10 June 2007
Taking away a reason to pay that red-light camera ticket
There was a really interesting development relating to red light cameras that almost flew under the radar, except for the eagle eye of blogHOUSTON friends Mike Jones and Rorschach. Here it is:
I think the Mayor is in for a surprise, if he'd let the passed bill be read over by legal eagles.
[snip]
(h) A local authority or the person with which the local
authority contracts for the administration and enforcement of a
photographic traffic signal enforcement system may not provide
information about a civil penalty imposed under this chapter to a
credit bureau, as defined by Section 392.001, Finance Code.
Emphasis added.
As Rorschach noted in the forum, "that's gonna leave a mark!"
Indeed, because as we noted back in June of 2005, HPD Assistant Chief Martha Montalvo made it clear the city was counting on that to encourage payment:
It says, in fact, right on the citation that it's a "civil penalty" and won't affect your insurance rates and will not be reported or appear on your driving record.
So if they don't pay?
"We're asking the vendor to go with a collection agency if you will," says HPD Asst. Chief Martha Montalvo.
This is a very big deal, especially coupled with the revenue limitations that were also imposed, as Kevin noted a couple of weekends ago.
No wonder Mayor White isn't happy!
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 06/10/07 08:15 AM |
Sales tax revenue up for Houston, Metro...again!
via the Houston Business Journal:
The City of Houston received $35 million, up 4.15 percent from $33.6 million in 2006, while the Metropolitan Transit Authority received $36.9 million, up 9.16 percent from last year.
Maybe the Mecom Fountain can now be repaired?
Maybe Metro can find a way to fix the card readers right outside the Lee P. Brown building?
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 06/10/07 07:42 AM |
09 June 2007
The Chron's Me-Me
We all know children are self-centered, and in my house when one of the kids gets particularly so, we call him Me-Me.
Now we discover the Chronicle has its own Me-Me: Kristin Finan, who has launched a video-blog (or vlog as she calls it) that's all about...Kristin:
Now, a little about me and why I'm so excited about this vlog:
Somewhere over the past three years I became an unofficial ambassador for Houston.
I didn't intend for it to happen. It's just that everywhere I went I found myself trying to counter the stereotypes and explain to people -- some of whom were native Houstonians -- what a vibrant, cool, diverse and fun city Houston is.
As a Chronicle features reporter, I'm lucky, because discovering interesting people and places in Houston is part of my job description. Since joining the staff in 2004, I've written about lots of things, from a local taping of MTV's My Super Sweet 16 to a drug and alcohol center that sustains itself through banana bread to what it's like to try out for the Houston Roller Derby League. I also chronicled my travels down the coast in an RV and hung out at South Padre for Spring Break in a blog: Hit the Road.
Starting today, I'm taking my love of Houston to a new medium as we kick off the Chronicle's first daily vlog: Kristin 2 Go.
Needless to say, Kristin is pretty high on Kristin. The only thing she left off her resume was her impersonation of a Katrina evacuee.
As Banjo Jones points out, the Chronicle needs to find a new way to reach consumers, what with diminishing newspaper circulation numbers which have resulted in declining ad revenue. Banjo casts his gimlet eye toward Chron.com's video efforts in a post titled, "They've given the kids camcorders."
Don't miss it.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 06/09/07 11:31 AM |
08 June 2007
Local author Judson Roberts celebrates release of new book
I thought we’d give Brazos Bookstore (2421 Bissonnet) another try because one of Houston’s own, Judson Roberts, has a signing there next week. Mr. Roberts is an interesting fellow. A former police officer, federal agent, prosecutor, and private investigator, he is now author of the Viking Strongbow Saga series published by HarperCollins for young adults. His latest book, second in the series, is Dragons from the Sea. How did Mr. Roberts cultivate an interest in ninth-century Viking history? Well, it seems he may be a “distant descendant” of a Viking leader by the name of Rolf or Hrolf.
Next Thursday, June 14, 2007 at 7:00 p.m. Brazos Bookstore launches the release of Dragons from the Sea. Roberts will be there in full Viking dress and talk about Vikings. (What else?) Sounds like a fun event. (If you can’t make it next week for some reason, you can catch up with Judson Roberts when he does a signing at River Oaks Bookstore (3270 Westheimer) on Thursday, June 21 from 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.)
