30 November 2008
City lays out agenda for Austin, prefers that you not think about city pensions too much
The Chronicle's Carolyn Feibel lays out Mayor White's to-do list for the 2009 legislative session in Austin.
Closer to home, KHOU-11's Mark Greenblatt ran a story just before Thanksgiving on the perilous state of Houston's municipal employee pension fund finances. It's too comprehensive to excerpt, so we urge readers to go have a closer look.
Many Houstonians are probably under the mistaken impression that the referenced pension plan problems were "solved" shortly after Mayor White took office and discovered the "gift" (in the form of a massive unfunded liability) he had been left by Lee Brown.
In reality, the political pain of completely solving the problem would have been much too high for someone of Mayor White's ambitions, so band-aids were applied, some structural adjustments were made for the future, and the issue was largely left for the next mayor. But the unfunded liability was and remains huge, as we have pointed out from time to time. Kudos to Greenblatt for reminding Houstonians (not to mention Mayor White and the "watchdog"* city controller who wants to be mayor).
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/30/08 10:04 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (10)
Houston trauma centers struggle to take up UTMB slack
KHOU-11's Leigh Frillici reports on the local trauma-center impact of Ike's UTMB devastation:
Damage and financial troubles after Hurricane Ike cost UTMB at Galveston its level one trauma center. Now patients are flown to the next closest center with a helipad, which is Memorial Hermann.
"We usually see 450 trauma admissions a month. This October, we did over 600," said [Memorial Hermann E.R. Director Dr. James ] McCarthy. "It was our busiest month on record for the last 10 years."
With about 4.5 million people in the Greater Houston area, we should have four trauma centers. But what we had before Hurricane Ike was three, and now with UTMB losing their major center, Houston is down to two.
Money is what it will take to get another major trauma center on line.
"What we're talking about is creating a trauma network in Houston that will take care of you and your family when you get into a car accident on your way home from work, or on your way home from a holiday get together,” said McCarthy.
UTMB is such an important resource for our community and our entire state. It would be nice if some of the pols who were so busy grandstanding in the aftermath of Ike were just as committed to rebuilding and restoring the important resource that is UTMB as quickly as possible. We would like to see some of our local officials pushing the issue more forcefully also.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/30/08 09:16 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (3)
METRO IAH express bus service long overdue, but expensive
The Chronicle's Rosanna Ruiz does a nice job with this METRO press release posing as a news article:
Houston residents and out-of-town travelers can rely ... on taxis, shuttles and now nonstop bus service to George Bush Intercontinental Airport.
Metro has added nonstop bus service to the airport for $30 round-trip.
The buses, similar to those used by Park and Ride commuters, run every 30 minutes to and from Metro's downtown passenger plaza, 815 Pierce, to Bush airport's Terminal C.
[snip]
In comparison, SuperShuttle vans cost $23 for a trip to the Bush airport and $44 round-trip.
Yellow Cabs cost $44.50 to downtown, $51 to get to the Galleria area and $55 to travel to Reliant Stadium.
This is a needed, long overdue service that METRO should have been shamed into offering years ago.
That being said, it's also an expensive, needed, long overdue service.
The Chronicle reporter might have done some comparisons on large cities that offer similar services, and how much it costs to get into the central business area. Chicago, St. Louis, and Philadelphia (to name a few) all offer train rides into their central business areas for less money. Surely other cities offer express bus service. But the reporter doesn't take the initiative to provide those comparisons, which probably weren't included in METRO's press information either.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/30/08 09:06 PM | Houston Transit | Technorati | Comments (8)
Houston makes affordable homes less affordable
The city of Houston has added thousands of dollars to the cost of building new homes (via the Chron's Carolyn Feibel):
New homes built in Houston will have to meet more stringent energy-saving standards starting next October under a new energy code approved Wednesday by the City Council.
"The modern trend among both some of the finer small and large home builders is to build much more energy-efficient homes," said Mayor Bill White. "In fact, you're going to see people are drawn into the city because we have good building standards."
The council passed the code unanimously with no discussion.
The new code requires new residential construction up to three stories to attain a 15 percent energy savings over the existing 2006 International Residential Code.
While it's a noble goal, should it really be mandated through regulation, or should it be voluntary? For example, if someone wants to buy a green home, shouldn't they just buy from a builder who chooses to build green homes?
Right now, local homebuilders are struggling to stay afloat for a myriad of reasons, including the high cost of materials and the credit crunch. They cannot eat the costs associated with building "greener" houses; the costs will be passed on to the consumer. When one is an entry-level homebuyer, this will inevitably price some out of the lowest end of the market.
The Greater Houston Builders Association approved of the changes, but wants to see the city add some incentives, said Adam Aschmann, the group's government affairs director.
For example, he said, the group would like the city to pay for the cost of energy compliance inspections for homes that sell for less than $175,000.
Aschmann said the energy goals could add between $1,000 and $2,000 to the construction cost of a median-priced home.
The new energy code also would apply to home additions of 500 square feet or more.
Barry Klein, president of the Houston Property Rights Association, said he feared the regulations would hurt homebuyers.
"For new construction, the cost becomes more and more prohibitive for people to purchase those new homes," Klein said. "There is a long established pattern of people moving out of the city to escape the city's regulations. I'm sure this is the kind of thing that will accelerate that."
Aschmann's estimate of the extra costs is probably optimistic at best for some homebuilders -- especially the ones who build affordable homes which have not been Energy Star certified previously.
Unfortunately, Mayor White's justification shows a lack of real-world understanding:
White said homeowners will recoup the added costs on their utility bills within four or five years.
"So, that is a good investment, and it makes it so homes are more affordable in the long run," he said. "If somebody is, say, laid off or suffers a financial reverse, then they will be able to stay in their house longer, and I would encourage people to shop for energy-efficient homes."
The extra money required to build the house will be tacked on to the purchase price. At the most affordable end of the housing market, that means some people will not be able to buy a starter house, with the extra cost included. Therefore, recouping the added cost is out of the picture.
BLOGVERSATION: When Houston grows up it wants to be just like Paris, Lose an Eye, It's a Sport
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 11/30/08 07:38 AM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (18)
What happens to Bolsover Street?
With the recent news that Lamesa Properties has been unable to secure financing for its proposed Sonoma development, what will end up happening to Bolsover Street, which the city sold to the developer (via the Examiner's Michael Reed):
Councilwoman Anne Clutterbuck of District C, where the project is located, said while she is “saddened” by the announcement, she expects to eventually “see a project similar to what was presented to the community” at the site.
