Greener Gulfton

Well, I get really excited about everything, but something, in particular, is just like seeing more flowers around, seeing “la placita,” you know, where people can gather and talk and just cool down while they're waiting for the bus or when they’re picking up their kids. I think la placita is just one of my favorites because, again, it's one of the ways that we can again connect since this is a (Gulfton is a) very diverse area. That’s a way to know more each other by talking, by “echando chal”—it’s, in Spanish [means], we are kind of like knowing, interacting. And by knowing more, we get more compassionate, we get more humble about—and more understanding about—the other cultures.

A greening plan and a nature plan is needed for Gulfton because, if you visit, if you live in it—work, worship, play in it—you see that there is absolutely very little green space, very little tree canopies. Personally, as someone who has lived in the area for almost 40 years, as I was raising my kiddos, I, at that time did not have the funds to take my kids to go camping, go to a state park or even barely make it to Galveston, you know, to expose my children to nature. I did take them to the zoo and to other areas in the city, but why can't I take my kids just down the street to a neighborhood park to have access to it? I don't wanna drive across the city for them to experience nature. We live in an apartment complex, and many of our residents and neighbors live in an apartment complex, and even in the properties, there is no access to green space, very limited access to green space. When you see our children playing outside and recreation activities, they're playing in the parking lot—they're playing soccer in the parking lot, you know, playing dodgeball or whatever, you know, they're out in the parking lot. That is a not a conducive environment for my kids, and so, I think it's also helpful for our mental wellness, for our physical health, and for us to breathe the fresh air. I can tell the difference when I'm in the neighborhood, and there's no green space, but if I go to an area where it's very luscious and just all these trees and all this green around me, I can tell the difference in the quality of the air. So, I think just having a greener neighborhood, a greener Gulfton, creates a healthier environment for communities to thrive.

I think there are many, many strengths in this neighborhood—most of all the people. The people are very committed to this neighborhood, they understand—they have a perspective from coming from all these different countries, and they bring kind of unique ideas and desires for what they wanna see, which I think will really create a park that is different from all the parks that we see in other places in Houston. We have a very strong volunteer base that is ready to work with those who have kind of the scientific backgrounds to do the hard work of planting and maintaining this park.

There is not going to be one green solution for all the challenges that Gulfton faces—it's gonna be a combination of tree plantings; and green stormwater wetlands; and nature; and a few shade structures; and green roof bus stops; and reinvigoration of park space; and lots of vines, and flowers, and culturally significant food plants. All of these actions taken together can transform Gulfton into more of a garden neighborhood, where people will be better protected by nature and where children and families can experience the wonders of wildlife. Regreening should also be a civic act. What I mean by that is, we heard from lots of folks that they wanted spaces that were artful, nature rich, and help them to connect with their neighbors. So Greener Gulfton looks a lot like building a community for cars and more like building a neighborhood that's built at the human scale for people who live in the neighborhood and for the Indigenous species that share their space.