20 May 2007
Soccer stadium will make downtown like Manhattan (or at least not racist)!
Some of the Chronicle sportswriters are becoming excited over the prospect of a dedicated new Houston Dynamo stadium boondoggle downtown.
Glenn Davis weighs in with the following:
Let me borrow a real estate phrase: Location, location, location is what this is about, and a downtown stadium will be an unparalleled vehicle for promoting soccer. Stadiums out in the hinterlands in MLS are still trying to prove them-selves as a magnet for fans.
Fans migrating to stadiums located in the inner city can become a part of a ritual.
When I was growing up in New Jersey, my father used to take me to sporting events at Madison Square Garden in the heart of New York. The ritual began as we left the house.
Take the train from the suburbs to Hoboken, N.J., then jump on the Path train (subway) under the Hudson River. As we exited the Path and scrambled up the steps to the street, a whole new world opened up.
The streets of Manhattan were alive with vendors, scalpers hawking tickets, and fans of the New York Rangers or Knicks. The air crackled with competition and excitement.
For a kid from the suburbs, this was like going into a new world. To this day, these impressions are indelible in my mind. Whether going to Madison Square Garden or to Giants Stadium to watch Pelé and the New York Cosmos, I always felt that sense of anticipation.
Quick reality check: The east end of Houston's downtown is not Manhattan. It's not going to be Manhattan whether a new downtown stadium is or is not constructed for what is a minor-league sport in America.
Of course, if that logic resonates at all with you, Chronicle columnist John Lopez today suggests that some people might think you're a racist:
When the city of Houston signed a letter of agreement with the Dynamo in hopes of ultimately building a soccer-specific stadium downtown, the verbiage said the deal was non-binding.
Technically, yes.
But in reality, the deal inflated not just hopes for Houston soccer fans, nearly half of whom are Hispanic, according to ticket-tracking research by the Dynamo.
It also blew up a dangerous political futbol that city leaders will be kicking around. City leaders will be watched closely on this one by many local minority groups hoping for inclusion among the big boys of sports.
[snip]
The unwritten message in the letter of agreement with the city:
The predominantly white fan base that follows the Astros got theirs. The largely white and black fan base of the Rockets got theirs, too.
What about Dynamo fans? What about the fan base that has been estimated at roughly 45 percent Hispanic, 45 percent white and 10 percent Asian?
Imagine you are a local politician, McLane or Alexander.
Imagine the backlash among Hispanic voters and community leaders if you came out against the proposed 21,000- to 22,000-seat stadium, which is planned for the area just east of U.S. 59 downtown, near Minute Maid Park.
So, we need a new soccer stadium downtown so that Houston can be more like Manhattan, and so that fans of what is a minor-league sport in the United States won't cry racism?
Those are certainly interesting perspectives on how public policy should be made in our city.
BLOGVERSATION: Houston's Clear Thinkers, Lose an Eye, It's a Sport, Off the Kuff.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 05/20/07 09:27 PM |
An unarmed, good person did not flee from police
Contrary to initial local media accounts that allowed family and friends to portray a suspected robber as a "good person" and as "not armed," the truth is he wasn't a very good person and he was armed:
Rivera, who King said was a "hard-core" and "documented" Crips gang member with a "lengthy criminal history," was positively identified Friday through Department of Public Safety fingerprint records.
Harris County records list several pseudonyms for him.
"This is someone who preyed on the community at large," King said.
And:
The women who called police after being robbed by Rivera have been "terrorized" by gang members, said King.
"They have received death threats, and, quite frankly, are scared," King said.
And:
"He had a black object in his hand as he was running," Hurtt said. The object was later identified as a .38-caliber snub-nosed revolver.
Regardless, Chief Hurtt promises that a complete look at what happened will be presented to a grand jury:
Houston Police Chief Harold Hurtt promised Saturday that a grand jury will hear a "fair presentation of all evidence" in the May 12 fatal shooting of a fleeing armed robbery suspect by an officer.
Goodness! A Saturday press conference conducted by Chief Hurtt? In Houston??!
Don't forget the Chronicle's editorial board participated in Harris County's Shoot/Don't Shoot simulator in 2004 with less than optimal results. Police officers have to make those types of split-second decisions often, without the benefit of a do-over.
Houston police officers deserve better than what local media dished out.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 05/20/07 09:25 PM |
Lemer on the pension fund problems
A few days ago, the Chronicle ran a letter from local government watchdog Bob Lemer on the continuing municipal employees pension fund problems.
