21 June 2007
Houston's mystery bookstore hosts two thriller writers this week
Thanks to problems with a "defective modem," I've been unable to post until now. So, while this is short notice the author visits are well worth a quick mention. Murder by the Book hosts a double signing tomorrow (Friday, June 22, 2007) at 6:00 p.m. with writers John Connolly and Jeffrey Deaver. Connolly will sign his latest, The Unquiet. (I actually have this one as my on-the-plane-read Sunday as I head out of town.) Deaver will be signing The Sleeping Doll. I've enjoyed Deaver's books in the past and still count his The Empty Chair a favorite.
Posted by Vikk Simmons @ 06/21/07 06:17 PM |
20 June 2007
Not world class: Houston ERs get national attention
Yesterday, a reader passed along a USA Today story by Richard Wolf on Houston's overwhelmed emergency healthcare services. Here is a quick excerpt:
Ijeoma Onye awoke one day last month short of breath, her head pounding. Her daughter, Ebere Hawkins, drove her 45 minutes from Katy, Texas, to Ben Taub General Hospital, where people without health insurance pay little or nothing for treatment.
Onye, 62, waited four hours to be seen. Still, going to the emergency room was faster than getting an appointment. For that, "you have to wait months," Hawkins says.
Ben Taub is the hub of the Harris County Hospital District, a network of hospitals and care centers serving the Houston area's 1.1 million uninsured residents and hundreds of thousands more with little coverage. Here, the national statistic of 45 million uninsured people is more than a number. It's a crisis.
Nationally, more than 15% are uninsured. In Texas it's nearly 24%, the Census Bureau says, the highest percentage among the states. Here in Harris County, it's 30%, according to state figures, the highest rate among the nation's top 10 metropolitan areas.
As the Houston area struggles to deal with a rising tide of uninsured, it offers a lesson for the nation: Let the problem get out of hand — to a point where nearly 1 in 3 people have no coverage — and you won't just have a less healthy population. You'll have an overwhelmed health care system.
"Texas is the case study for system implosion," says neurosurgeon Guy Clifton, founder of the Houston-area group Save Our ERs.
The problems here, as elsewhere, are many. Small employers are dropping health coverage. Federal and state subsidies don't make up the difference. Illegal immigrants represent 21% of the county's public caseload, even though they represent only about 6% of the area's population.
Many people treat hospital emergency rooms as their healthcare provider of choice (when urgent care clinics would be a better choice -- the problem being that those clinics do tend to expect payment or insurance), which is obviously straining the system to the breaking point. And while the story focuses on the uninsured, probably the illegal/poor immigrant problem is the bigger story for Houston.
I'm not going to pretend to have the answers to this complex problem (What? Can I admit that, or will my blogging credentials be revoked?), but it's clear that the local problem is pretty serious, even if it doesn't attract the amount of attention one would expect.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/20/07 10:24 PM |
19 June 2007
White demands Hurtt exercise common sense on license plate frames
The Chronicle's Matt Stiles reports that Mayor White has reversed a decision by his bumbling, absentee police chief on the matter of continuing to ticket motorists for what are technically license plate frame violations (despite amendments to the law that take effect in a few months):
Calling the practice a "gotcha system," Mayor Bill White on Monday said Houston police shouldn't ticket motorists for having common brackets around their license plates that will no longer be illegal when a revised state law takes effect in September.
The department had been issuing the $98 tickets under a broadly worded state statute intended to prevent motorists from trying to evade authorities by obscuring their plates.
The state's top appellate court ruled recently that the law's wording meant that any covering of the plate — even the stars, moon or state nickname — was a violation.
The Houston Chronicle reported Sunday that officers had issued at least 9,500 such tickets since January, including 2,200 since Gov. Rick Perry signed a bill that would allow drivers to have brackets advertising car dealers or touting alumni affiliations.
White said he planned to tell both Police Chief Harold Hurtt and the city's top prosecutor, Randy Zamora, that motorists shouldn't be punished if an officer can reasonably determine the state and plate numbers.
"Our law enforcement officers should have better things to do," White said. "We're not there to just have some gotcha system. The purpose of these moving-violation citations is to discourage unlawful behavior, not to generate the maximum amount of revenue possible."
Good for Mayor White.
And good for Matt Stiles, whose reporting on this matter obviously made a difference.