In an effort make the project possible, the City Council on Aug. 8, 2007 voted to sell the 2400 block of Bolsover Street to Lamesa for $1.74 million, or about $60 a square foot.
The sale of the street was contingent on completion of the project “as substantially presented to the community” and the installation of left-turn bays approaching Kelvin and Morningside at the Rice Boulevard intersections by December 2012.
The building that once stood where Phase 1 was planned on the north side of Bolsover, containing Nit Noi restaurant and other businesses, was demolished in October 2007.
Clutterbuck said it is her understanding Lamesa intends to fence off most of the property from the public for the time being, and that it will be “kept it in the manner befitting the community.”
She said there has also been talk of using part of the site for such things as a community market or a staging area for other projects in the area.
Meanwhile, Walgreens spokesman Robert Elfinger said Monday the Rice Village store will close Dec. 31 as planned and will not be relocated.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 11/30/08 06:33 AM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (0)
29 November 2008
Downtown District invites you to come and enjoy the Christmas lights
Er, maybe that should be "Holiday" lights.
Yesterday's Chronicle story highlighted the Downtown District's attempt to recreate a Christmas tradition: visiting downtown to see the Christmas lights and decorations. Perhaps this tradition will hold up better than the city's "annual" New Year's Eve star raising -- a tradition that lasted one year because former Councilwoman Carol Alvarado was too pooped to party the next year.
If you make it down there, have fun. Just beware the red light cameras (and the city wants to add more!), the Wild West parking, the Danger Train, and the homeless.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 11/29/08 05:57 AM | Houston Life | Technorati | Comments (38)
27 November 2008
Happy Thanksgiving!
We take a break from our feasting to wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving!
Here at the little blog, we're thankful for everyone (bloggers, commenters, emailers, readers, lurkers) who have made this little hobby of ours so enjoyable. With rare exceptions, we manage to have a civil and informed (if sometimes spirited) discussion about the Houston area, and we appreciate everyone who helps keep it going.
Now, back to the feast.... :)
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/27/08 01:30 PM | Announcements | Technorati | Comments (7)
Shock: Desired behavior leads to undesirable outcome
On Monday, METRO's expensive blogger wrote a post titled, "When Public Transit's Cash Cow Runs Dry." The first paragraph is a doozy:
Americans are driving fewer miles this year than last year - and that means the Highway Trust Fund, fueled by the gasoline tax, took in billions of fewer dollars in Fiscal Year 2008. We drove 90 billion miles less in a period of 11 months in FY08 compared to the year before, reported the U.S. Department of Transportation last week.
Isn't that the goal of transit experts, agencies, and enthusiasts? For Americans to drive less? So, public transit fans get their desired outcome, but suddenly realize there's a downside.
Genius.
And the solution? Increase taxes, of course!
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 11/27/08 07:13 AM | Houston Transit | Technorati | Comments (1)
Greenspoint still most crime-plagued mall in Houston
Earlier this week, KPRC-2's Amy Davis looked at crime stats for local malls, as we approach the busiest shopping time of the year. The top five for crime are:
1. Greenspoint
2. Willowbrook
3. Galleria
4. Sharpstown
5. tie between West Oaks and Almeda
Yay for online shopping!
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 11/27/08 06:55 AM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (5)
25 November 2008
Local attorney bestows special award on Jared Woodfill
Various news sources have reported an old story with a new (?) twist: Harris County GOP Jared Woodfill has called for a Harris County judge to resign over emails that apparently sparked some controversy in 2006.
In the meantime, be sure to read attorney Mark Bennett's nicely crafted post on the matter. Rather than excerpting, we'll just say that he makes a good case for bestowing his "Asshat Lawyer of the Day" award on Jared Woodfill.
Why Woodfill is still the Harris County GOP chair is one of the area's ongoing mysteries. But we are guessing he might be in the running for bigger things in the future (say, an "Asshat Lawyer of the Month" award...)!
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/25/08 09:25 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (0)
Maybe Houston's red light cams can apply for a FEMA grant
The Chron's Matt Stiles notes that Hurricane Ike caused the city to lose some expected revenue from the red light cameras...er, not that those cams are there to make money, of course:
Only about 9,000 citations were issued during the month of September, Houston police records show, about half the monthly average. The department issued 17,000 in August, for example, and about 19,500 in October.
Police say many of the cameras stopped working after the storm brought high winds and left power outages in its wake. (You'll remember that some traffic signals were out for weeks after the storm.)
The outage could be costly. Let's assume that the city didn't issue about 9,000 tickets. Then factor in the 70-percent collection rate on the $75 tickets. That's a potential loss of $500,000 in revenue.
As one commenter on Stiles' post notes:
Well, since it's not supposed to be a money making project for the city, but more of a safety patrol instead, I don't see the problem here!
Yep!
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 11/25/08 04:48 AM | Hurricane Stuff | Technorati | Comments (2)
23 November 2008
Excitement* at Commissioners Court
The Chronicle's Liz Austin Peterson reported on some excitement at Commissioners Court this week:
Fresh from a decisive re-election victory, Harris County Judge Ed Emmett is wasting no time trying to build his office's influence as he fights for more authority over the county's lobbying effort in Austin.
He brought the matter to Commissioners Court on Tuesday, the first regular meeting since Election Day, and butted heads with County Attorney-elect Vince Ryan and Commissioner Sylvia Garcia when the two Democrats sought to delay a vote on the change.
For a body known to vote on an entire agenda without discussing a single item at length, the debate offered a public peek at the increasingly tense relationships between some court members.
The county's Office of Legislative Relations has been a part of the county attorney's office since 2006. Ryan said he wanted to have a chance to evaluate the proposal once he takes office in January. Garcia said she does not believe the office should fall under any one member of Commissioners Court, and she questioned Emmett's motives for proposing the switch.
Since 2006? In other words, all of... two years.
The Chronicle's Rick Casey provides some useful background on this maneuvering in his most recent column:
The fact is, in this skirmish [Vince Ryan] was poorly armed. He lacked any arguments for why the lobbying squad should remain in his bailiwick. The location doesn't actually seem to make a whole lot of difference.
It was in the county judge's office until 2001, when it was moved to the office of Dick Raycraft, the county's director of management services. I'm not sure why.
Two years ago it was moved to County Attorney Stafford's office, apparently because Cathy Sisk, who was tapped to lead the lobbying operation, already worked for Stafford as an attorney specializing in environmental matters and preferred not to move.
Nobody thought her location was worth worrying about. Emmett was appointed county judge later and, he says, at some subsequent point later he began worrying about it.
