UH Community Design Resource Center and Avenue Community Development Corp. Receive National Planning Award

Community Engagement, Research Drive Transformation of Houston’s Near Northside

UH CDRC and Avenue develop QLA
To develop the QLA, Avenue and CDRC Director Susan Rogers (center) gathered input from area residents about what it would take to create a successful community.

The Community Design Resource Center (CDRC) at the University of Houston Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture and Design and Avenue Community Development Corp, a non-profit organization dedicated to building affordable homes and strengthening communities, are joint recipients of the American Planning Association’s (APA) 2017 National Planning Excellence Award for Advancing Diversity & Social Change in Honor of Paul Davidoff.

Both organizations are being honored for their role in producing the 2015 Near Northside Quality of Life Agreement (QLA), which is a comprehensive action plan to improve housing conditions, enhance education opportunities, grow the economy and provide a safe and healthy environment.

The Accomplishments

As a result of this comprehensive effort, approximately $53 million was invested in the neighborhood between 2010-2015, including funding from Avenue partners NeighborWorks America and Houston’s Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC). This funding was used to:

  • Support 175 projects
  • Build 254 new homes and apartments
  • Teach new skills to 19,700+ people
  • Bring in 14,395 volunteers who contributed 34,000 hours
  • Gather expertise from 264 partner organizations and agencies

“We are grateful to be distinguished with such a prestigious honor,” said Susan Rogers, CDRC director. “It is evidence that university-based research centers play a significant role in transforming our city, and can substantially contribute to advancing diversity, and sustainable and comprehensive community change The Near Northside effort illustrates that even neighborhoods without great power and wealth have the capacity to create great change.”

“An engaged community with a shared vision, supported by research, is a powerful template for creating change and for attracting outside resources to support their efforts,” said Mary Lawler, executive director of Avenue. “This initiative has brought residents, leaders and area partners together to explore sustainable solutions to the challenges facing their community.”

About the Quality of Life Agreement (QLA)

For the 2015 QLA, Avenue and CDRC gathered input from thousands of residents, leaders and supporters about what it would take to have a thriving, successful community and how success would be measured over time.

“One of the long-standing concerns in the Near Northside has been improving the quality of life for working families. It is inspiring to see firsthand how the neighborhood has embraced this initiative and how it has acted as a catalyst for continued revitalization efforts,” said Jenifer Wagley, deputy director for Avenue.

The CDRC and Avenue will be presented the award in New York City on May 8th during the APA National Planning Conference. The project will also be featured in the May issue of Planning magazine.