The Editorial LiveJournalists had an amusing Me-Me moment today on the same topic:
One ticket recipient, a freelance journalist who writes editorials for the Chronicle, was ticketed the morning after Hurtt made his comments to the paper's editorial board.
That's one way to get the attention of the Editorial LiveJournalists!
BLOGVERSATION: NewsWatch: City Hall.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/19/07 10:08 AM |
18 June 2007
MayorWhiteChiefHurtt address southwest Houston crime
Over the weekend, the Chronicle's Anne Marie Kilday reported on a surge in crime in southwest Houston:
Facing complaints that recent armed robberies and assaults have caused business to drop by 25 percent in southwest Houston's Chinatown, Mayor Bill White and Police Chief Harold Hurtt are taking steps to put more police officers in the neighborhood.
The mayor and police chief met with Chinatown community and business leaders Wednesday, where they heard concerns about rising crime.
Though community leaders asked for officers to be posted at 13 specific locations, White said other "proven crime-solving techniques" would be used.
Because recent statistics show crime has increased in three police beats nearest to Chinatown, White and Hurtt said more officers will be dispatched to those three beats. In addition, undercover officers and detectives will be sent to "hot spots." White also directed Hurtt to meet regularly with a neighborhood liaison to keep the community posted.
The Asian American community conference was called by Sugar Land City Councilman Daniel Wong, in response to several home invasions after shoppers or diners in Chinatown were followed home by armed robbers.
"The community is hurting, is scared, upset and angry, because we are not used to seeing these things happening in our community. We need immediate action on police visibility," Wong said.
Kenneth Li, president of the Asian American Business Council, said the crime wave had caused "a noticeable drop in evening shopping and dining," and potential investors were reconsidering plans to put money into the neighborhood.
Three community leaders recounted a series of violent and brazen crimes that had recently been committed in the Chinatown Southwest area, a popular shopping district centered at Bellaire and Corporate.
Unfortunately, violent and brazen crimes are on the rise in too many parts of Houston. It's too bad there aren't enough cops for a "surge" all across town.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/18/07 11:45 PM |
17 June 2007
HPD cranks up revenue stream before license plate law revisions kick in
The Chronicle's Matt Stiles reports that HPD is taking full revenue-stream advantage of a poorly written 2003 Texas law on license plate frames (before revisions kick in later this year):
Houston police officers continue writing tickets to motorists with brackets bordering their license plates despite a new law passed last month making it clear drivers should be cited only if the plate is significantly obscured.
Since January, officers have issued at least 9,500 citations for what they considered license plate obstructions — generally the brackets advertising car dealers or touting sports and alumni loyalties.
Municipal court records also show that since May 4, when Gov. Rick Perry signed a bill that clarified the existing law, at least 2,200 motorists have been cited.
The new law doesn't go into effect until September, but the zeal with which tickets have been issued since Perry signed it has angered some of the cited motorists and disappointed the two Houston-area lawmakers who clarified the rules during the recent legislative session.
"It was never the intention of the Legislature for people to be receiving traffic citations for having license brackets," said state Sen. Tommy Williams, R-The Woodlands, who sponsored the bill. "It's clearly out of bounds for them to be issuing tickets now."
He added a common complaint among motorists interviewed by the Houston Chronicle: "It gives the impression that they're just trying to collect revenue."
It does give that impression, yes.
There are more interesting details in the fine story by Stiles, which should be read in its entirety.
If you have a license plate frame on your car, you might want to consider removing it, at least until September.
BLOGVERSATION: NewsWatch: City Hall.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/17/07 09:58 PM |
Terror plot stories on the weekends are so inconvenient
A couple of weeks ago, the local Hearst daily, like the vaunted New York Times, chose to bury inside the newspaper the story of a developing terror plot against New York's JFK airport. The New York Times placed the story on page 37.
That prompted the new public editor of the Times to start his column early, with criticism of the decision:
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/17/07 09:45 PM |
Continental Airlines is to blame for the passport fiasco?
Those who travel (for fun or for business) or who follow travel news/blogs obsessively are, no doubt, well aware of the ongoing fiasco with the issuance of passports, in which tighter rules for western hemisphere travel have resulted in a passport backlog that nobody seems to have a clue how to fix.
