City Innovator - Sara Mokuria (2015), Senior Research Associate, UT Dallas Institute for Urban Policy Research, Richardson, TX

  • Can Hospitals Create Great Neighborhoods? - Alex Feldman (2015), Vice President, U3 Advisors, Philadelphia, PA

  • Solicited Advice for Downtown Toronto - Jay Wall (2015), Creative Director, Studio Jaywall, Toronto, ON</i>

Vanguard alumni on the Buffalo Bayou Walking Tour led and narrated by AIA Houston.

After the talks, we hopped on METRORail and headed back downtown for lunch at the El Big Bad, where a discussion on the future of the Vanguard network with Next City took place, and for a Buffalo Bayou Walking Tour led by AIA Houston. Following these activities, we met up with 2016 Vanguard teams for the Big Idea Challenge at Discovery Green.

Held at Discovery Green, an award winning public space completed in 2008, the annual Big Idea Challenge competition is a chance for the brightest urban thinkers from across North America to prototype a design intervention that, if successful, could be replicated elsewhere. In Houston, competing groups of 2016 Vanguards proposed interventions for the city’s built environment that addressed issues of inclusion, opportunity and equity. In addition, these interventions were required to be feasible within a 12-month period and with a $10,000 budget. Roughly three miles from downtown and dubbed “Little Oasis”, the winning team’s proposal included a small park, space for bicycle repairs on a small 2,400-square-foot plat of land immediately adjacent to METRORail’s Melbourne North Lindale station. Other team’s ideas included a pop-up area of mixed use activity in Houston’s Fifth Ward, the creation of green space for a land-locked public school, a STEM education center in city’s East End, and a public space in the Third Ward.

Enjoying the Big Idea Challenge competition at Discovery Green.

After an afternoon of friendly Big Idea Challenge competition at Discovery Green, Vanguards then took the opportunity to hit the town for a night of dinner, entertainment and bonding with one another.

From left to right: Connecting with 2015 alumni Kate Didech, Alex Feldman, Sara Mokuria and 2013 Vanguard classmate Kareeshma Ali Merchant, to get a night of fun started in Montrose .

Saturday, May 14, 2016

Listening to the 2016 Vanguard panel discussion on “Navigating the All Access City” at Last Concert Café in the Warehouse District.

After a few hours of sleep, following an entertaining night in Montrose, a tree-lined neighborhood known for its dining and nightlife, Vanguards met the next morning for closing breakfast at Last Concert Café, a former bordello in the Warehouse District. In addition to some of the best cheese grits this southern guy has had in awhile, there were engaging transportation presentations by Zipcar, and a panel discussion on “Navigating the All Access City”. After breakfast, Vanguards still in town for a few hours took advantage of additional AIA Houston-led walking tours of Montrose and Houston’s Museum District, and a little happy hour at downtown’s OKRA Charity Saloon.

Checking out some impressive historic Houston architecture on the University of St. Thomas campus during an AIA Houston neighborhood walking tour.

Overall, similar to past conferences, returning as an alumni was well worth it. I had an opportunity to further connect with others, meet new members and additional alumni, as well as be introduced to topics and perspectives that can help make me a better steward for enhancing my community.

Editorial by Ennis Davis, AICP. Contact Ennis at edavis@metrojacksonville.com

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