The reviews have been good. If you want to read a bit of Viking Warrior or Dragons from the Sea, click here. You may find that these Viking stories will satisfy adult as well as teen readers.
Posted by Vikk Simmons @ 06/08/07 11:10 AM |
07 June 2007
WaPo: Continental uses internet as customer-service focus group
An excellent story by Del Quentin Wilber in today's Washington Post highlights how Houston-based Continental Airlines has made the internet an important part of its customer-service strategy:
Since being assigned to monitor Flyertalk, http://www.airliners.net and blogs on various Web sites, [Continental rep Scott] O'Leary has solved dozes of problems that irritate road warriors. He has posted more than 500 comments in the past year alone on Flyertalk, most answering questions, shooting down rampant rumors or highlighting a change in the airline's frequent-flier program.
"These are free focus groups," O'Leary said. "Every airline executive in his right mind is reading Flyertalk and other sites. If it is bothering these customers, it is probably bothering others who don't post on the sites."
Using the chat rooms and internal customer-complaint databases, O'Leary has easily spotted problems that sparked debates in the online forums. He has closely tracked discussions on how passengers prefer to print their boarding passes, the timing of the airline's automated upgrade system and the cost of premium wines offered at its exclusive airport clubs.
Most of the issues would appear relatively minor to the average flier, but O'Leary said he can't let them fester in today's competitive environment.
"The easy stuff is done," he said. "We are down to these finite details: the printing of individual boarding passes versus printing all boarding passes."
Last summer, for example, a Flyertalker complained about security procedures for Continental's elite travelers transferring from an international flight to a domestic one at the carrier's hub in Houston. The traveler could not understand why there was not a separate security line for elite fliers as there is in the main terminal.
O'Leary, who meets with Flyertalkers about once every three months at impromptu gatherings all over the country, investigated and found out that nobody had thought to put an EliteAccess blue carpet in the security area in the international section or designate a line for the special fliers. Within days, it was set up.
In another instance, he waded into the charged debate over who can get exit rows, a perk generally reserved for those with some sort of elite status. O'Leary discovered that there was no consistent policy at the airline. After initially deciding to allow only the top fliers to reserve those seats, he noticed fliers with lesser status complaining on Flyertalk. The policy was amended to include those fliers, too -- a direct result of feedback on the site, O'Leary said.
Flyertalkers generally agreed that they enjoyed having O'Leary on their forum because he doesn't overwhelm them with company propaganda and usually answers their questions. They said O'Leary's background as an airline fanatic gives him credibility because "he has been through as many airports and delays as the rest of us," said Richard Baum, a frequent visitor to Flyertalk.
More companies and organizations should be looking at Continental's use of the internet (as a customer-service focus group of sorts) to improve the customer experience (and, presumably, customer loyalty, and ultimately the bottom line).
Indeed, we can think of one local organization that could learn quite a bit from Continental's approach.
RELATED CONVERSATION: FlyerTalk.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/07/07 10:34 AM |
HCRP threatens to sue over city's delayed financial report
KPRC-2 reported last night on the Harris County Republican Party's threat of legal action if the city continues to shirk its financial reporting duties:
Houston Mayor Bill White is under scrutiny concerning last year's city budget report, KPRC Local 2 reported Wednesday.
The chairman of the Harris County Republican party wants to know why city leaders are already looking ahead to next year's budget when last year's report still has not been released.
Party officials said it's taxpayer money and it's time residents knew how their money was spent in 2006. But they said the mayor's office has still not completed an audit of the annual financial statement.
[snip]
There is nearly a four-month-long grace period after the October deadline.
But the city missed that and is now in violation of local code.
[snip]
The mayor said Houstonians should expect to see results soon.
"It's going to be out any day now. Not in response to the letter, but in response to me and the controller saying repeatedly, 'We need to get this thing wrapped up.' And that was an estimate that was given some days ago before I saw this letter," White said.
Spin, spin, spin.
The fact is, the report is way overdue, and the mayor and controller are ultimately responsible.