He says he had talked to his staff about recapturing the office well before the election and planned on bringing the matter to Commissioners Court as soon as he solidified his position by winning an election, even if Republican Stafford had won re-election.
"I'm the one legislators call," he said, asserting that it was not a power grab, but an effort to assert control.
After all, it's Commissioners Court that sets the county's legislative agenda, always by unanimous vote, not the county attorney.
From an institutional perspective, the change proposed by Judge Emmett makes sense.
From the perspective of partisan politics and politician egos, it probably would have been wiser for Judge Emmett to take a page from Mayor White's playbook, and get his Commissioner's Court colleagues on board ahead of time by consulting with them as he apparently did his staff.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/23/08 08:55 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (2)
Houston should consider "broken-windows" approach to crimefighting
Over the little blog's short lifetime, we have posted with some regularity on broken-windows policing and CompStat, two approaches to crimefighting popularized by Rudy Giuliani in New York City (and treated with some disdain by MayorWhiteChiefHurtt).
The Economist runs some interesting news on a "broken-windows" social experiment:
A PLACE that is covered in graffiti and festooned with rubbish makes people feel uneasy. And with good reason, according to a group of researchers in the Netherlands. Kees Keizer and his colleagues at the University of Groningen deliberately created such settings as a part of a series of experiments designed to discover if signs of vandalism, litter and low-level lawbreaking could change the way people behave. They found that they could, by a lot: doubling the number who are prepared to litter and steal.
The idea that observing disorder can have a psychological effect on people has been around for a while. In the late 1980s George Kelling, a former probation officer who now works at Rutgers University, initiated what became a vigorous campaign to remove graffiti from New York City’s subway system, which was followed by a reduction in petty crime. This idea also underpinned the “zero tolerance” which Rudy Giuliani subsequently brought to the city’s streets when he became mayor.
Many cities and communities around the world now try to get on top of anti-social behaviour as a way of deterring crime. But the idea remains a controversial one, not least because it is often difficult to account for other factors that could influence crime reduction, such as changes in poverty levels, housing conditions and sentencing policy—even, some people have argued, the removal of lead from petrol. An experimental test of the “broken windows theory”, as Dr Kelling and his colleague James Wilson later called the idea, is therefore long overdue. And that is what Dr Keizer and his colleagues have provided.
The rest of the story is here.
We hope as the policing era of MayorWhiteChiefHurtt winds down and the mayoral race gets underway that the candidates will discuss (and embrace) innovative approaches to crime that continue to be proven effective -- especially since HPD remains short on manpower.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/23/08 08:29 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (2)
Andrea Georgsson has left the Chronicle
Andrea Georgsson, the Houston Chronicle editorial board member who apparently violated newspaper policy by donating to political candidates, has left the newspaper.
Georgsson left the newspaper just after the election, according to this column from Richard Prince:
Andrea Georgsson, the only African American editorial writer at the Houston Chronicle, left the paper Wednesday after being at the paper since 1987 and a member of the editorial board since 1995. "It was my own decision," Georgsson told Journal-isms. "I'm going to just follow my bliss," Georgsson, 44, said. She said she has three little boys to take care of and may do volunteer work.
Media monitor Cision (as well as Georgsson's own Facebook page) confirms the departure:
Longtime Houston Chronicle staffer leaves
Posted on: 11/10/2008Andrea Georgsson recently left her post as an editorial page writer for the Houston Chronicle. She previously served as an education reporter. Prior to that, she covered Harris County and state news. She joined the paper as an intern in 1987. To learn more, call 713-362-7171.
If anyone calls the number, please let us know if you "learn more." We would be surprised.
Recall that we found Georgsson had donated to the Harris County Judge campaign of David Mincberg (not to mention the presidential campaign of Barack Obama). Such donations apparently violate newspaper policy, and for good reason -- it is hard for an editorial board to preach transparency for others when it doesn't practice what it preaches. Even worse than the lack of transparency, it is thought that Georgsson penned at least one editorial about Harris County ethics (which referenced Ed Emmett, the incumbent opponent of Mincberg) -- an editorial that was quickly posted to Mincberg's campaign site.
The Houston Chronicle refused to answer substantive email queries about Georgsson in the leadup to the election, and has not addressed the scandal publicly. On the surface, it appears that Georgsson left the newspaper of her own accord. It seems likely, however, that both she and the newspaper concluded that it would be best for all if she moved on. We would email the reader representative and ask, but we have yet to see evidence that he actually uses email.
It's too bad that the Chronicle didn't take the opportunity to practice what it preaches about transparency and to inform readers about the scandal. Chronicle execs like to describe the editorial board as leading a community discussion, but more often it seems like the insular editorialists are simply lecturing to the community, without much interest in an actual conversation.
And it's not even a very good lecture these days. In recent weeks, the editorial board -- sans Georgsson and James Howard Gibbons -- has turned out some truly clunky prose. We certainly didn't agree wth Georgsson or Gibbons on most issues, but who knew their departures would give readers even less cause to visit a so-so, left-leaning editorial page?
Perhaps it's another reason for the Editorial Board to start a blog (as we've suggested before). Even poor writers can get better if they really work at the craft (practice, practice, practice!). Frequent blog posts on local affairs could be just the sort of practice that is needed. And who knows -- a little interaction with readers might actually improve a product that could use it.
BLOGVERSATION: Lone Star Times, Hair Balls.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/23/08 08:11 PM | Houston Chronicle | Technorati | Comments (3)
20 November 2008
Greek festival time (finally!)
Thanks to Hurricane Ike, the 42nd annual Greek Festival (put on by Annunciation Orthodox Church) was postponed from its usual time in early October. Not to worry -- your chance for good souvlaki and spanokopita and sweets and more is finally here!
Parking is always difficult near the festival. If you're not familiar with Montrose, your best bet is to park at Lamar High School and take the free Metro shuttle (details here).
Opa!
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/20/08 10:02 AM | Houston Life | Technorati | Comments (10)
Outstanding red-light camera ticket? No car registration for you!
City Council has approved MayorWhiteChiefHurtt's latest plan to get red light runners to pay their tickets:
The City Council on Wednesday approved a measure that will allow the state to deny vehicle registration to drivers who do not pay their red-light camera tickets after repeated warnings.
As many as 25 percent of those who receive the $75 citation never pay up. Until now, there was nothing the city could do about it.
Under the measure approved Wednesday, if a driver does not pay after 85 days, the city can get the Texas Department of Transportation to put a "hold'' on the vehicle owner's registration that cannot be cleared until the ticket is paid.
