Melanie Young says she had to do something to make sure the community’s voices are heard and their needs are met. That something was reactivating the super neighborhood, a framework that allows civic clubs to organize, and address pressing local issues.

Now, Houston’s planning department wants to take it a step further by creating “Livable Places,” a concept that would create neighborhoods inside Houston city limits where you could work, live and play--eliminating the need to drive. Dipti Mathur, City of Houston Planning Department Division Manager, leads the livable places action team, overseeing the strategic planning of this concept. In fact, the livable places team has already found data indicating that on the east side of Houston, car ownership has dropped. The livable places team will first focus on the development codes that we have in place right now. Mathur’s hoping to rework those rules so that “livable places” or neighborhoods can be built in walkable neighborhoods.