It's unfortunate that anyone has to threaten to sue to obtain public information that should have already been released.
BLOGVERSATION: Isiah Carey's Insite.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/07/07 09:44 AM |
Chron profiles The Insite
We've long been fans of KRIV-26 reporter Isiah Carey's blog, The Insite.
However, you know you've finally made it when you attract the attention of the uber-hipsters in the Chronicle's entertainment section, which profiles Carey and his blog today.
Congrats to Carey for the well-deserved attention!
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/07/07 08:03 AM |
06 June 2007
What's new in kitty litter?
Yesterday a rather large photo of a cat standing on his hind legs and pawing at the air appeared next to a headline with poorly-spelled words on the front page of the Chron's business section. I tend to gravitate toward animal photos but a headline reading "I'M IN UR NEWSPAPER WRITIN MAH COLUM" is a guaranteed stopper. As I read Dwight Silverman's piece about the latest cat photo fad called LOLcats (Silverman's prime example is I Can Has Cheezburger? ), I thought the article had more of a lifestyle approach with its pop culture slant. It's a fairly long article, but if you're a cat-lover (or cat-hater), have some time, and appreciate the style of humor found in the Bad Cat and Bad Dog books you'll enjoy the info and the many links Silverman provided.
The end of the article may leave readers who blog with a bit of blogger-envy. The Cheezburger site opened for business in January and now "gets between 350,000 and 500,000 page views a day" and submissions of "300-500 LOLcat images a day." Now that's growth. How you'd translate this ability to generate a "subculture, complete with its own conventions and subgenres" into a viable business model is an unanswered question. Maybe blogHOUSTON should start up a companion site called Houston Cats on Holiday or maybe Cats on Holiday--Houston. In the meantime, I'm left realizing that I now not only have to figure out all this texting language but also something known as "kitty pidgin."
KEVIN WHITED ADDS: Laurence Simon's take resonated with me. :)
Posted by Vikk Simmons @ 06/06/07 11:51 PM |
Liar, liar pants on fire!
Finally dropped by my post office box and found a flyer from the Houston Storyteller’s Guild. If you get a kick out of storytellers trying to best one another when it comes to telling a whale of a tale, you’ll probably enjoy the 2007 Best of the Best LIARS’ Concert. Featured storytellers include Jay Stalley, Sheila Phillips, Dan Gibson, James Ford, Donna Ingram, Darlene Dufour, and Leslie Bule. The concert is Saturday, June 9 at 7:00 p.m. and will be held at Houston Baptist University’s Mabee Theatre (7502 Fondren Rd.). For tickets call 281.775.9318.
Posted by Vikk Simmons @ 06/06/07 03:54 PM |
Breaking news you CAN get elsewhere (06-06-2007 edition)
The Chron.com Froot Loops bureau makes an appearance today:
Police are investigating three shootings that occurred early this morning across the Houston area, according to KTRK (Channel 13).
Authorities gave a reporter this account: The first shooting happened in east Houston. A man shot his wife in the knee at their home on Uvalde and Audrey. The woman was taken to the hospital in stable condition. Police believe the shooting was accidental.
The second incident occurred in northwest Houston. A man found another man with a gunshot wound to his calf in a convenience store parking lot on Antoine and Breen.
The man was rushed to the hospital and police are still investigating how he got shot.
A third shooting sent one man to the hospital with three gunshot wounds in east Houston. Police said that a man found another individual breaking into his vehicle on Avenue H and Wayside and confronted the man with a gun.
A scuffle ensued and the vehicle's owner shot the man twice in the leg and once in the stomach. His condition was unknown.
Hmm, well, maybe after the Chronnies have their Froot Loops and check all the TV reports, they can follow up on these "unknowns" and do some actual journalism.
UPDATE: How about that link and one-liner from the Chron's Texas Politics blog? I don't think those folks are sitting around watching the Austin TV news and reporting on it. Actually, the merging of the Chron and Express-News bureaus in Austin really seems to have given the reporting a boost.
BLOGVERSATION: Lose an Eye, It's a Sport.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/06/07 06:11 AM |
05 June 2007
We're #2!