Here are a few key points he made:
The city's June 30, 2005, audited financial statements (the most recent available, as 2006 is still unreleased to the public, a blatant violation of state law) shows the net assets of the employees' pension plans were $6.8 billion, even without receiving the still-to-come huge underfunding makeup payments.
The $6.8 billion greatly exceeded the city's $4.5 billion in net assets, only $2.8 billion of which was invested in the city's true core mission, infrastructure. In fact, the city invests a great deal more in its employees than in its residents - even excluding the under-funded liability to the plans.
[snip]
Instead of depositing the proceeds of the pension bonds directly into the pension plans to cover past underfunding, the mayor has been dumping the proceeds into the city's general fund to cover general operating expenses. This avoids compliance with the total revenue and expenditure cap of the 2004 voter-approved Taxpayer Bill Of Rights amendment to the city's charter.
The city's 2007 budget showed that of the $570 million of pension bonds then considered payable, $470 million would not begin coming due until at least the year 2031, creating total interest costs of $899 million. Who would finance their home with this kind of exorbitant, interest-bearing, backend loading of their loan?
The mayor neglected to point out to voters that when they authorized the pension bonds, they thereby irrevocably committed the city to paying that portion of the unfunded pension liability and forever forfeited any negotiability on that debt.
The entire letter is available in the Chron.com archives here.
Lemer's perspective is always interesting.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 05/20/07 09:06 PM |
Metro's ongoing hostility toward bus riders
With continued windfall tax revenue flowing into Metro, one wonders why Metro can't maintain its own bus stops/shelters, and provide a level of bus service that would actually benefit Harris County residents (I'd link to the illuminating comment, but Metro's ill-functioning blog seems to be...ill-functioning. Scroll down to mizz_porkie2003's comment posted on May 15, 2007 8:20 AM.)
As the Metro bus driver says, things were running rather smoothly until a "new management regime took over."
Metro has to be stockpiling money for the upcoming boondoggle rail expansion, which will do nothing to improve transit options for most residents in Metro's taxing jurisdiction. In fact, as we saw with the opening of the Main Street rail line, inflexible rail worsens transit options because Metro will slash bus routes to force riders onto the train.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 05/20/07 09:00 AM |
18 May 2007
Murder by the Book hosts a triple header that ends with Lee Child
This weekend Houston’s nationally acclaimed mystery bookstore offers a series of booksignings sure to draw out the mystery lovers. Murder by the Book (2342 Bissonnet) consistently draws big names in the mystery field and is a pro when it comes to booksignings. Take a look at this weekend’s offerings.
Friday, May 18, 2007 at 6:00 p.m.
What happens when a Texas peace officer’s views on the Second Amendment are tested in a real life situation? No matter where you fall in the political debate, Edgar nominee Ben Rehder's latest book GUN SHY has something to offer in this satirical book “packed with firepower and poignant surprises.”
Saturday, May 19, 2007 at 4:30 p.m.
True crime lovers have an opportunity to meet two Texas authors. Kathryn Casey, author of A WARRANT TO KILL and the new DIE, MY LOVE: A True Story of Revenge, Murder, and Two Texas Sisters, and Diane Fanning, author of UNDER THE KNIFE, A Beautiful Woman, a Phony Doctor, and a Shocking Homicide will be at the store signing books.
Sunday, May 20, 2007 at 2:00 p.m.
If you’re one of the many fans who rabidly read any book by the New York Times Bestselling author Lee Child, you’ll have an opportunity to hear him talk when he comes to town to publicize his latest title, BAD LUCK AND TROUBLE. (The talk is free, but if time is an issue you may want to call ahead and buy your book(s) so that you get an early numbered ticket.)
If you’ve never been to the bookstore, you’re in for a treat. Stacks of books and rows of filled bookcases will tempt you with eye-catching notes hailing this book and that author. The staff is friendly and, more importantly, knowledgeable. And if you rank among the millions of fans who read Michael Connelly, you'd better mark your calendar for Tuesday, May 29th at 6:30 p.m. and for an early place in line make sure you call ahead to purchase your copy of THE OVERLOOK. The books go on sale May 22. Connelly's talk is free.