It's been a less-than-stellar performance by our federal government, with plenty of blame to share between the legislative and executive branches (although State and Homeland Security certainly get the most).
Last weekend, though, one of the Chronicle's temporary Rick Casey replacements picked a most unlikely culprit to blame for the fiasco (so unlikely I've not seen it anywhere else, despite my near obsession with travel news):
In a January memo, the Department of Homeland Security's office of Customs and Border Protection told airlines that during the initial phase of the new passport requirements, airlines wouldn't be fined for not complying. They were encouraged to implement a "flexible phased" policy allowing wiggle room while the program got off the ground, according to Customs spokeswoman Kelly Klundt.
[snip]
Technically, the government hasn't even been enforcing the new passport requirements for Americans traveling to Mexico, Canada and the Caribbean. The Customs memo promised to notify the airlines in writing 30 days before the law took full effect. That hasn't happened yet.
[snip]
"That wasn't publicly disseminated because we didn't want to encourage travelers not to comply," Klundt said. "We're walking a tightrope here. We're trying to implement something that Congress told us to implement, while making sure that Congress' constituents aren't stranded travelers."
[snip]
Meanwhile, some airlines, such as Fort Worth-based American, chose to quietly follow the memo, allowing flexibility. For instance, American allows U.S. citizens to travel to Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean with a birth certificate if they haven't gotten their passports.
Other airlines, including Houston-based Continental and Arizona-based U.S. Airways, chose to ignore the memo and require passports, even at the risk of stranding passengers caught up in an unprecedented passport-application backlog. In the Houston regional office alone, it has mounted to 90,000 applications.
The result is a national fiasco....
[snip]
So why has our hometown airline decided not to help?
As consumer travel has finally recovered from the 9/11 shock and airlines (not to mention air traffic control systems) are bursting at the seams with travelers, it's become a populist pastime to bash the airlines. And with service cutbacks, delays, and stranding of passengers growing more frequent, the airlines do deserve some of the criticism they get from their customers.
But blaming the airlines (specifically Continental Airlines) because the federal government has made a fiasco out of a basic function of government (passport issuance) is one of the silliest things we've seen from the local Hearst daily in a while. It's almost as silly as the federal government using the local Hearst daily to bash the airlines for literally following their rules (or not following their rules, or not reading their minds, or not doing something to make it all better, whatever that might be). It's even sillier than this, in my view.
How much longer before Rick Casey gets back?
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/17/07 11:58 AM |
Judge Emmett: the emir of the state of Incumbistan
Columnist-extraordinaire Mark Steyn made a killer observation last week regarding Mississippi Senator Trent Lott:
I have no serious expectations of Senators these days, but I would like them at the very least to try and sound a little less like the plump complacent emirs of the one-party-state of Incumbistan. Trent Lott fails even that test.
If he gets in, Bacarisse will face County Judge Ed Emmett in a Republican primary. Emmett was appointed by commissioner's court earlier this year when Robert Eckels resigned.
"I know he wanted to be county judge. The folks down at the county considered him and chose me instead," Emmett said of Bacarisse.
Emmett also questioned Bacarisse's qualifications for the job. Bacarisse, 43, has been district clerk for 12 years, his ministerial duties include summoning prospective jurors for state and county courts and maintaining certain court files. The county judge deals largely with regional issues, including transportation and emergency management.
"The other thing that is woefully lacking, is if Charles were not district clerk, what would he be? He has never had a job outside government," Emmett said.
"He's sat at the public trough his whole life."
If Emmett is practicing bare knuckles politics before Bacarisse has even declared, it's a just a taste of what's to come in a primary.
Or it could be to scare Bacarisse out of entering the race.
Emmett said he doesn't understand why "Republican activists" would want a spirited primary when there is going to be a tough general election next year.
The only reason to throw out an incumbent is if you want to do something different or better, Emmett said.
It's a stretch to call Emmett an incumbent said Jim McGrath, a spokesman for Friends of Charles Bacarisse.
"He is the sitting judge. I accord him the respect the office is entitled to. But no one deserves a coronation. There should be a contest of ideas. He needs to be tested in a primary," McGrath said.
"Voters get to decide who has the right experience for the job. No one should be arrogant enough to substitute their own personal will against that of the majority."
Holy cow. Ed Emmett is quite a piece of work. Thanks (again), Judge Eckels.