The Chronicle's Rosanna Ruiz reports that the FBI has released official crime figures detailing Houston's surge in murders in 2006:
Houston's homicide rate surpassed Dallas' in 2006 for the first time in more than a decade and is now the second-highest among the nation's largest cities, according to figures released Monday by the FBI.
Houstonians were killed at a rate of 18.2 per 100,000 residents last year, a number that had gone unmatched since 1995 when the FBI began posting crime statistics online. Dallas' homicide rate was higher than Houston's in all of the previous 11 years.
The two cities' homicide rates were almost identical last year. But Houston's rate increased nearly 12 percent as Dallas' rate declined more than 8 percent. Houston has seen an uptick in homicides since more than 100,000 Louisiana residents fled to the city after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
Only Philadelphia now has a higher homicide rate than Houston on the list of the nation's 10 largest cities. San Antonio ranks seventh on the list, while Dallas is fifth.
Recall back at the start of the year, when the Chronicle's Peggy O'Hare wrote the following:
In 2006, the Houston Police Department recorded 379 homicides as of Dec. 31, a 13.5 percent increase from the 334 homicides recorded in 2005. The 2006 total is the highest since 1994, when 419 homicides were reported in the city.
It was the second consecutive year for a steep jump, although the increase was not nearly as alarming as the 23 percent rise in homicides seen at the end of 2005.
Despite the upward trend, Houston's homicide rate per 100,000 residents hardly changed at all. That number increased from 16.33 in 2005 to 17.24 in 2006.
Apparently, the FBI didn't use the population figures preferred by O'Hare (and the White administration's communications team), partly explaining the disparity (but not O'Hare's editorializing).
We do wish the Chronicle could decide how it wants to interpret numbers that can only be considered bad.
BLOGVERSATION: Isiah Carey's Insite.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/05/07 11:24 PM |
Local reporter's book soon to be a Carrey movie
The Chronicle's Louis Parks reports that a local reporter's book is about to be made into a movie starring Jim Carrey:
Jim Carrey is set to play true-life Texas con man and escape artist Steven Russell in the film I Love You Phillip Morris. Russell, a convicted embezzler, repeatedly broke out of Texas jails to rejoin his lover, Morris.
The news, reported Monday in Variety, was of special interest to Houston Chronicle news reporter Steve McVicker, who wrote the book I Love You Phillip Morris: A True Story of Life, Love, & Prison Breaks (Miramax Books, $22).
McVicker, who covered Russell's 1980s-'90s escapades while a reporter at the Houston Press, knew about as much of the details of the film deal as most authors after Hollywood has purchased their books.
"I don't know who has been signed or what," he said Monday. "All I know is what's in Variety."
The announcement didn't catch him completely by surprise. "The producer called over the weekend to make sure they spelled my name correctly," he joked.
The main thing is getting the name right on the royalty checks!
Congratulations to McVicker, whose book ought to get quite a bit of attention when the movie is released.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/05/07 10:53 PM |
04 June 2007
METRO in the news
The Chronicle's Rad Sallee reports on preliminary findings from the panel asked to look into METRO's problems last month with routing trains onto the same track:
Although a final report may be weeks away, Reginald Mason, Metro's chief safety officer, presented preliminary findings to the Metro board last week.
Besides having more control staff at TranStar, the panel suggested installing an "audible alarm" there to sound when a switch is in a dangerous position. The situation is displayed visually now but might not be noticed in time to prevent an accident.
The panel also found Metro's light rail rules are unclear in assigning safety responsibilities, leading to confusion among those involved in the incident.
"It was very unclear who had control of the mainline operations," Mason said, referring to the train operator and her superiors, the maintenance staff or the controllers at TranStar.
The panel said the MetroRail rule book should be revised "to ensure clear responsibility and accountability," and Metro should hold daily meetings among personnel of the three rail divisions to coordinate their activities safely.
Since the incident, Metro has begun retraining its light rail operators and conducting all track maintenance at night, after the line shuts down, president and CEO Frank Wilson said. For several months, the agency has been installing signals that show rail operators the position of a switch long before the train is close enough for observation of the switch itself.
It sounds as if METRO is taking these incidents seriously, despite John Sedlak's spin a few weeks ago.