Posted by Vikk Simmons @ 05/18/07 11:45 AM |
Another change at KPRC-950
Ken Hoffman's latest Chronicle column looked a little odd, in that it didn't have the usual plug for the columnist's longtime KPRC-950 radio gig on Wednesdays.
Sure enough, Hoffman informs that he's no longer doing the Wednesday show, which was always a reason for me to listen.
He does hint that another radio gig might be in the offing at some point, though. Stay tuned.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 05/18/07 06:09 AM |
17 May 2007
Pension fund issue looms over budget
The message local media were supposed to take away from the unveiling of the Mayor's new budget yesterday was increased public safety spending without a property tax rate increase.
Instead, as Matt Stiles reports for the Chronicle, concerns over the city's attempt to back away from a commitment to fund the pension at a negotiated level detracted from the intended message:
After proposing a $3.8 billion city budget Wednesday, Mayor Bill White's administration today begins wrestling with one of its more contentious details: funding city employees' retirement program.
The mayor's chief administrative officer, Anthony Hall, and the Houston Municipal Employees Pension System's executive director, David Long, are to begin negotiating the size of the city's contribution to the retirement fund in the fiscal year that begins July 1.
Long says the mayor's proposed contribution of $75 million falls short of an agreement both sides reached in 2004. He also questions why the mayor, who must get approval of the pension fund's management on the contribution amount, placed a figure in the budget before the parties began formal discussions.
White called any assertion that he's underfunding the pension "ridiculous." He said his administration has a long-term plan to give employees more retirement options while securing the system for the future. He said the city's pension expert has been working on the issue for months.
The city under this mayor agreed to a certain amount. Now the mayor's budget has proposed less than that amount. How is it ridiculous to use the term "underfunding?" It seems accurate enough.
Anyway, the mayor may not be able to change the clear meaning of words, but he can always resort to the old tactic of demonizing one's perceived political opponents:
The tension over the pension issue was obvious during White's budget presentation to the council Wednesday. The pension system's unfunded liability grew after 2001, when benefits were enhanced under former Mayor Lee Brown, markets slumped and financing assumptions proved wrong.
White likened the situation to the collapse of Enron and criticized Long's stewardship. He has headed the pension system since 1993.
Council members weighed in, too. Councilwoman Carol Alvarado labeled Long a "fat cat," and others challenged him to speak before the council to answer concerns about his compensation.
Long, who has attended recent council pension meetings but has not been asked to speak, sought to stay above the fray. "I have never personally attacked him. I have never personally attacked a City Council member," he said. "Yet, I have been personally attacked."
KTRK-13's Miya Shay posted about the personal nature of the attacks as well:
Basically, Mayor White accused Long of using scare tactics, and David_l_long [sic] bending the truths to decribe [sic] an employee pension system. The Mayor also talked about how basically Long makes more money than just about every city employee... among other jabs. Council Member Carol Alvarado ventured as far as to say that she doens't [sic] understand why Long even has a job.
One has learned not to expect much in the way of decorum from the crude councilwoman, but Mayor White ought to comport himself better than that if he truly fashions himself a future statewide leader of Texas.
There's hard work to be done on the pension mess Mayor White inherited to be sure, but the namecalling and petty personal attacks don't need to be a part of it. They don't really solve any problems.
BLOGVERSATION: Lose an Eye, It's a Sport.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 05/17/07 09:30 PM |
Boom!
I was on my way back from lunch earlier on Buffalo Speedway when I heard a boom, all the traffic lights went dead, and I saw billowing black smoke off to the east.
Apparently, a power transformer station along the Southwest Freeway exploded into flames. Since I was nearby, I walked down to the thing and got a cameraphone photo (above).
It didn't take long for firefighters to get the thing under control. The media horde that soon descended on the relatively small fire was probably harder to control, in fact.
If you're in the West U/Montrose/Greenway area, you should probably expect traffic lights to be out for a while (along with building power) and plan accordingly.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 05/17/07 01:46 PM |
16 May 2007
Are the Editorial LiveJournalists auditioning for mayor's PR staff?
Do you sometimes get the idea that the Chronicle's Editorial LiveJournalists are envious of their former colleague, Frank Michel, the mayor's communications director?
It has seemed that way so far this week.
On Tuesday, the Editorial LiveJournalists praised City Hall's fancy new $36,000+ desk, calling it a "long term investment" that "showcases Houston's values." We doubt Mr. Michel could have phrased it much better than that!