ADDING MORE: Emmett's quote above really grates, where he says HE was chosen, not Bacarisse. Just because a backroom deal was cut does not mean Harris County Republicans have no say in the next election. From the beginning, Emmett has come across as a fairly unlikable fellow, and maybe that's just his public persona, but he needs to win over voters, and this type of arrogance isn't the way to do it. Voters don't appreciate being left out of the process, and we certainly don't like being told that we don't need a choice.
Also, The Emmett Company, a transporation consulting group, will continue to be headed by Judge Emmett:
Currently, Mr. Emmett is serving as County Judge of Harris County, Texas. The Harris County Commissioners Court unanimoustly appointed him to replace Robert Eckels, who resigned on March 6, 2007. Judge Emmett will continue to own The Emmett Company and direct the overall strategy[...]
I certainly hope some local watchdog journalist will keep an eye on the transportation projects the county approves, if you get my drift.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 06/17/07 08:39 AM |
16 June 2007
The really stupid idea that just won't die
The government's propensity to encourage stupidity on a massive scale takes another step forward as Harris County allows the Astrodome Redevelopment Group to continue planning the Astrodome Luxury Hotel and Convention Center (via Chron.com):
During the next three months, Astrodome Redevelopment will try to clear another hurdle: convincing the Texans and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo that they can coexist with a 1,200-room, four-star convention hotel.
The Dome would include a 2,100-space garage around part of the exterior, nightclubs, restaurants and retail stores. Astrodome Redevelopment officials envision the facility as a destination attraction, with winding waterways and gondola rides.
Winding waterways and gondola rides -- awesome!
It's unclear if the developers have any idea what it takes to become a "four-star hotel." It ain't easy. And the determination isn't based on winding waterways and gondola rides.
The comments in the Chron.com story are pretty entertaining. Last I checked, most of the commenters were skeptical of this boondoggle, but a few were waxing poetic about how terrific this would be for the Astrodome, and how small-minded naysayers are. Here's a sampling:
If you build it, they will come. If this project is developed correctly, this will become a tremendous destination for outside tourists as well as Houstonians, and you all know this is true. Why should people go to Vegas for Gondola rides? Gondola rides in Vegas seem just as stupid to me as gondola rides in Houston, because I've been to Italy. People go to Vegas for Gondola rides, why not Houston's Astrodome? If they go to the Nevada DESERT for gondola rides, why not the Gulf Coast?
Vegas or Houston? Houston or Vegas? Why would people want to go to Vegas when they could ride gondolas in Houston? I dunno.
This building is too good to destroy, and we will be idiots if we cannot use our vision and foresite to use this structure for economic means. If a person can't begin to grasp how this structure can add value to our city, then that person should just move away. We should respect those who had the vision to build the Astrodome, and try to rise to their level. This building is not only worth keeping, this building is a huge landmark, and should be preserved in perpetuity. I guarantee that this structure will be a HUGE money maker after the investments have been made. You people have no vision for the future.
Good grief!
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 06/16/07 02:13 PM |
15 June 2007
Why the Danger Train will always have to be heavily subsidized
KTRH-740 is running an AP story on its website that perfectly explains why light rail transit in Houston will never come close to supporting itself:
AAA spokesman Geoff Sundstrom said commuters are willing to drive more fuel-efficient autos but are loath to give up the keys entirely, regardless of gas prices. He said many people equate carpooling and mass transit with "a decline in their personal standard of living."
"The freedom of mobility that comes with the use of a personal automobile is something we are very, very reluctant to give up as individuals," Sundstrom said.
That's it in a nutshell. The vast majority of people are unwilling to give up their personal freedom just because some utopians think they should.
Light rail is terribly inflexible, and subject to power failures and weather-caused shutdowns. Light rail cannot go to most of the citizenry; most of the citizenry must go to light rail. Light rail counts on customers who are willing to be part-time pedestrians, not always an inviting prospect in Houston. And if someone has children in daycare, or has to stop off at the grocery store on the way home, good luck getting there with light rail.
Oh, and for all that inflexibility, taxpayers get to foot a hefty bill: more than $20 per MetroRail rider. The per-rider bus subsidy is around five dollars.