"It's not complex,'' Mayor Bill White said. "If you get a citation when you're running the red light, then you pay the citation. Or, if you think there's some mistaken identity, then you go and contest it. It's pretty simple. But what you don't have an option to do is just ignore the citation."
Yeah, if you want to contest a ticket, all you have to do is take time off work, arrange daycare for the kids, drive all the way to downtown, pay for parking, etc, etc. Simple.
Despite Mayor White's assertion that "it's not complex," there are concerns from other quarters:
Not so fast, said George Hammerlein, who handles local governmental affairs for Tax Assessor-Collector Paul Bettencourt's office.
Because that office administers registration renewals, the city would have to reach an interlocal agreement with the county, a step for which there still were a number of hurdles, Hammerlein said.
"We had a meeting and identified a series of areas we had concerns about before we could even think about going forward, and they haven't addressed them all yet," he said.
Hammerlein said a primary concern is customer service. If 100,000 people a year fail to pay red-light tickets, he said, that would mean 100,000 people could end up waiting in long lines at county offices to get new registrations, only to be turned away.
"That has a big impact on our lines and the overall customer service level that we strive for," he said.
And Councilman Sullivan wasn't sold on the plan:
Sullivan said he was skeptical of the ordinance for a number of reasons: What if a couple goes through a divorce and the notice of a ticket goes to the wrong address? What if someone gives away a vehicle as a gift? He also cast doubt on whether the process would be fluid, given that it involves the city; a private contractor that administers the cameras; the county, which handles vehicle registration renewals; and the state, which would apply the holds.
What could possibly go wrong?
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 11/20/08 05:38 AM | Houston Transit | Technorati | Comments (11)
19 November 2008
METRO addresses Danger Train collisions, financial deals gone bad
METRO's expensive blogger would like you to know that the organization has a plan for dealing with those pesky cars that keep running into the Danger Train:
For the past few months, left-hand turn accidents between cars and METRO trains have been increasing in the downtown area.
Now, METRO and the City of Houston Department of Public Works and Engineering, Traffic and Transportation Division has [sic] launched a pilot program to curb those accidents. It calls for a three-pronged approach that includes:
* Signal priority adjustments for METRORail
* New traffic-light fixtures
* Increased METRO police enforcement along the Red LineThe changes - implemented by METRO, the City of Houston Department of Public Works and Engineering, Traffic and Transportation Division - will also improve safety and help traffic move along Main Street and major intersections.
[snip]
With the resignaling, this means METRORail will get a green light first, before motorists get a green light to proceed. This allows the train to proceed ahead of regular traffic at intersections. Westbound and eastbound traffic will not be affected.
If all it takes to cut down on the number of traffic/train collisions is changing a few traffic signals, why in the world has it taken years of collisions to implement the plan? At-grade rail down a busy traffic corridor used by (bad) Houston drivers seems like the problem (more so than traffic signals). Nevertheless, the organization plans on building even more at-grade rail. Won't busy Richmond be a hoot when even heavier traffic blends with another Danger Train?
Meanwhile, METRO is begging the federal government to help save the profits it made by entering into sell/lease-back deals that required financial backing from firms like AIG (now in default -- uh oh!):
The Metropolitan Transit Authority joined 10 other transit agencies across the nation Tuesday as they urged Congress for help with financing deals imperiled by the credit crisis.
The move is the latest attempt by Metro and the other agencies to avoid millions in default payments triggered by the collapse of insurance giant American International Group.
AIG provided payment guarantees on lease agreements between Metro and several banks. Those deals required payment guarantees from insurers, such as AIG, with high credit ratings. The deals guaranteed by AIG now are in technical default as a result of the insurance giant's slashed credit rating.
[snip]
Metro entered into dozens of the deals, which allow transit agencies to sell rail cars, buses and other assets to banks and them lease them back.
All of the lease agreements were lawful and approved by the Federal Transit Administration.
Metro could be on the hook for about $14 million, roughly the amount in revenue it earned from the deals, officials have said.
Sometimes when a deal seems too good to be true...
Perhaps some intrepid reporter(s) will follow up with some obvious questions to the transit agency about future deals of this nature, and what it has done to mitigate its risks moving forward.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/19/08 10:02 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (2)
Armchair quarterbacking at HPD
Remember the police chase in which a man claiming to be a federal agent was shot and killed after he initiated a pursuit? Well, Houston Police Chief Harold Hurtt has disciplined two officers involved in the shooting. A major pet peeve of police officers is being second guessed by administrators who weren't even there. Of course there is a video and you can watch the video attached to the link. I'd like to know how Chief Hurtt was watching this video. The internal investigation found that:
Sgt. Andrew J. Washington and Officer Cecil A.T. Foster did not use sound judgment and did not follow department policy in the incident.
The department policy . . . they didn't talk to the man at the end of the chase! One officer was given a one-day suspension and the other officer was given a written reprimand. Both are appealing their punishments.
One could ask if Chief Hurtt and IAD were watching the video through the eyes of an officer in that situation, at that exact moment in time. Or with the eyes of a long time police administrator trying to use the benefit of hindsight, and "what ifs." Because the city is now being sued over this, were they watching this video looking for the slightest policy violation so that disciplinary action could be handed out to cover the city? Watch the video at the end of the chase. You can hear officers giving verbal commands that are plainly being ignored, so they are talking to him but he isn't listening.
Something to keep in mind is that a violation of policy doesn't mean a violation of the law or liability. Department policies are rules and guidelines that are supposed to have all officers act the same way in any situation. Well, policies, like laws, are interpreted differently by different people. Also, policies cannot foresee every possible situation and that's when officer discretion has to kick in. Think about this. Situations can change in an instant; policies and procedures don't change. For example, let's say a department has a policy that says officers, while involved in a vehicle pursuit, cannot chase the criminal the wrong way on the highway. Let's say the man running just killed a woman and kidnapped her baby. Knowing this policy, he drives east in the westbound lanes and, by a stroke of luck, there is no westbound traffic. Now what is this officer supposed to do? Follow department policy and not chase the kidnapper? Or use judgment and go after the kidnapper the wrong way on an empty road?
At least HPD's internal investigation found the shooting to be justified.
Posted by Jason @ 11/19/08 10:57 AM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (33)
18 November 2008
City to repay $15 million in HUD funds
Back in March, we noted that the city had been told to repay $15.5 million in HUD grants due to misuse of the funds. After months of negotiations, the city has finally agreed to repay the amount, and city council will vote on the proposed settlement this week (via the Chron's Mike Snyder):
The City Council on Wednesday will consider the five-year repayment plan, which city officials have been negotiating with HUD since May 2007.