Today, the Editorial LiveJournalists praised Mayor White's efforts to deal with the pension problem and adopted the mayor's tactic of demonizing HMEPS director David Long. The mayor's press people had to be smiling.
If the mayor eventually wins statewide office, maybe he'll bring some of the Editorial LiveJournalists (dubbed Mrs. White by some bloggers) on board as PR staff. They certainly seem to be auditioning for the part.
Incidentally, HMEPS director David Long has responded to the mayor's attack from yesterday with his own letter to the Chronicle. It's posted below in the [Read More] section. Long disputes the mayor's insinuation that the HMEPS board (which included five representatives appointed by the city) has committed "outright fraud." As we've said previously, that's a reckless statement the mayor (or the staffer who wrote the letter to the Chronicle) should not have made without evidence.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 05/16/07 10:28 PM |
Who's running HPD?
HPD assistant police chief and blogHOUSTON favorite (for entertainment value!) Martha Montalvo is quoted in a KPRC-2 story on the decision to pull officers from the street to help out in the property room after a recent scandal:
Many Houston police officers are being taken off the streets to pay for an investigation into missing evidence in the department's property room, KPRC Local 2 reported Tuesday.
About $40,000 used to pay for an overtime program to target car burglaries in downtown Houston is being shifted to pay for the property room audit after 21 guns were stolen from the secure facility.
"I think that the public is entitled to ensure that what we have in there is correct," Executive Assistant Chief Martha Montalvo said.
Montalvo said she needed to quickly fund the audit as the criminal investigation continues.
"What I wanted to do was have an outside inventory of the guns inside that property room," Montalvo said. "I wanted an outside group of classified officers to go in and do a count."
Assistant Chief George Buenik sent out an internal memo ordering that the downtown program stop.
"Effective immediately, stop all overtime programs that were being paid with seizure money," Buenik wrote. "I will also need an accounting of the total amount allocated and spent. Chief Montalvo needs this money for the property room investigation. She is likely to receive other money and once she does, your program will continue."
Strangely enough, I thought Harold "Raising Arizona" Hurtt was the chief of police, not the frequently entertaining Montalvo.
He hasn't decided to stay in Phoenix until someone notices he's missing, has he?
ANNE ADDS: It's been a busy couple of days for Assistant Police Chief Montalvo. In yesterday's Chron, she announced that HPD soon expects four downtown surveillance cameras will be online, modifying criminal behavior.
And KHOU-11 got ahold of an HPD memo that said if officers assigned to a downtown overtime program didn't start producing more citations and arrests, the program could be ended.
So there you have Martha Montalvo's idea of policing downtown: less police officers and more cameras. Downtown's looking inviting, eh?
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 05/16/07 09:19 PM |
KRIV's Carey takes a look at Sharpstown
KRIV-26 reporter Isiah Carey had an interesting story earlier this week on the rise and fall of Sharpstown.
The video is available here.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 05/16/07 07:54 PM |
15 May 2007
Breaking news you CAN get elsewhere (05-15-2007 edition)
The Chron.com Froot Loops Bureau was watching the TV news this morning:
A man is critical condition after he tried to stop a suspect from stealing his car from a gas station in southeast Houston this morning, according to televised reports by KTRK (Channel 13).
Authorities gave a reporter this account: The man walked into the gas station at Martin Luther King Boulevard and Reed with his car's engine running, While inside the store, he saw a man get inside his vehicle.
The car's owner ran out of the store and jumped on top of the vehicle to stop the suspect, but the thief began to drive off.
The man was dragged several blocks and finally fell of the car.
Paramedics found the man and rushed him to the hospital with severe head injures. He is listed in critical condition.
Police later found the vehicle at the 8400 block of Rockford and are checking the vehicle for fingerprints.
We haven't seen much from the Froot Loops Bureau in a while. It's good to know they're still keeping an eye on the television news as they enjoy their cereal in the morning.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 05/15/07 06:23 AM |
14 May 2007
White: City can't/won't meet pension funding obligations
The Chronicle's Matt Stiles reports today on Mayor White's latest response to the massive underfunded liability in the municipal employees pension fund:
Short of layoffs, the city won't meet its full obligation to the municipal pension fund in the next fiscal year, Mayor Bill White says, citing rising public safety and health care costs that are expected to strain resources.
In the next budget, expected to be unveiled Wednesday, White's administration will propose paying only two-thirds of the statutorily required pension contribution — an arrangement that still would need approval from a skeptical pension fund board.
