A coalition of East End residents is facing resistance in their effort to secure a community benefits agreement tied to the planned closure of Polk Street for the George R. Brown Convention Center expansion.
The two-block stretch of Polk, a key east–west connector into downtown, is slated to close in October to make way for the convention center’s multiyear redevelopment. Houston First, the public agency overseeing the project, says the closure is “vital” to the GRB’s transformation.
The move comes as TxDOT’s North Houston Highway Improvement Project is already reshaping traffic flows around the East End, raising concerns among residents that their neighborhoods will be boxed in by the construction…