The $15.5 million sum is unchanged from the amount HUD demanded in a letter to the city in March, although it is far less than about $32 million the agency once said the city owed. Even so, it represents one of the largest repayments HUD has ever demanded from a local government receiving its funds, the agency said.
Local and federal officials said they believe the settlement will signal a new era of cooperation after a troubled relationship that dates back 20 years. The problems peaked in 2005, when an audit of spending found that Houston's housing department chose projects based on its directors' whims, allowed for massive defaults on loans and created opportunities for conflicts of interest and fraud.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 11/18/08 04:59 AM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (2)
17 November 2008
Chron: Suspected illegal immigrants out on bail frequently disappear (UPDATED)
The Chronicle has posted some troubling reporting by Susan Carroll on illegal immigration and crime in the Houston area. Here's an excerpt from the story:
A Houston Chronicle investigation found dozens of cases in Harris County involving suspected illegal immigrants who posted bail and absconded on criminal charges, including murder, aggravated sexual assault of a child and drug trafficking.
The Chronicle examined arrest and immigration records for 3,500 inmates who told jailers that they were in the country illegally during a span of eight months starting in June 2007, the earliest immigration records available.
The review found at least 178 cases involving suspects who absconded, meaning they had their bails revoked for missing court dates or allegedly committing more crimes. Of those, 30 cases involved felony charges and two-thirds had initial bails set below $35,000 — the minimum recommended in the county's bail schedule for illegal immigrants accused of felonies.
Local officials said the problems stem from a shortage of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents dedicated to identifying illegal immigrants in the county's jails.
The entire story is well worth reading. Also see this related story.
Most readers here are aware of the broken-down immigration system and have some sense of the resulting illegal-immigration problem. But this story makes concrete the criminal impact of the illegal-immigration problem on the area (as opposed to, say, MayorWhiteChiefHurtt denying that Houston is a sanctuary city while simultaneously defending sanctuary policies as useful in getting illegal immigrants to trust the police and report crimes). It's the sort of analytical local journalism we like to see.
Carroll follows up with a report tonight that Sen. John Cornyn has called for an investigation of the ICE screening process in the Harris County jail.
UPDATE (11-18-2008): Another installment in the series is posted here. This one explores the use of probation in cases where deportation is an option.
The Chronicle's Teen Diarist also peeps in on the series to chide all you racist Houstonians for having your prejudices confirmed by... Carroll's detailed, analytical reporting. Here is one of the Teen Diarist's rambles:
There are many lessons from the Houston Chronicle's three-part series on federal officials' failure to detain or deport admitted illegal immigrants who commit crimes.
One is that immigration officials should spend more time at the Harris County Jail and less raiding Shipley Donuts, rag factories and meat-packing plants.
Another, confirmed by reader response to the articles, is that hatred knows no nuance.
Actually, the lessons from reality are that immigration officials need to enforce immigration law at the workplace (Shipley Donuts, rag factories, meat-packing plants, and other places that employ illegal immigrants... illegally!) AND that immigration officials definitely need to step up their game at the Harris County Jail. Thanks to Susan Carroll's excellent reporting, we know the latter, which we would not know if we relied on the Teen Diarist's opinion on such matters (we would just know that the Teen Diarist thinks many Houstonians who are critical of illegal immigration are racists).
Speaking of the Teen Diarist and race issues, this is a fine correction in today's column:
My apologies to Harris County prosecutor Tiffany Johnson. In my column Thursday about former prosecutor Mekisha Murray's decision to change her name to Jane after losing a judicial race, I mentioned how a trial bureau chief at the DA's office used to confuse Mekisha, who is white, with Tiffany, who, I wrote "happened to be white." I ended up making the same mistake as the trial chief. Tiffany is black.
It is unfortunate that this is what Jeff Cohen offers as a metro columnist in the nation's fourth-largest city (alongside a plagiarist whose background is San Antonio). I know the quality of a John Kass is a bit much to hope for, but surely Houston can do better than this.
BLOGVERSATION: Lose an Eye, It's a Sport.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/17/08 10:31 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (11)
A new Chron Eye for the Death Row Killer Guy!
Allan Turner offers up a Chron Eye for the Death Row Killer Guy* today.
The Death Row Killer Guy's lawyer declined to talk to the Chronicle, and the newspaper could not reach members of the victim's family, so Turner was reduced to building this Chron Eye from court testimony:
Cathey's sister, Charlotte Ezeh, testified that the killer was pampered at home. But his mother, Willie Lee Cathey, told jurors that the family's home life was tumultuous, with her husband drinking, using drugs and accosting family members with firearms.
Cathey married at 17 and fathered two children, jurors were told.
Luke Ezeh, Cathey's now former brother-in-law, said he employed the killer in his battery shop.
"He was a very good guy," Ezeh said. "He sold batteries and kept the money and never took anything from me. I don't think he deserves to die. He made a mistake, but he should be corrected, not put to death."
Ezeh said Cathey was a musician whose partner had absconded with a recording. "He was trying to locate him through the girl and things got out of hand," he said. "That is what I heard. I was not there."
In a death row interview, Cathey insisted he had spent the night of the murder watching television with his girlfriend.
"I am not guilty of the crime," Cathey said. "I never met the woman."
The killer admitted he had been convicted of an earlier drug offense, but said he had never served prison time.
Upon arriving on death row, he said, he was "very fearful."
"I knew that I didn't do anything," he said. "I had a sense of hopelessness. ... I had seen guys who had gone off to their executions."
Now, he added, "I play it by ear. I'm praying to God to work things out."
We trust that He will.
This Chron Eye does continue the very recent practice of working in the term "Huntsville death house," which the author/editors would surely deny is subtle editorializing** (despite the fact it tends to be used -- derisively -- by those opposed to the death penalty).
Why a shrinking business with declining readership continues to expend so many resources on pet political causes favored by the editor's wife is an ongoing mystery.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/17/08 10:11 PM | Houston Chronicle | Technorati | Comments (0)
16 November 2008
Dolcefino shines light on arts spending, draws fire from arts community
Over the past week, KTRK-13's Wayne Dolcefino spent some time looking at publicly funded art in Houston.
In this report, Dolcefino criticizes the expense of various projects and the lack of completed projects, and talks to an unimpressed city controller Annise Parker.
In this report, Dolcefino looks at some public art in a city sewer plant, proposed art in the form of yet another new sign at the airport, and even more projects that have yet to be completed.