[snip]
The city has prepared for some of these looming payments, White said, building up tens of millions in an undesignated fund in recent years. But that is not enough to meet the additional $39 million for the increased pension obligation.
That has sparked concern from David Long, the fund's executive director, who said the system needs full annual payments to remain viable over time. He also said White's move could upset morale among the 12,000 civilian city employees.
White said he can't make the payment, which he agreed to in 2004....
[snip]
Facing the prospect of having to make huge annual contributions to comply with state law, the city got the fund's board to agree in 2004 to reduced payments for the past three years. The contribution was to increase in this year's budget.
[snip]
Controller Annise Parker said she's concerned the city hasn't started negotiations with the pension fund, but she said the statutorily required contribution — roughly 24 percent of payroll — isn't supportable.
Long, who's asked the mayor in writing for meetings but got no response, called it "disappointing and frustrating."
"We're hoping at some point that they will answer our letters, and he'll appoint somebody to sit down and have a discussion with us to try and figure out what we can do to bridge this gap," he said. "Ultimately, we're sort of coming to the end of the line here."
The massive underfunded liability and the requirements of the 2004 agreement (that Mayor White now says he won't honor) haven't been a mystery over the last few years (just search the blog for "pension"), so it's really strange that the administration has not been engaged in meet-and-confer negotiations with the pension board to work on the problem.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 05/14/07 10:50 PM |
City continues to harass driver cleared of red light ticket violation
Local media is reporting that ten more red light cameras are in place. Here's the list, courtesy of Matt Stiles' City Hall blog:
* NB South Wayside at Gulf Freeway
* NB Woodridge @ Gulf Freeway
* WB West Bellfort Avenue @ Southwest Freeway
* NB Fairbanks N. Houston @ Northwest Freeway
* NB West Sam Houston Parkway South @ Westpark Drive
* EB F.M. 2351 @ Gulf Freeway
* EB South Post Oak Boulevard @ West Loop South
* NB Northwest Freeway @ Mangum Road
* WB South Sam Houston Parkway East @ Telephone Road
* SB Stella Link Road @ South Loop West
And HPD's official statement is:
"Our priority is to promote the safety and welfare of the citizens of Houston," said HPD Sgt. Michael Muench. The ultimate goal of the program is to change driver behavior by increasing driver awareness and discouraging dangerous driving and red light running."
No, if the ultimate goal had been to change driver behavior and discourage dangerous driving, the city would have lengthened yellow light times in addition to other intersection modifications, before resorting to a revenue-generating program that assumes drivers are guilty.
Speaking of assuming drivers are guilty, KPRC-2 Investigates recently looked into the problem of red light camera mis-identification. Stephen Dean talked with a local resident who received a ticket, but the vehicle in the photo didn't come close to matching his vehicle. The problem? A one letter difference in the license plate.
The driver who received the notice then had to take a day off from work, spend it at court, and convince a judge that it wasn't his car on the ticket. The judge agreed and wrote "not liable" on the violation notice, but that hasn't stopped the city from sending demand notices to the wrongly-ticketed driver. He is still battling the city.
According to KPRC's report, 150 tickets have been challenged and 30 have been dismissed. That low number of dismissals is proof, according to HPD Sgt. Michael Muench, that the program is successful.
Another way to look at it is that 30 people were wrongly ticketed, and had to take time out of their lives to prove it. And from the sound of Dean's report, that still doesn't stop the city from harassing those folks whom a judge has cleared.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 05/14/07 07:28 PM |
KPRC-2 investigates METRO's mass transit promises
KPRC-2 ran an interesting story last night from investigative reporter Robert Arnold, who's been looking into promises made by METRO in the 2003 referendum versus promises kept.
The story has now been transcribed and posted here.
Most of the complaints about METRO's departures from the referendum will be familiar to readers here, although METRO Board Chairman David Wolff's condescension for those who dare question his organization seems ratcheted up a few notches.
How about anchor Rachel McNeill's query of Arnold after the story?
"Robert, when METRO took its plan to the voters in 2003, didn't it also promise to increase bus service by 50 percent?" KPRC Local 2 anchor Rachel McNeill asked.
"Yes, it did. But that hasn't happened either. In fact, some routes have been cut since the election. METRO officials say there just not a demand for that much of an increase. Plus, METRO officials say the routes that were cut had such a low number of people using them they couldn't justify keeping those routes open," Arnold answered.
