{"id":124,"date":"2025-01-23T20:39:16","date_gmt":"2025-01-23T20:39:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/innovationscdc.org\/blog\/?p=124"},"modified":"2025-01-28T14:16:56","modified_gmt":"2025-01-28T14:16:56","slug":"this-houston-suburb-is-swapping-out-driveways-for-shared-front-lawns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/innovationscdc.org\/blog\/2025\/01\/23\/this-houston-suburb-is-swapping-out-driveways-for-shared-front-lawns\/","title":{"rendered":"This Houston suburb is swapping out driveways for shared front lawns"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

FAST COMPANY: 01-21-2025 | IMPACT<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A new Texas development is designed to foster community\u2014and is using the centuries-old planning concept of the mews to do it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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[Photo: CultivateLand]<\/sup><\/sub><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

BY\u00a0Patrick Sisson<\/mark><\/a><\/strong> 3 minute read<\/mark><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The suburbs of Houston haven\u2019t traditionally been viewed as a haven for progressive urbanism and car-free real estate development. But a local development company believes its new master-planned community, and its focus on shared lawns between homes, will give families a more socially oriented option. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Indigo, a community under development in Richmond, Texas, master developers Meristem Communities are designing neighborhoods around a centuries-old urban planning concept called mews. Historically, mews were alley-like areas behind old carriage houses that basically served as stables for horses. In today\u2019s socially isolated era<\/a>, Meristem sees the idea of stitching together homes with a shared front yard\u2014prioritizing play space, social areas, and pedestrian safety\u2014as a big selling point. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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[Photo: CultivateLand]<\/sup><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019re both dads with young kids, and we want to kick our kids out the door to play like we grew up in the \u201980s,\u201d said Clayton Garrett, one of the founding partners. \u201cFor all sorts of reasons, that doesn\u2019t exist today. The free-range kids movement<\/a> is happening right now, but not on the development side. That\u2019s what we set out to do in many ways.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The development\u2019s plan, to swap out traditional driveways and some streets with shared park space\u2014actually saves money, said Scott Snodgrass, the other founding partner. This allows Meristem to invest even more in landscaping and design. Bocce ball courts, playgrounds, and outdoor kitchens (in addition to seating) are sprinkled throughout these parks, which range from 50 to 150 feet wide and thread through the development. Trading concrete and asphalt for green space also has other benefits, including reducing the urban heat island effect, boosting resiliency with water-absorbing plants, and improving pedestrian safety and neighborhood interaction by reducing car trips. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 235-acre Indigo project broke ground in February 2022 and will eventually include 670 homes, 130 apartments, a large lake, shared retail, and on-site agriculture. The first group of homeowners are expected to move in this April; the entire project is scheduled to be finished by 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meristem spent $95 million on landscaping and designing the site, while different homebuilders will build and sell the homes and apartments. Garrett and Snodgrass are particularly proud of the variety of housing sizes and price points available; a 950-square-foot home initially sold for $219,000, with many more sizable models available. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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[Photo: CultivateLand]<\/sup><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Meristem\u2014a botany term that refers to the part of the plant where cell division happens\u2014launched roughly 10 years ago when Snodgrass and Garrett started an edible landscaping company. They went on to start running farms for real estate developments that used agriculture as an amenity. Before the pandemic, they bought a plot of land near Richmond to develop their own farm; they soon realized it was more than they needed and would be hard to turn a profit. Instead, they pivoted and decided to develop a large part of the land into a new type of planned suburban community. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Indigo joins a number of other new U.S. master-planned developments with a focus on walkability and social interaction. Culdesac<\/a>, a self-proclaimed car-free neighborhood in Tempe, Arizona, has earned plaudits for its encouragement of public transportation. It\u2019s a wider push for what real estate newsletter Thesis Driven<\/em> has called the walkable exurban downtown<\/a>, a development trend capitalizing on Americans\u2019 preference for walkable neighborhoods. Turns out some of the easiest and most profitable places to put them are in new, ground-up communities built on the urban fringes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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[Photo: CultivateLand]<\/sup><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Meristem isn\u2019t car-free by any means; it\u2019s still suburban Texas, 30 miles from downtown Houston, without significant mass transit connections. There are plenty of garages, parking, and streets interlacing the development. But walking will be more prioritized in Indigo than in most suburbs, with not just the mews but also a trail network and raised pedestrian crossings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Snodgrass and Garrett believe that along with adjoining on-site retail, Indigo will ideally lead to a more connected community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe level of interest here speaks to the human experience that people are craving,\u201d said Garrett. \u201cGenerally, nobody\u2019s enjoying their experience of suburbia.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This story has been updated to correct the city where Indigo is located, as well as the number of homebuilders involved and the price of a 950-square-foot unit.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Patrick Sisson is a freelancer at Fast Company who focuses on urbanism, technology, real estate development, and the forces that shape our cities, covering everything from libraries as sustainability hubs<\/a> to the future of office space<\/a>. . His work has appeared in Bloomberg CityLab, the New York Times, the MIT Technology Review, Dwell, and the Baffler More<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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