And in this report, Dolcefino decries the lack of visible results after nearly $2 million annual "arts tourism" expenditures in the Museum District.
Needless to say, Dolcefino's stories haven't gone over very well in the Houston arts community. The La Dame San Regrets, Houston Arts Alliance, and Pithy blogs all responded to the reports.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/16/08 07:55 PM | Houston Arts/Culture | Technorati | Comments (33)
There's (more) poo poo in the bayou!
Last week, KTRK-13 reported on another nasty mess in one of our bayous:
Volunteers made a gross discovery in Buffalo Bayou while trying to clean up a park.
They found sewage leaking into the bayou. According to those volunteers, the problem stems from a hole in a sewage pipe that runs underneath a bridge.
They say the dirty water discharges when excess pressure builds up in the pipe.
Crews say they've been complaining about the leak for five years, but no one has fixed it yet.
Hey, the matter of investing in infrastructure to prevent recurring problems of poo-poo in the bayou just can't compete with trinket governance!
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/16/08 04:24 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (7)
14 November 2008
Papal exhibit coming to local museum
The Houston Business Journal reports that Houston will be hosting a unique papal exhibit later this month:
Houston’s National Museum of Funeral History will host the world’s first papal exhibit outside of the Vatican on Nov. 25.
The 5,000-square-foot exhibit, “Celebrating the Lives and Deaths of a Pope,” features the rituals by which popes have been elected and buried over the last 2,000 years.
The exhibit is part of a three-year collaboration between the Vatican and the not-for-profit National Museum of Funeral History, a collector of funeral memorabilia located at 415 Barren Springs Dr.
I have to admit that my sense of the macabre led me to our Museum of Funeral History years ago. It's worth the trip.
And the first papal exhibit outside of the Vatican? That almost sounds world class!
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/14/08 10:32 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (2)
What's in an election? Perhaps more than a name
The local newspaper's teen diarist chronicles one (losing) local judicial candidate's lament that her unusual name may have caused her loss last week. It reads a little like a bad Lifetime movie (or is "bad Lifetime movie" redundant?).
Meanwhile, the legal set over at A Harris County Lawyer's blawg offers supplemental discussion for grownups. This one was particularly entertaining.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/14/08 09:14 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (7)
Local corporate alt-weekly wants a political blogger
Remember back in the day when the Public News and the Houston Press covered local politics, and alt-media names like Fleck and Simmon and Woodall actually mattered?
That seems like a long time ago. These days, the corporate alt-media rag is practically begging for someone to write about local politics:
Hair Balls is looking for a good political blogger, one who can keep up with local and state goings-on.
We're not looking for inside-baseball minutia, but we don't want broad-brush "The Other Side Sucks!!" stuff linking to Daily Kos or NRO's The Corner.
It's Internet money, so you won't get rich, but you will get a chance to have a platform.
If you're a local political blogger and want to lend your talents to a publication that once covered local politics and occasionally shook things up, shoot 'em an email. We're looking forward to reading about local politics in the Press again (or at least reading the website).
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/14/08 08:43 PM | Houston Media | Technorati | Comments (1)
13 November 2008
That's Peter Brown, ARCHITECT
KHOU-11's Lee McGuire has a great quote from Councilmember Peter Brown on some goofy construction at the new Costco on Richmond:
We found a traffic signal and utility pole sticking out of a handicap ramp on the sidewalk.
The maze lines one side of the new Costco shopping complex along Richmond. The sidewalk is part of Houston's effort to become more pedestrian friendly.
[snip]
Houston City Council Member Peter Brown saw the sidewalk for himself on Thursday."Well that's a brand new pole," Brown said. "This is really the dumbest kind of construction I've seen in a long time and you know I'm an architect."
[snip]
"It's really frightening, it's atrocious that this would happen in a new project," Brown said. "But, you know, you can't blame anybody particularly, except I would blame the city for not having standards."
Peter Brown is an architect? Who knew?
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/13/08 09:50 PM | Houston People | Technorati | Comments (15)
12 November 2008
Another Houston driver takes on Danger Train, loses
In a rare bit of reporting on the topic, the Chron notes that a Danger Train crash took place earlier:
Three passengers on a MetroRail train were taken to a hospital this morning after the train collided with a car at a downtown intersection.
The accident occurred about 9:20 a.m. as the driver of the car attempted an illegal left turn at Main and Leeland, said Metro spoieswoman Raequel Roberts.
The passengers were taken to St. Joseph Medical Center with injuries that were deemed non-life-threatening, Roberts said.
The car was traveling on Leeland when it crossed the northbound train's path and was struck on the driver's side, Roberts said.
The driver, who was not injured, was cited by police for turning illegally, she said.
Northbound train service resumed about 10:50 a.m.
So, the Danger Train, METRO's "transit backbone," was out of service for an hour-and-a-half because at-grade light rail and bad Houston drivers continue to be a bad mix.
Imagine how well the coming at-grade rail lines in busy corridors like Richmond (which is how METRO and its sycophants translate "Westpark") will mix with Houston drivers!
BLOGVERSATION: Lose an Eye, It's a Sport.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/12/08 02:18 PM | Houston Transit | Technorati | Comments (9)
The Big Flip: HC GOP recriminations and navel-gazing (11/12/08 edition)
Texas Watchdog calls our attention to some interesting posts on National Review about Harris County's flip to the Dems
Last Thursday, David Frum apparently noticed the flip.
Since then, he's added three posts of reader emails interpreting the results, here, here, and here.
Shortly after the election, former Harris County GOP chair Gary Polland blasted the way the current regime (i.e. Woodfill/Blakemore) conducted the election. Sadly, the article will eventually scroll from the front page of the site, and there is no permalink currently available, which is something of a statement in itself on the local GOP's technological competence. The County Seat adds some perspective to the Polland broadside.
Those of you who followed the links and read the commentary -- what's your take? What are these folks getting right, getting wrong, and leaving out in terms of Harris County's big flip?
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/12/08 12:36 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (8)
10 November 2008
Upper Kirby TIRZ to put construction on hold for holiday shopping
The Chronicle's Rosanna Ruiz notes that progress (in the form of the massive Kirby reconstruction/drainage project) will be delayed over the holidays, so Upper Kirby businesses can sell you stuff:
Construction work will pause from Nov. 21 through Jan. 2, said Travis Younkin, capital projects coordinator for the Upper Kirby District.
Work along side streets will continue, though.
"We can't have construction crews working on the street during the busiest shopping season of the year," Younkin said.