The point is most people work hard to attain a good quality of life, and they don't want to give it up. Folks want to have the freedom to go where they want, when they want. And the dirty little secret is that most of the loudest rail supporters will never use public transportation themselves (i.e., Metro officials, Chronicle editors, COH officials). They just hope others will.
No thanks.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 06/15/07 07:29 PM |
14 June 2007
Marcus Luttrell book signing on Saturday
Reader Steven Walker calls our attention to a Washington Post story about a Houston-area hero.
Here's an excerpt:
The blood in his eyes almost blinded him, but the Navy Seal could hear, clattering above the trees in northeast Afghanistan, rescue helicopters.
Hey, he pleaded silently. I'm right here.
Marcus Luttrell, a fierce, 6-foot-5 rancher's son from Texas, lay in the dirt. His face was shredded, his nose broken, three vertebrae cracked from tumbling down a ravine. A Taliban rocket-propelled grenade had ripped off his pants and riddled him with shrapnel.
As the helicopters approached, Luttrell, a petty officer first class, turned on his radio. Dirt clogged his throat, leaving him unable to speak. He could hear a pilot: "If you're out there, show yourself."
It was June 2005. The United States had just suffered its worst loss of life in Afghanistan since the invasion in 2001. Taliban forces had attacked Luttrell's four-man team on a remote ridge shortly after 1 p.m. on June 28. By day's end, 19 Americans had died. Now U.S. aircraft scoured the hills for survivors.
There would be only one. Luttrell's ordeal -- described in exclusive interviews with him and 14 men who helped save him -- is among the more remarkable accounts to emerge from Afghanistan. It has been a dim and distant war, where after 5 1/2 years about 26,000 U.S. troops remain locked in conflict.
Out of that darkness comes this spark of a story. It is a tale of moral choices and of prejudices transcended. It is also a reminder of how challenging it is to be a smart soldier, and how hard it is to be a good man.
The rest of the WaPo story is fascinating.
As it turns out, Luttrell is from the Houston area (roughly speaking).
His book, Lone Survivor was just just released this week, and Luttrell will be signing copies at Borders in The Woodlands on Saturday. If you're in the vicinity on Saturday, you might consider stopping by and giving a shout out to a true local hero.
UPDATE: KHOU-11 News covered this story Friday.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/14/07 10:40 PM |
13 June 2007
Maybe not Manhattan, but definitely world class
KRIV-26's Isiah Carey posts a press release announcing a new skatepark in Houston, with a press event scheduled for Thursday.
The title of the press release is exciting:
Announcing a World-Class Skatepark for Houston
It's always good when Houston can be world-class!
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/13/07 11:55 PM |
Kotkin mistakes West Houston for Manhattan?
In the latest Houston Press, Rich Connelly has a little fun with urban commentator/self promoter extraordinaire Joel Kotkin, who has recently gotten attention for a study he did for the Greater Houston Partnership.
This was an entertaining exchange:
The Greater Houston Partnership, our area's version of the Chamber of Commerce, commissioned yet another study about how this area should encourage growth. Cities like Atlanta and Charlotte have done the same thing, and come out with plans to attract young brainy types by hyping just how hip their cities are.
The report to the GHP by urban expert Joel Kotkin of Los Angeles, on the other hand, said Houston should forget about trying to be trendy.
Hair Balls: What, we're not hip?
Joel Kotkin: I've always said if you need a campaign to prove you're hip and cool, you're not. Personally, I think Houston's very cool...You know, I went out with [friends] to a sushi bar on Westheimer. It was 8:30 at night, it was winter and I swear I thought I was on the West Side of Manhattan.
HB: Whaaaat?
Yeah, that was our reaction.
But in a way, it's good news. We don't need to build that downtown soccer stadium to be like Manhattan. We're already like Manhattan. Or at least West Houston is.
In some bizarre alternate universe.
BLOGVERSATION: Houston Strategies.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/13/07 11:24 PM |
We remember that guy
The Drudge Report has been touting a South Florida Sun-Sentinel story on Broward County's threat to cancel business with a Florida radio station because it airs Rush Limbaugh. Here is an excerpt with the background:
Radio station WIOD, AM 610, has been the official channel for emergency information from Broward County government for the past year. The County Commission, all Democrats, balked at renewing the deal Tuesday, unable to stomach the station also being home to Limbaugh's talk show.