In a separate story, Sallee reports good and bad news for METRO. The good news is that Danger Train collisions are down:
[B]oth bus and rail accidents are tracking far below the levels needed to reach Metro's "goal" for the year in both categories.
It may seem odd to have a collision goal of anything but zero, but you have to be realistic.
Yes, when you build rail at street level in an already congested corridor, you have to expect problems. It's nice to see METRO finally accepting reality. Or being "realistic," as Sallee put it.
The bad news, as reported by Sallee, is that paid system ridership is declining (or flat, at best). METRO critic Tom Bazan makes an appearance in the story, causing METRO's PR staff to swing into action:
Finally, regular Metro critic Tom Bazan asked the board how its statistics could show revenue from MetroRail ticket vending machines remaining flat from 2004 to 2007 while rail boardings doubled.
Bazan said he thinks most of the increase in rail boardings increase came from bus riders who now transfer to rail because their old bus routes were altered to connect with it.
Metro spokeswoman Raequel Roberts said it doesn't make sense that a bus system with declining ridership would generate enough transfers to cause a doubling of rail riders.
TVM receipts don't tell the whole story, she said, since many MetroRail riders use time-activated and stored-value cards.
"We are still studying what is going on," Roberts said.
We're sure they'll get right to the bottom of it.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/04/07 11:08 PM |
03 June 2007
Astrodome redevelopment group feels like it complied with financing deadline
The Chronicle's Bill Murphy reports that the group hoping to remake the Astrodome into a convention center hotel/destination contends it met a (relaxed) deadline to show it can obtain financing:
A company that aims to turn the Reliant Astrodome into an upscale convention hotel met a Friday deadline for showing that it is on track to obtain financing for the $450 million project, the company's president said.
Astrodome Redevelopment Co. missed a deadline three months ago to show it had preliminary approval for financing, but the county extended the deadline to Friday.
"We felt like we complied" with the deadline, Astrodome Redevelopment president Scott Hanson said. "We submitted a package with our financing."
That doesn't sound terribly inspiring.
It's difficult to imagine that any group will be able to secure 100% private financing for such a risky endeavor, but we'll see.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/03/07 09:57 PM |
Montalvo strikes again!
KHOU-11's Mark Greenblatt reports on the latest gaffe by HPD's frequently entertaining assistant police chief Martha Montalvo:
So what did HPD have to say [about crime reporting questions]? They said they are doing everything correctly, because they have been checked out by outside agencies.
And that’s not all.
11 News: “Has the FBI audited you?”
HPD Asst. Chief Martha Montalvo: “I believe the last time I was told we were audited was is in 2001, and I believe 2006 or 2007; the early part of 2007.”
In fact, city police also claimed in a statement that, “HPD ... passes frequent audits by the Federal Bureau of Investigation for their … crime reporting procedures.”
So everything must be OK, right?
Wrong. An e-mail from the FBI to 11 News said HPD’s claims about those audits is “incorrect.”
11 News: “How do you explain if the FBI says that’s not true?”
MM: “I have no explanation for that. That’s what I was told.”
And what about HPD’S other claims?
“We’ve been audited by DPS in 2004, 2001, 2002,” Asst. Chief Montalvo had said at a public meeting.
The Texas Department of Public Safety said in the last six years they have done zero audits of HPD.
But 11 News Investigates has discovered that the Houston Police Department may have an even bigger problem on their hands: Experts say the very way the department gathers and counts many crime stats is all wrong and may be giving Houstonians a false picture of just how safe the city is.
Whoops!
There's more in Greenblatt's reporting on the controversy over HPD's crime statistics reporting.
HPD pushed back hard after Greenblatt's original reports a few weeks ago, but it would seem Greenblatt is sticking by his reporting.
It might be nice to hear from Chief Hurtt on the matter, but we suspect he was probably hard to reach in Arizona this weekend (even though he wants some local reporters to know he REALLY LOVES Houston).
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/03/07 09:48 PM |
Not a bad gig...
Last week, the Chronicle's Rad Sallee reported that METRO has extended the contract of CEO Frank "Procurement Disaster" Wilson:
The Metropolitan Transit Authority board approved a two-year contract extension Thursday for president and CEO Frank Wilson, which would keep him in Houston through May 2012, to build the next five transit lines.