The $18 million project, managed by the Upper Kirby District Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone, is scheduled to be completed by next November.
Kirby, from Richmond to Westheimer, will have three somewhat wider lanes in each direction, raised esplanades, wider sidewalks and more street lighting.
Overhead utility lines also will be placed underground, which should reduce worries about downed power lines during storms that would otherwise paralyze Kirby businesses.
Rarely are TIRZ officials so forthright about whose interests they prioritize.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/10/08 11:06 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (1)
'We stopped in because we saw the bulldog'
How many of you have been driving down the freeway, when a giant inflatable gorilla caught your eye, and you said, "I gotta go shopping!"?
Well, if some city councilmembers have their way, the big advertising balloons will be a thing of the past:
The gorillas — along with the giant eagles, balloon rockets and Uncle Sams that sometimes appear on the rooftops of car dealerships and other retail outlets — contribute to visual clutter and pose a potentially dangerous distraction to drivers, city officials say.
The City Council could vote on the ban at its Wednesday meeting. If approved, the ban also would prohibit flashy and motion-driven devices, such as dancing wind puppets, spinning pinwheels, pennants, streamers and strobe and spotlights.
"I call them attention-distracting devices," said Jeff Ross of the city's planning commission. Ross said getting rid of them will make Houston more competitive with other cities that have banned them, such as Dallas, Austin and St. Louis.
"They distract the eye, create potential safety obstacles, obscure permanent signage and create visual blight," said Tommy Friedlander, who chaired Mayor Bill White's On-Premise Sign Task Force.
Banning inflatable balloons is what will make Houston more competitive?? What about the sports stadiums? And the light rail? And the Pavilions?
What about the smoking ban? And the second city-funded convention center hotel? And the downtown park? And the skate park?
Shoot, if all that was required was banning some inflatable balloons, why didn't someone mention it sooner? Think of all the tax dollars that could have been saved!
Back to the story:
Shane Rhodes has a giant, inflated bulldog on the roof of his car dealership on Long Point.
"We get three or four customers a month who say, 'We stopped in because we saw the bulldog,' " Rhodes said.
I'm not sure how common that shopping strategy is, but to each their own. That's what makes America great.
Councilwoman Anne Clutterbuck isn't sold on the ban:
Officials said holiday displays and residential lawn decorations would be exempted from the ban. The prohibition would apply only to attention-getting devices used for commercial purposes.
That troubles Councilwoman Anne Clutterbuck. She asked how the city would distinguish between attention-getting devices and the holiday lights, bows and sparkly stars installed in Rice Village and the Galleria area.
"Both (are) used for commercial purposes," Clutterbuck said. "We deem those as tasteful and the others as tacky."
That's not the Ready! Fire! Aim! spirit Houston's known for! Why get bogged down in those pesky details?
Fittingly, the city already HAS an ordinance banning "attention-getting devices," but the city's Andy Icken complains it's unenforceable. How Houston-like!
For a strong close, here's Councilman James Rodriguez selling the ban:
They just make the neighborhoods look bad, they lower property values," he said of the inflatable animals. A giant duck that sits atop a check-cashing store in the Gulf Crest neighborhood has prompted residents to complain to his office, Rodriguez said.
"Their homes are their sanctuaries, and they want to go out into their backyards, and they look up and see this big duck."
It's what we all dream of -- a backyard view that doesn't include a giant duck.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 11/10/08 07:33 PM | Houston Politics | Technorati | Comments (19)
08 November 2008
Bicyclist Bob Stein goes international, downplays Obama's accomplishments vis-a-vis Hillary Clinton
Bicyclist Bob Stein, Houston's (Democratic) expert on everything and every (lazy) local political journalist's go-to man for the obvious quote, has gone international! The bicyclist is featured in today's Ottawa Citizen:
Bob Stein, author and political science professor at Rice University in Houston, agrees that the Clinton campaign was more substantive than Mr. Obama's.
"She was far more specific on policy," he says. "And my guess now is that she is more interested in her policies than she is in position."Pushing Mrs. Clinton as Senate majority leader would be controversial and difficult, says Ms. Parry-Giles, who is writing a book about media coverage of the former first lady dating back to her pre-White House days.
[snip]
Whatever becomes of Mrs. Clinton, she remains very much in the political game, adds Mr. Stein.
"Nobody thought that either a black man or a woman could be a candidate for president," he says, "and what she achieved was breaking a glass ceiling that was even more formidable than the barriers to electing a black man."
Huh?!
Gee, we wonder whom the bicyclist supported in the primaries? Not that he would ever let us know, given the reputation of impartial bicyclist/political observer that he must uphold (for lazy local political journalists, at least). *wink* *nod*
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/08/08 07:34 PM | Houston People | Technorati | Comments (1)
County attorney-elect promotes watchdog role
Many of us are weary of both pre-election and post-election commentary, but here's a snippet on Harris County Attorney-elect Vince Ryan that's worth posting:
Ryan, a lawyer, said he is the right person to be coming into government now. The County Attorney's Office, he said, can play the role of watchdog and try to insist that county officials and employees take the ethical high road.
"What county government needs is a group of watchdogs, not lapdogs," Ryan said. "The County Attorney's Office is an absolute key to the checks and balances on county government."
We hope the new county attorney is serious about playing the role of watchdog, and will do so in an impartial and nonpartisan manner. County government would be better for it.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/08/08 01:37 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (0)
City removes negligent apartment owner, enters "uncharted territory"
The Chronicle's Matt Stiles and Bradley Olson have details on the city's actions this week in removing the owner of a rundown apartment complex:
In the latest case involving La Casita Apartments, 313 Sunnyside, Mayor Bill White marshaled the help of an old high school friend who retired in 2004 as a federal bankruptcy judge. With his help, city lawyers were able in less than 24 hours to get a judge to turn control of the property over to a new management company.
"I felt that we needed to act immediately to both hold the owner accountable and use the legal remedies in bankruptcy to protect the property," White said. "We are getting much better at identifying and remedying substandard apartments."
[snip]
City officials also said they do not expect to recoup $1.3 million in federal housing money loaned to the property for improvements that state records show began about a decade ago.
Still, officials said the initial success with La Casita was good news, since it can be replicated with other substandard complexes that have vexed inspectors and police.
"This is a great step," said City Councilman James Rodriguez, who has taken an active role in the crackdown. "I know we're in uncharted territory here, but we have to be proactive. Enough is enough."
Houston's push against bad housing began last year after two children were shocked by an unguarded power transformer at an apartment complex, but began in earnest this summer after several Houston Chronicle stories documented substandard conditions in a number of properties.