Commissioner Stacy Ritter said she did not want to support a station that's out of step with area politics. Ritter, a Democratic stalwart in the state Legislature before being elected to county office, cited talk shows hosted by Limbaugh and Sean Hannity and WIOD's partnership with Fox News.
"They have every right to speak, but we don't have to do business with them," she said.
It's not a Houston-centric story of the type we usually discuss here, but friend Matt Bramanti called our attention to this part:
Ken Charles, WIOD's director of AM programming, said Tuesday the station's talk show lineup has no relationship with its news coverage and that the county should focus on the benefits of teaming with the station.
"It's a shame that people would let politics get in the way of saving lives in a hurricane," Charles said.
That would be the same Ken Charles who formerly oversaw Clear Channel's Houston talk operations, and sometimes found himself in the middle of such media stories here.
It seems like he's settled into his new home and is doing his thing in south Florida.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/13/07 09:34 PM |
Paying more and getting less (cont'd)
The Chronicle's Robert Crowe reports that the city is considering ways to cut down on false alarms from burglar alarms:
Hoping to curb a growing problem with false alarms, city officials are considering an increase in burglar-alarm fees and fines.
Houston police say false calls cost the city $9 million a year. That's $5 million more than what the city generates in burglar-alarm permit fees and fines each year, HPD Capt. Dwayne Ready said.
"We're really trying to look at how to reduce the number of (false) calls because it's so high," Ready said.
Under the city's current ordinance, residents and businesses are not charged for the first five false burglar alarms. The city charges the owner $50 for each subsequent false alarm.
The proposed revisions would limit properties to three free false alarms.
The fourth and fifth false alarms would cost $50. The sixth and seventh would cost $75, and any more would cost $100 each.
It makes sense for the city to try to cut down on false alarms, and in a way that puts the cost on those who cause false alarms.
Of course, it's the White Administration, so a chance to boost the revenue potential comes into play:
The city also is considering a plan to boost the annual residential permit fee to $30 from $15. Commercial permit fees would increase to $70 from $40 a year.
That would be a 100% increase in the alarm permit fee. In the name of public safety, of course (and not revenue enhancement).
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/13/07 09:08 PM |
12 June 2007
Vikk Simmons book signing Saturday
Local author and bH books/culture blogger Vikk Simmons informs that she will hold a signing this Saturday for her (and co-author Elaine Galit's) book Exploring Texas History: Weekend Adventures.
For those who are still trying to figure out a good Father's Day gift, that sounds like it might definitely work. Or maybe you just want a signed copy for yourself.
In any case, feel free to go say hi to Vikk on Saturday if you're in the Webster area. Here are the details:
Vikk Simmons and Elaine L. Galit
Exploring Texas History: Weekend Adventures
Saturday, June 16, 2007
3:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
Barnes & Noble - Baybrook
1029 W. Bay Area Blvd.
Webster, Texas 77598
(281) 554-8224
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/12/07 11:25 PM |
HPD captain steps away from private security deals
In a story about changes to Midtown's weekend police/security patrols, the Chronicle's Jennifer Friedberg provides an update on the status of HPD Captain Dwayne Ready:
The Midtown Management District is looking to fill a void in its weekend bike patrol after Houston Police Department Captain Dwayne Ready resigned his position of coordinating patrols for the district on June 1 after questions arose about billing issues.
Ready did not resign from HPD.
For about three years, the Midtown Management District has paid Ready $1,300 monthly to coordinate the bicycle patrols of two off-duty HPD officers who ride through the area three times a week — mainly on weekends — for a fee of $4,000 per month.
Ready also coordinated four Harris Precinct 7 Constable officers who operate under a separate contract with Midtown and Metro and Houston Community College police, who operate within the district's boundaries, but do not have a contract with the district.
Ready also resigned from his position with the Greater Southeast Management District on June 1, said district executive director Jason McLemore.
In that position, he coordinated two bike patrol officers, crime reporting and graffiti control for the district since October 2004 for $1,000 per month.
The two off-duty HPD officers are paid $25 per hour for the bike patrol with a cap of $1,600 per week.
The Harris County District Attorney's Office is investigating whether officers under Ready's supervision double-billed, saying they were working shifts for HPD and as bike patrol officers for the Midtown and Greater Southeast districts at the same time.
