City of Houston 2023Legislative Report

Land Use

Supporting Documents / Links:

Land Use GraphicHouse Bill 4057– Conservation Districts

House Bill 4057 by Representative Mano DeAyala greatly reduces the effectiveness of recently adopted Houston City Council ordinance authorizing the study and potential creation of Conservation Districts.

The Conservation District Ordinance is an amendment to Chapter 33 of the City’s Code of Ordinances. This ordinance amendment was discussed at the Houston Archaeological and Historical Commission (HAHC) meeting on January 26, 2023. A second HAHC hearing was held on Thursday, February 9. City Council held a public hearing on Wednesday, February 22. City Council considered the proposed ordinance at their meeting on Wednesday, March 29. Action on the item was postponed, by Council tag, and the enabling ordinance was approved on Wednesday, April 5.

The enabling ordinance allows for the protection and preservation of the remaining historic resources and character of certain historic neighborhoods in the City of Houston, many of which are underserved minority communities under pressure from new development:

  • Independence Heights
  • Freedmen’s Town
  • Manchester/Magnolia Park
  • Pleasantville
  • Piney Point
  • Acres Homes

Staff will work with these neighborhoods and hold public meetings, and property owners will have the ability to vote in favor or in opposition to the possible designation and development character options proposed by the residents. The conservation district only moves forward in the process if 51% or more of property owners approve the conservation district. The lower threshold is indicative of the difficulty that vulnerable communities have in organizing for collective action. The application then proceeds through the public hearing and notification process under state law for zoning—which governs historic preservation. The regulations will not address land use, only other development characteristics.

The City’s Ordinance is a pilot program, and while additional conservation districts may be added, Mayor Turner has committed to only keeping these 6 conservation districts through his term as Mayor.

HB 4057 allows property owners to opt out of a conservation district up to one year after the designation. It wrongly conflates individual property protections like deed restrictions and property owner associations with land use restrictions.

These communities have recently become targets for new development as land values across Houston have escalated. While there are benefits to investment, the new development is erasing some of the critical aspects of these communities. Gentrification, displacement, and losing parts of their heritage is what these residents fear. The City’s Conservation Districts are a way to protect them.

While the City provided testimony and spoke to the House and Senate authors multiple times about the negative impacts it would have on these historic communities, and how it violates the processes established by State law, HB 4057 passed, has been signed by the Governor and is effective as of June 10th.