White announced plans to spend $1 million a year to create a new team of multifamily inspectors. That team, which has yet to be completely formed, now can proactively visit properties and issue citations instead of making trips only after complaints, as had been done in the past.
Since White announced plans to add inspectors, two children have died after being crushed by a staircase that collapsed at a complex that had not been inspected since 1996. Another toddler drowned in a squalid apartment complex last month, only hours after an inspections coordinator had visited the property and noted a damaged fence around the pool.
Hopefully, this won't end up in the category of "Ready! Fire! Aim!" governance.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 11/08/08 10:36 AM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (5)
05 November 2008
Election '08: The next day
As expected, the Harris County GOP took quite a pounding last night, although it was not the complete sweep that seemed like a real possibility.
We have an ongoing discussion in this comments thread from yesterday, so feel free to drop in and join the conversation We're especially interested in your thoughts on the area races, and what the new faces are likely to mean for Harris County government and criminal justice.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/05/08 09:29 AM | Houston Politics | Technorati |
03 November 2008
Election Day '08 is here!
The Big Election is finally upon us, and we'll soon say goodbye to all the annoying political ads, mailers, signs, robocalls, and the like, at least for a little while (but Peter Brown really wants to be mayor, so it likely won't last long).
While the little blog is generally not partisan (we believe the major political parties have ample resources to put out their messages without our help) and doesn't do endorsements, we are definitely supportive of free markets, free minds, transparent government, and responsible journalism. We are generally conservative in our political outlook, which should not come as a surprise to many.
Needless to say, the results tomorrow are not likely to make very many conservatives all that happy, at the national level or here locally. Especially here locally, since that's the focus of the little blog. More on that in a moment*, but in light of Tuesday's likely results, I'd like to post some thoughts from my friend Orrin Judd, who runs what I consider the finest conservative blog going:
If it is natural for those who don't genuinely believe in American ideals to be easily alienated, it is thoroughly unnatural for we who believe devoutly to succumb to similar despair. What, after all, is an unwelcome election result or an inept politician or even an unfortunate law or two in comparison to your family, your friends, your neighbors, your community, your relationship with God?
I had two people tell me remarkably similar stories this weekend about being at social events and having people launch into tirades about religion or conservatives or both. One had a friend say: "I'm sure I'm offending you, but...." To which they responded, bewildered: "What? But you don't care?" We can pity the folk who behave (misbehave) in this manner, but we must not react by aping them. The impulse to vent must be subordinated to the values of friendship, citizenship, comity, and, yes, love. Where it is inexplicable to the Bright that anyone could differ with them, it is doctrine to us that people will disagree, even on the most fundamental issues. Where it is unimaginable to them that Reason could have yielded up an erroneous answer, it is obvious to us that Fallen Man is prone to mistake, oneself no less than another. Where they seem to think that spilling enough bile will act as a solvent to disagreements, we know such divisions to be part of the human predicament and the proper response to be an attempt at understanding, not an intellectual bludgeoning.
I've been absurdly fortunate in life and not at all unfortunate in politics. My first vote was cast for Ronald Reagan in 1980 and since then my preference has prevailed more often than not. But in 1992 we were living in Chicago and I walked out of the polling place facing the seemingly dire prospect that, despite my vote, Bill Clinton, Carol Mosely-Braun, and Dan Rostenkowski would be announced as winners later that night. Woe the Republic, eh? Well, last night our eldest asked what the best decade of the 20th Century was. And there's really only one honest response to that question: the 1990s.
A good many of us may feel a tad homeless as we walk out of the polling place on Tuesday, but we'll emerge into the sunlight (or snow here) very much at home. And there's every possibility that we'll be more at home in the months and years to come than those who vote differently. America is rather more resilient than we're prone to imagine in our darkest moments and politics means rather less than we're wont to recognize in the midst of a campaign. Think about what truly matters and be happy. Life is awfully good.
With all that, we're going to throw open the thread for your election thoughts. Most anything related to the election is fair game -- national, local, whatever. We'll just ask that you keep in mind Orrin's comments and also our general rules that we should try to treat each other courteously, and focus on ideas rather than personalities.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/03/08 10:30 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (57)
A quarter of a million to tag taco trucks?
The Chronicle's Carolyn Feibel posts that Council this week will consider an expenditure of $250,000 and a bit of change for a radio tag system that will be used to track whether taco trucks are complying with city regulations.
Feibel editorializes in favor of the expenditure:
Before I get too snarky, I'll admit that it's good to see the city taking steps to enforce one of its regulations. Too often, officials pass well-meaning regulations, but there's no impetus or budget to enforce the law. And just last week, the council decided to discard a bike-permit regulation after city officials admitted that enforcement was not a priority, and few followed the law, including the mayor himself. (Story).
So, perhaps tagging the taco trucks is a high-tech answer to enforcement, at least in this arena.
What say you, blogHOUSTONians?
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/03/08 08:34 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (6)
02 November 2008
Pasadena to get METRO service
Meanwhile, the outer reaches of Harris County still get nothing. Except taxed, of course.
The last Chron Move It! column had news of Pasadena's new service:
Metro approved a proposal to expand bus service to Pasadena beginning next year. Metro expects to run buses from Houston to Pasadena's Town Square Mall with a stop at the Monroe Park and Ride.
Similar service from the Monroe site is now available to Baytown.
Metro predicts an annual cost of $79,000. Harris County and federal funds are expected to cover the new route since it lies outside Metro's service area.
How nice for them.
Here's an idea: If METRO can expand its service to non-taxed areas by contract, how about if non-serviced areas have the ability to terminate their taxed contract with METRO?
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 11/02/08 12:58 PM | Houston Transit | Technorati | Comments (6)
In anticipation of the the Grand Parkway's F-2 segment...
...a Dallas developer has bought a chunk of land at Spring Steubner and Kuykendahl for a new retail center:
The undeveloped land bought by Hopkins Commercial Real Estate Inc. is located at the southeast corner of Kuykendahl and Spring Stuebner, just north of Houston. The property was purchased last month from three separate owners for an undisclosed amount. Most of the property was previously earmarked for residential construction.
Steve Gregory, president of Dallas-based Hopkins Commercial, said the site is a long-term investment for a retail center that will be built, possibly in one to three years. The site is attractive to the company because a leg of the Grand Parkway that will start construction in late 2010 will go by the 56 acres.
Swell.
PREVIOUSLY: Grand Parkway archives
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 11/02/08 12:13 PM | Houston Transit | Technorati | Comments (4)
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