HPD has also launched an internal affairs investigation according to HPD Public Affairs Officer Gabe Ortiz.
"It is not a criminal investigation and he (Ready) is still currently on duty," Ortiz said.
Readers may recall that KTRK-13's Wayne Dolcefino first raised questions about Captain Ready's "private" security/police deals back in May.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/12/07 10:48 PM |
Hermann Park kiddie train in line for an upgrade
Various media outlets recently reported that the Hermann Park kiddie train will soon be going away, to be replaced by a more significant train. Here's an excerpt from the Chronicle:
Under a proposal from the Hermann Park Conservancy and the Houston City Council's quality-of-life committee, the little train could be getting a $4 million upgrade, with new tracks and trains, a new train station and three new train stops.
Two new stops will be located near the MetroRail depots at Hermann Park/Rice and at the Houston Zoo. The third new train stop will be near the Houston Museum of Natural Science, the Houston Garden Center and Miller Outdoor Theatre.
The proposal, part of an $11 million improvement plan for Hermann Park's Lake Plaza, will be considered on Wednesday by the Houston City Council, Councilwoman Pam Holm said.
As they waited in the blazing, hot sun for the trip around the park, many train riders expressed support for the idea of an updated train with additional stops.
Two-year-old Carter Jones didn't seem to care.
"I love the train!" the little boy said. "It's a sunny day!"
Carter is "a second-generation train rider," said his father, Chris Jones, of Houston. They were spending the day at the Houston Zoo and Hermann Park with Jones' brother-in-law, Doug Keady, and Keady's son, Drew, of Grapevine.
"All the guys are going on the train," Jones said. "I used to come down here as a kid."
The idea of a multipurpose train with additional stops "is a great idea," Jones said. "This is a humongous park, so having multiple drop-off spots would make it much easier to get around."
Heaven forbid Houstonians actually use their feet to WALK in a park!
RELATED COVERAGE: KTRK-13.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/12/07 10:23 PM |
11 June 2007
Maybe the Q-Card system could also solve Houston's crime problem?
In his Move It column today, the Chronicle's Rad Sallee (or, as Chron.com misspells it today, Rod Sallee) runs a reader comment on the Danger Train's "honor system" method of fare collection:
Jerry Ritcheson thinks he knows how Metro's light rail boardings have doubled since 2004, while revenue from the ticket vending machines has hardly changed.
"The Metro cops DO NOT enforce the ticketing of those who don't pay," he wrote in an e-mail. "Until they put turnstiles in, the practice will continue."
Metro says spot checks show that the rate of cheating is around 1 percent, but that can be tough for an observer to believe. You can ride the train a great many times before seeing anyone's ticket being checked.
Like so many other things, though, the long-awaited Q Card fare system should change that when it comes out later in the summer.
Huh?
Unless the Q Card system miraculously causes the appearance of secured platform access via turnstiles, it's hard to see how the Danger Train's "honor system" of fare collection is going to change much at all when/if the Q Card system ever becomes functional.
UPDATE: Rad Sallee emails to note that what he meant was that the Q Card should provide a better way to count paid boardings, not that it would necessarily cut down on unpaid boardings.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/11/07 11:00 PM |
New KILT-610 lineup to debut tomorrow
The Chronicle's David Barron reports that sports talk station KILT-610 has settled on a new lineup after recent turnover:
Marc Vandermeer and Andre Ware, the Texans radio network's play by play tandem, will expand their partnership to weekdays as hosts of KILT's (610 AM) morning show beginning Tuesday, the station announced today.
The new morning show will air from 6 to 11 a.m., followed by the syndicated Jim Rome show from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and the new afternoon team of Rich Lord and Matt Jackson from 2 to 6 p.m. Adam Wexler will continue as the evening host from 6 to 10 p.m., to be joined by a co-host to be named later.
The shakeup was necessitated by the departure of longtime morning show host John Granato, who will join the reformatted KILE (1560 AM) later this year, and co-host Lance Zierlein's decision not to accept a contract extension while exploring his career options.
Presumably, Zierlein will eventually be moving across to join Granato on KILE-1560 to reestablish their successful morning partnership.
KILT obviously benefits from the Rome show, but it may be hard for those new morning and afternoon lineups to hold an audience.
BLOGVERSATION: Mike McGuff.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/11/07 09:25 PM |
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