It seems sort of strange that an unnecessary promise would have been included in the 2003 referendum (unless it was necessary for METRO to mislead certain voter demographics in order to win the vote, eh?), but as Chairman Wolff suggests, those promises were always malleable anyway (kind of like a living constitution!).
UPDATE (05-14-2007): Part Two of Arnold's reporting ran today, and is posted here.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 05/14/07 10:50 AM |
13 May 2007
A dark Mecom Fountain is definitely not world class
The Chronicle's Maggie Galehouse reports that thieves have rendered one city landmark somewhat less than world class:
The lights of Mecom Fountain, one of Houston's showiest landmarks and a bright spot on the city's grandest thoroughfare, have been dark for seven months. Last fall, someone stole the fountain's 264 light bulbs and the bronze canisters that encased them.
Why?
"Hard to say," says Mark Ross, deputy director of facilities for the Parks and Recreation Department, which is responsible for the fountain's upkeep. "Precious metal theft is in vogue for sure."
[snip]
"It's our Trevi Fountain, our Golden Gate Bridge," says Peter Brown, the exasperated city councilman at large who's been fielding complaints ever since the fountain went dark. "It's the urban icon that helps define this city."
[snip]
[T]he Parks Department estimates that it will cost $100,000 to replace the stolen lights and fixtures. That sum, which is steep by city standards, does not include labor and the cost of draining and filling the fountain.
"Currently we do not have funding identified to order the replacement," says Estella Espinosa, department spokeswoman. "We plan to order it as soon as we get fiscal money for 2008, which will come in July." But that answer isn't sitting so well with nearby residents.
"The museums have complained to the city, people at Warwick Towers have complained, other residents have complained," says Brown, who lives within walking distance of the fountain. "I think this is a sign there's something wrong with the way the city works."
The lighted fountain is an important city landmark, and it is embarrassing that it's dark because a city that is enjoying record tax collections won't pony up the money to fix it. Indeed, it seems like yet another case of simply ceding the city to vandals and criminals. Councilmember Brown is right to suggest that it's a sign there's something wrong with the way the city is working right now.
The conclusion to the story is even more embarrassing:
"When the lights were stolen, somebody had to get into the fountain with cutters and cut through all the cables," explains Mark Ross, deputy director of facilities for the Parks Department. "Our guess is that they did it in the middle of the night, or during the day when everybody assumed they were maintaining the fountain."
That someone succeeded in carting away all those lights and 12-inch canisters is nothing short of incredible, Ross says. "It's like stealing a great big diamond in the middle of a museum in front of everybody."
It does not seem world class when a city can't protect its landmark monuments from such vandalism/theft.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 05/13/07 09:53 PM |
Op-ed: Houston needs Bratton's approach to crime
Alan Helfman, Jay Wall, and William A Wolff have followed a March 2007 op-ed on crime with another op-ed on crime in today's Chronicle.
In this one, they advocate greater use of statistics and New York City's broken-windows approach to fighting crime.
Here is their conclusion:
When [former NYC police commissioner William] Bratton arrived in L.A., he found a shrinking department, crime rates that had been climbing for three years and a demoralized organization. During his four-year tenure as LAPD's chief, morale within the department has skyrocketed, relations with the minority community have improved and crime has fallen 25 percent. The LAPD was manpower-challenged, too, with 2.25 officers per 1,000 population and a 468-square mile territory to police. The "won't work here" argument won't hold water.
Houston Mayor Bill White has shown little or no interest in implementing CompStat for HPD. We believed that a mayor elected based on his promise to bring "best practices" to city government would have instituted a version of CompStat a long time ago.
CompStat can and will bring accountability to HPD. It would empower HPD's middle management and allow the cream of both its managerial and front line forces to rise to the top.
Energizing the stodgy command at HPD, forcing city departments to work together and ultimately altering public behavior will take hard work and guts. We hope our city leaders will step up and meet the challenge. It's about time.
The city needs the philosophy that William Bratton brought to NYC (and LA) policing as much as it needs the statistical tools he employed.
Unfortunately, neither Mayor White nor his absentee police chief seem that interested in Bratton's approach to crime.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 05/13/07 09:39 PM |
Busy doing nothing?
Mayor White and his rubber-stamp Council may not have any good answers regarding Houston's surging crime or HPD's manpower issues, but don't let it be said they're doing nothing.
