Today, Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher (TX-07) announced that the City of Houston will receive $552,160 in federal funding through the Reconnecting Communities Pilot (RCP) discretionary grant program—a program established in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act—for the Reconnecting Communities: Gulfton and Beyond Study.  The grant will fund a 12-month study and community-driven planning process to design future connections on Hillcroft Avenue in Gulfton, which are currently separated by freeways and busy thoroughfares.  This study builds on the recent Hillcroft Avenue Safety Project, to slow speeds and make Hillcroft safer for local residents, and will consider safety improvements north to Hillcroft Transit Center and Wisdom High School and south to Brays Bayou Greenway Trail. 

“Gulfton is a vibrant part of Texas’ Seventh Congressional District, and I am thrilled that the U.S. Department of Transportation will award the City of Houston more than half a million dollars for the Reconnecting Communities: Gulfton and Beyond Study,” said Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher.  “This investment in Houston’s most dense and transit-dependent neighborhood will enhance multimodal accessibility, increase economic opportunities, and improve overall wellbeing for surrounding communities, enabling Houstonians to travel safely to and from work, school, and other destinations.  I was glad to partner with City and Gulfton community leaders to advocate for this grant, and I look forward to continuing our work together to bring improvements of all kinds back home.” 

“Gulfton is Houston’s most densely populated, diverse, and transit-dependent neighborhood, but its residents face many physical barriers in getting around their neighborhood,” Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said in reference to the Southwest Freeway, Westpark Tollway and other busy throughfares. “I thank the United States Department of Transportation for committing funds to address these barriers and propose workable solutions.”

In 2021, Congresswoman Fletcher voted for the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which established the RCP discretionary grant program.  It is the first-ever federal program dedicated to reconnecting communities like Gulfton that were previously left out of economic opportunities by transportation infrastructure.  

Congresswoman Fletcher effectively communicated the need for this grant funding to the Department of Transportation, including sending a letter to Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg in support of the grant award for the Reconnecting Communities: Gulfton and Beyond project.  

The Reconnecting Communities: Gulfton and Beyond project is supported by the Gulfton Super Neighborhood Council, the Texas Department of Transportation, Houston METRO, and all representative local and state elected officials.