United Airlines plane parked at San Franciscon International Airport

Where United Airlines Should Establish a New Hub

by Tory Gattis — United Airlines has planes and crews idled by the pandemic - they could establish a new hub somewhere if they wanted to. But where would a new hub fill gaps and make economic sense?
Aerial view of suburbs

Houston a Model of Land-Use and Affordable Housing Reform for the Country

by Tory Gattis — For proven housing reform, look at Houston, arguably the most pro-housing city in the country. Houston leads housing affordability for large metros.
Urban developers have a bad reputation; how did that get started?

Houston Ranks 3rd Among Global Cities of Future, Explaining the ‘Evil Developer’ Trope, and more

Houston ranks 3rd among global cities of the future. The Texan city is a reputable talent hub and offers a welcoming business environment.
Handling the COVID-19 Surge in TexasPublic Domain

How Houston Defied Doomsday COVID Predictions, HTX books and art, transportation innovations, and more

How Houston Defied Doomsday COVID Predictions: Houston’s approach is a model for how hospital systems should handle intense case surges.
Visitors Center Houston Port AuthorityMaverickLittle

Tax & Regulatory Burden Rankings, Houston Walkability and More

Houston has the lowest tax burden of major U.S. metro areas: a lower regulatory burden for Houstonians means paychecks stretch further.
Houston, and Texas in general offers affordable housing

Misleading Poverty Stats, What $250K Buys You in Houston, Density and Transit vs. COVID

Houston allows even the poorest to come here seeking opportunity rather than blocking them out thru restrictive housing policy. And their point about rich neighborhoods being next to poor ones is also great! That means there is affordable housing near the jobs (esp. service jobs). Every major job center in Houston has affordable neighborhoods within a 15-minute transit ride.
Houston Downtown

Better Understanding of What Makes Houston Special

by Tory Gattis — Just a few short items this week mostly around a common theme of understanding what makes Houston special; food, music, parks and friendly people...
Seattle traffic congestion seen from Rizal Park

Is Traffic Congestion a Con?

Last month, INRIX issued a new report on urban traffic congestion worldwide, with new rankings for U.S. metro areas. Has expanding freeway capacity failed or were comparison metrics poorly chosen?

Houston Most Affordable High-Growth Metro

by Tory Gattis — Houston is the most affordable high-growth metro, with rents more affordable than Dallas, Austin or even San Antonio. Other affordable metros are slow-growth to stagnant or declining.
Tory Gattis talks with KAS about Houston's pandemic response

Klineberg plugs Houspitality, HTX outbuilds NYC, escape from New York, and more

by Tory Gattis — if you're looking for something new to read during this lockdown, I wanted to suggest a new book from Rice's Stephen Klineberg: The Prophetic City - Houston on the Cusp of a Changing America, all about how we've evolved over recent decades through the lens of his annual Houston Area Survey. Houston Strategies and Houspitality get a mention!