Income segregation is a serious concern. Spend any appreciable period of time in South America and you will know what I am talking about.
I did a double-take at the title because racially Houston is probably one of the better cities I've been to. But, seeing it's an economic segregation, I totally believe that. When I have visitors from other countries, I often take them on a rich/poor driving tour to show them northern 3rd Ward, and then Upper Kirby and River Oaks. The difference is pretty stark. And, I think the segregation is problematic. You can see disparities in public services in all sorts of dimensions because people with money have more economic and political power. Wealthy areas can get more infrastructure without sharing with the poor, faster repair, better fire and police protection. The neighborhood associations can be more active and powerful. Even stores -- there are 2 Starbucks across the street from each other at W. Gray and probably a half-dozen more in a 1 mile radius, but the only one you'll find in the Greater Third Ward area is the one at UH. It seems a bit inevitable when you know this about Houston -- completely flat, unbroken, and open geography to let people go where they want; a cultural/political predisposition to oppose artificial restrictions on where people can build or live, and the mass production of the automobile. You could really only get mixed income with active management
Which is what they have historically tried in Dallas (within the city limits). I'll take the Houston approach any day over the attempt at active management as implemented in Dallas.
While I thank God every day that we're not Dallas, I'm not going to just be thankful things aren't worse. If we can make things better, we should. If Dallas tried and failed, it doesn't mean we shouldn't try.
While I appreciate your desire to improve things, I think you will find older Houstonians who are familiar with the city's history are thankful that things are not more screwed up than they are. There have been several attempts to try and "fix" Houston in this respect. Most are thankful that they were not implemented. There are downsides to the historic freedom from zoning in Houston such as loss of history and the hodgepodge nature of development. The upsides are the vibrancy, diversity and creativity that is born from the environment there. Plus you get the added excitement of dodging the trains that now run through Main St.
It's human nature, and you can't stop it. People want to feel safe and most people, especially as they get older, prefer to live among people with similar ethnic/religious/class backgrounds. The ironic part is that tribalism actually gets worse as the population becomes more diverse, so get used to gated enclaves, because they represent the future, not the past.
So economic segregation is a prudent real estate strategy. Racial segregation is bigotry. that's a fine line, but a distinct one I guess