[snip]
"We recognize that we've got a lot of work to do, and we want to keep it on schedule," Wolff said. "We want to have the same CEO here to do it, and he wants to be here."
[snip]
The board resolution described Wilson's performance as "exemplary" and said that during his tenure, Metro has increased ridership, purchased fuel at bargain prices, revised fares and adopted a "smart card" payment system.
Overall METRO paid rider revenues continue to decline, a fact that Tom Bazan documents monthly by sharing the results of his public information requests to METRO.
As far as Frank Wilson wanting to be here -- let's just hope he doesn't negotiate himself an even more lucrative job with METRO contractors, as he (allegedly) did with contractors while he was head of New Jersey's NJDOT, according to this damning report (pdf) that the Chronicle didn't think was terribly important back when Lucas Wall covered the METRO beat and Wilson was hired in Houston.
UPDATE: Laurence Simon posts on the Smart Card system.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/03/07 09:21 PM |
Build your local news dream team
Earlier in the week, Chronicle columnist Ken Hoffman held a mock draft for his local news "dream team."
Today, he commented on some reader letters related to the same.
So, who would be on your local news "dream team?"
Would you imitate Hoffman in building your franchise around a news anchor whose hobbies are laughing and shopping?
Let us know in the comments.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/03/07 08:15 PM |
31 May 2007
Off to Dallas
Almost two weeks ago I told you that my son's baseball team -- the Spring Klein Red Sox -- had won the USSSA South Zone tournament for their age and class level. With that win, the team began preparing to go to the USSSA Class A Texas State Tournament.
And that time is here, so my family is heading up to Dallas tomorrow for a weekend of baseball and fun. Woo hoo! We have lots of Gatorade, bug spray, sunblock, and excitement. We are ready!
Go Red Sox!!
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 05/31/07 09:47 PM |
Grab the camera and head for Hempstead's Liendo Plantation this Saturday
Yes, I know. I have the blogHOUSTON posting bug. Many of you may already be familiar with Liendo Plantation, its rich history, and the annual Civil War reenactment weekend held in November. If you haven't been, the short drive from Houston to Hempstead to visit this magnificent home and old plantation can be a great way to spend part of the day.
The house still serves as a private home for the Detering family, and the result of their time, work, money, and love restoring Liendo is evident everywhere. Tours are available only on the first Saturday of every month and begin at 10:00 a.m., 11:30 a.m., and 1:00 p.m. There's a $7.00 fee; however, seniors, groups, and students only pay $5.00. That's not a bad price for a quick trip to the past, and docents will lead you through the home and pepper their tale-telling with the likes of Sam Houston, sculptress Elisabet Ney, General Custer and more. These volunteers love Liendo and their love for history is evident in their oral storytelling. One heartbreaking story about Elisabet Ney continues to roost in my memory to this day.
This Saturday is the first Saturday in June, so plot your drive out to 38653 Wyatt Chapel Road in Hempstead. (Scroll down this link to see a map.) If you don't make it this weekend or this summer, do pencil one of the November 16-18th days to visit the reenactment.
Posted by Vikk Simmons @ 05/31/07 05:25 PM |
Granato, Hoffman returning to Houston radio
The Chronicle's David Barron posts today that John Granato and Chronicle columnist Ken Hoffman both will be returning to Houston radio shortly.
Granato, who recently left KILT-610, will be launching a show this summer on KILE-1560, and will be the reformatted station's VP of operations. KILE-1560 will not confirm rumors that Jim Rome Smackoff king Sean Pendergast will co-host Granato's new show.
Hoffman, until recently a regular Wednesday guest on KPRC-950, will apparently host his own show on KILE-1560, although details were not forthcoming.
Barron wonders if there's room for yet another sports-talk station in Houston. The answer to that question is no, but the addition of Hoffman as a host suggests the station may well go with the guy-talk/sports format that has proven so successful just up the road in Dallas (with KTCK). I've long thought that good radio hosts could make that format work in Houston. Maybe Granato, Hoffman, and crew can pull it off.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 05/31/07 11:43 AM |
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