Just this week, they've cracked down on sexually oriented businesses (a crackdown that, interestingly, seems to include the downtown Hyatt Regency) and further tightened the juvenile curfew.
That'll show the city's bad guys! Or something.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 05/13/07 09:19 PM |
Chron Austin bureau: Crime up in Houston, down statewide
On Thursday, the Chronicle posted the following news from the Austin bureau's Lisa Sandberg:
Overall crime rates fell in Texas last year, although Houston's rose slightly, marked by a spike in the number of homicides, state records indicate. The city's overall crime rate rose 0.6 percent between 2005 and 2006.
Houston recorded 377 homicides last year, 13 percent more than in 2005 and the highest number since 1996, when 261 homicides were reported. Houston's homicide rate, 18 per 100,000 people last year, was also the highest in a decade.
While it's good that Chronicle crime reporters not posted to the newspaper's main office are able to call an increase an increase (not alway the case at the 801 Texas Avenue mother ship), isn't 377 homicides a larger number than 261 homicides? It would have been useful to report the last time that Houston exceeded last year's homicide total.
Statewide, crime statistics showed improvement:
There were 1,385 homicides across Texas last year, 20 fewer than in 2005, a 3.3 percent drop. Reported rapes fell 3.8 percent between 2005 and 2006, to 8,407.
The state's overall crime rate fell 5.3 percent between 2005 and 2006, though robbery rose 1.3 percent, to more than 37,000 reported incidents. The state's violent crime rate fell 2.3 percent.
HPD had no comment for Ms. Sandberg at the time of the story:
HPD spokesman Victor Senties said his department needed to review the data before Police Chief Harold Hurtt would comment.
Is that code for, "Chief Hurtt has headed to Phoenix already for a long weekend?"
In any case, we're sure that Mayor White's PR machine will have a positive spin on these numbers ready soon.
PREVIOUSLY: Editorial LiveJournalists reject mayor's spin on crime, Making sense of muffed crime reporting/editorializing, KHOU: Mayor slashes HPD manpower initiatives, Crime statistics continue to confuse Chron reporters, editors.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 05/13/07 05:31 PM |
12 May 2007
KHOU: Downtown or ghost town?
KHOU-11's Jeremy Desel ran a story yesterday that will probably get him a scolding phone call or two from the usual downtown booster types. Here are some choice excerpts:
There was a time Main Street downtown was the heartbeat of the city.
"That's what this was. This was the center of it. This is where you went,” said Patrick Teague.
A thriving entertainment district packed.
Now it is barely beating.
In place of the pulsing beats and flashing lights are locked doors and eviction notices.
Sign after sign on windows read, “For Lease.”
Main at Prairie four years ago was the busiest part of the action.
Now every space on the block is vacant. And the next block over.
Since the current administration effectively ceded downtown to an aggressive, pushy homeless population, downtown became a much less attractive place for people to go. And so people have apparently stopped going. That may not be the only reason, but it's probably part of it. Indeed, my significant other got takeout pizza from Frank's (Travis and Prairie, beside Cabo) recently, and was accosted by two separate homeless people demanding money, even though the car was parked just outside the door!
Sorry, but that atmosphere really isn't conducive to, "Wow, this is great, I think I'll stroll around and spend a day here!"
Of course, there's the Pollyanna view:
Angie Bertinot is with the Downtown District.
"You look around here and you see a lot of empty space and some people say that is scary, but to us we see it as an opportunity,” she said.
An area with a huge concentration of nightclubs and not much else may make great nightlife, but not a great neighborhood.
"Quite frankly we are really looking at repositioning this entire part of downtown,” said Bertinot.
There’s hope a unified vision can attract a mix of high-end restaurant and retail. Only if the building owners are patient enough to wait.
Why would any business want to make a major investment in an area where vagrants are allowed to accost customers with impunity? (But hey, at least MayorWhiteChiefHurttChiefLambert have made downtown safe from renegade jaywalkers!)
It's a shame, because downtown had become kind of interesting for a brief period. Now, it resembles so much of the property along the light rail line -- abandoned, boarded up, decrepit.
PREVIOUSLY: Nothing says world-class like parking garages and eau de urine, KTRK CrimeTracker: There's some percentage of crime downtown, we think.
PHOTOS: Here's a Flickr set of photos I took around downtown yesterday.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 05/12/07 01:29 PM |
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