How a Biden Presidency Can Boost Houston and more

A lot of people are probably thinking about a Biden presidency as a negative for the oil industry and Houston, but there are some potential silver linings here. A big one would be a massive federal infrastructure investment bill that could dramatically improve Houston’s flood resilience, including the Ike Dike and Galveston Bay Park surge barriers (great overview video). Another would be reopening international migration, which has been a big booster for Houston in the past (and has been significantly suppressed since 2016).

But the biggest potential boost would be the oil industry giving him a viable alternative to the Green New Deal.  Instead of banning fracking or federal drilling permits – which just imports more oil from the Middle East – how about a tariff on imported oil to boost local jobs while also reducing carbon emissions? (by keeping prices up) Could the industry give him cover to get it passed and popular with the public?  How about channeling the industry into something it has the expertise, infrastructure, and capital to do very, very well: carbon sequestration? (i.e. injecting it into the ground) How about encouraging LNG exports to Europe to give them an alternative to coal and Russian natural gas? Or LNG exports to China to displace the massive coal plants they’re building there? There are so many ways the oil industry could be part of the solution on carbon, if they would just engage in good faith.

Moving on to some smaller items this week:

But the biggest potential boost would be the oil industry giving him a viable alternative to the Green New Deal.  Instead of banning fracking or federal drilling permits – which just imports more oil from the Middle East – how about a tariff on imported oil to boost local jobs while also reducing carbon emissions? (by keeping prices up) Could the industry give him cover to get it passed and popular with the public?  How about channeling the industry into something it has the expertise, infrastructure, and capital to do very, very well: carbon sequestration? (i.e. injecting it into the ground) How about encouraging LNG exports to Europe to give them an alternative to coal and Russian natural gas? Or LNG exports to China to displace the massive coal plants they’re building there? There are so many ways the oil industry could be part of the solution on carbon, if they would just engage in good faith.

Moving on to some smaller items this week:

• Market Urbanist Scott Beyer at the Foundation for Economic Education: What’s the Cause of Houston’s Growth? For decades, Houston has been the nation’s leading example of an “opportunity city.”

“If America had a more market-oriented urban approach, those aspects of Houston—the density and affordability—would be the ones most likely replicated. For this reason, “getting a bunch of Houstons” should be an urbanist goal.“

• Los Angeles: a city that outgrew its masterplan. Thank God. In the first of our regular series of dispatches from around the world, this longtime LA resident argues that his city’s endless variety should be a key part any new metropolis’s design. Sounds a lot like Houston. Hat tip to George.

“The very lack of defined form and cultural tradition here, the statelessness of the city itself or those who live in it, allows for a distinctive type of vitality that I’ve felt nowhere else.”

• Came across this piece from the 2017 Texas Monthly archives: Montrose Is Dead. Long Live Montrose? A requiem for Houston’s coolest neighborhood.

Finally, I’ll end with a fun video: Houston by a Local – Travel Tips for Houston – A Day in Houston, Texas. Discover Houston with a local: Graffiti artist Gonzo 247 shows you highlights of his home town in the U.S. state of Texas. One of them is Space Center Houston.  Hat tip to George.

This piece first appeared at Houston Strategies Blog

Tory Gattis is a Founding Senior Fellow with the Houston-based Urban Reform Institute – A Center for Opportunity Urbanism, and writes the Houston Strategies blog.