Development Patterns of Houston and Adaptive Capacity Post Hurricane Harvey, Poster 46

Coastal storms have caused billions of dollars in damage during the last decade in the United States due to the vulnerability of coastal cities. In these cities it is important to understand the development processes that... [ view full abstract ]

Coastal storms have caused billions of dollars in damage during the last decade in the United States due to the vulnerability of coastal cities. In these cities it is important to understand the development processes that contribute to structural patterns of vulnerability in individual neighborhoods.  Neoliberal governance creates systems of individual and collective adaptive capacity that emphasize individual responsibility over institutional and governmental responsibility in creating resilient communities. Houston, Texas, offers a case study to examine the effects of neoliberal growth and the laissez-faire city on individual and collective adaptive capacity to Hurricane Harvey. Unlike other recent disasters, Hurricane Harvey affected neighborhoods from all socio-economic classes equally, raising the question ‘has neoliberal governance in Houston emphasized individual adaptive capacity at the expense of institutional organization and collective adaptive capacity?’ This study hypothesizes that evidence of recent high value residential development (sourced from the Harris County Appraisal District) correlates with high numbers of Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) damage claims per census block (Harris County Open Data), and social media data of emergency incidents coordinated by Harvey Relief. This study uses GIS spatial analysis to determine if the balance between collective and individual adaptive capacity was inadequate. The study has implications for informing planners on how to think about the balance between individual and collective adaptive capacity in a neoliberal city. If individual adaptive capacity is not enough, institutions and collective action need to be set up in order to create resilient communities.