13 October 2006
Dangerous time/place/behavior update
Recall that back in June, Chief Hurtt downplayed the surge in crime in Houston:
"Overall in the city of Houston, you're pretty safe," says Hurtt. "If you're not involved in specific types of behavior, not out on the streets at particular times of night and particular areas of the city, you have a pretty good chance of not becoming a victim of violent crime in the city of Houston."
KTRK-13 reports this bit of crime news from yesterday:
The search is on for a bank robber.
The Capital One Bank on Voss near San Felipe was hit just before 2pm Thursday. Surveillance photos show the robber, who pretended to make a deposit before he demanded money. He left with an undisclosed amount of cash.
Everyone add "2pm, inside bank, at Voss near San Felipe" to your list of times/places/behaviors that you should avoid if you're concerned about not becoming a victim of violent crime in Houston.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 10/13/06 08:29 AM |
12 October 2006
Time for audio/video of editorial board interviews (cont'd)
This week, the Editorial LiveJournalists met with Iraq's Ambassador to the United States.
They also met with Carol Keeton Strayhorn.
Unfortunately, the only accounts of those meetings are here, here, here, and here.
That's not enough.
Why can't the blog-happy, podcast-happy Chronicle make use of audio/video technology to open up these secretive meetings with newsmakers, so readers can have the full picture of what was said (by the newsmakers and by the journalists)?
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 10/12/06 11:20 PM |
Jeff Van Gundy must be smiling
Houston Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy must be smiling.
That prompted a Chronicle story. And another. And a feature.
And a Chronicle sports column.
And today, the Chronicle Editorial LiveJournalists weighed in!
Cracking on Reebok.
Somehow, I don't think journalists in the world's greatest media city would have given the perpetually dour coach's shoe complaints quite so much play back when he was heading up the Knicks.
Seriously, can you imagine the New York Times editorial page weighing in on such a trivial matter?
No. That wouldn't be world class.
BLOGVERSATION: Slampo's Place.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 10/12/06 10:36 PM |
Doh!
Today, the Chronicle runs an important correction to a recipe that ran in the newspaper yesterday:
A recipe on Page F2 of Wednesday's Flavor section contained directions for baking chicken in a paper bag. The USDA recommends commercial oven cooking bags instead because ink, glue and recycled materials in some paper bags may emit toxic fumes when exposed to heat.
Then again, if you really want to spice up your chicken, that might be the way to go!
As noted previously, we recommend waiting several days for corrections before trying any recipes published in the local Hearst daily.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 10/12/06 08:17 AM |
11 October 2006
Council delays graffiti ordinance decision
This whole graffiti ordinance debate is odd, isn't it? The notion of penalizing property owners who didn't do anything wrong is just screwy. So screwy, in fact, that Council has taken a pass on it again this week:
Houston City Council delayed a vote Wednesday on a new ordinance that would crack down on graffiti, KPRC Local 2 reported.
The proposed ordinance would give city inspectors and police the authority to go onto someone's property to tell them they have 10 days to remove the graffiti that was painted on their building.
And property owners who don't clean it up can expect to get fined, up to $500.
What's missing from the debate? What about the graffiti "artists"? Or as Councilman Michael Berry calls them, the "little punks":
"I don't hear anyone say, 'You know, I'm driving around this town and I couldn't be more furious. These people have graffiti painted on their walls. They sit there and let it sit there and I'm so mad at them how long they let it sit there.' I hear people say, 'There are little punks terrorizing our community.' And I know council member Garcia has tried to catch these kids and I know it's very difficult, but let's be honest, we are today saying, 'We cannot catch these little kids who run through the neighborhoods and spray paint the buildings.' That's clear. We've told the world that," Houston city councilman Michael Berry said.
The focus is not in the right place.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 10/11/06 09:48 PM |
CenterPoint wants more money
Jeff Ehling (KTRK-13) reported last night that CenterPoint Energy is seeking some fee increases...some BIG fee increases. Check out the details on KTRK's Consumer Blog and see if anything strikes you about the proposed changes.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 10/11/06 09:08 PM |
10 October 2006
KTRK CrimeTracker: Violent crime surges in West Houston
KTRK-13 has broken out the CrimeTracker to take a look at west Houston, and the results are grim:
We put our exclusive Crime Tracker to work, taking a closer look at what's happening in district 20. It's the portion of Houston's west side loosely bordered by the Katy Freeway, the Westpark Tollway, Gessner and the city's west border. Overall violent crimes are up 4.7 percent for the first eight months of 2006 versus 2005.
The greatest gain -- murders. They're up to 15 from 9 the year before. That's an increase of nearly 67%. A third of the homicides in this part of town happened near Westpark and the beltway.
Aggravated assaults are also on the rise. They're up to 380 from 330. That's an increase of more than 15%.
Rapes are up slightly -- 12%. Only robberies have decreased, and only by 4%.
Let us recall what Chief Hurtt said back in June when people were starting to take note of increased crime:
"Overall in the city of Houston, you're pretty safe," says Hurtt. "If you're not involved in specific types of behavior, not out on the streets at particular times of night and particular areas of the city, you have a pretty good chance of not becoming a victim of violent crime in the city of Houston."
And if you're in west Houston, out on the streets, in the daytime, breathing -- well, good luck!
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 10/10/06 10:18 PM |
"Ethnic bars" to be exempted from smoking ban?
On Friday, KTRH-740 talker Chris Baker spent quite a bit of time on Council's proposed revisions to the smoking ordinance.
Baker interviewed Councilmember Peter Brown on the topic, and one part of the interview (still available via KTRH's podcasts) was particularly interesting:
BAKER: Would you like to have this ordinance affect cigar bars and tobacco bars?
BROWN: Well, I concur that the bars... the cigar bars, tobacco bars, and tobacco shops, and there are other kinds of uhh specialist uhh ethnic bars where smoking is part of the culture -- those would be exempted. I support that.BAKER: Would you want to close down a cigar bar?
BROWN: I'm going to support the retention of existing cigar bars. And that's the way the ordinance is written.
BAKER: So if a business owner wants to open a cigar bar in the future, would you stand in the way of that?
BROWN: Well, I'm only one in 15 votes, but I think that we could make some exceptions for that sort of thing, although that's not in the ordinance right now. That would have to be an amendment to the draft ordinance that's on the table.
BROWN: So do you want to just ban smoking in houston altogether?
BAKER: That's generally the direction we're headed....
So, if you are a current owner of a cigar bar in Houston, the City of Houston is about to ensure a great return on your investment by protecting your existing business from new competition. That's an even sweeter deal than Yellow Cab typically extracts from Council and the Airport Director!
Councilmember Brown's reference to "ethnic bars where smoking is part of the culture" is just bizarre. How in the world will that work? For example, how would the cultural "exemption" not include American culture, which gave us the Marlboro Man after all?
Council takes up the topic this week.
BLOGVERSATION: TBIFOC.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 10/10/06 09:36 AM |
09 October 2006
Ethics committee praises Chron reporter
City Council's Ethics Committee praised Chronicle reporter Matt Stiles today for his efforts in helping push along better campaign finance reporting in the city.
KRIV-26's Isiah Carey has the details on his blog, along with a photo of the Chron's hard-working City Hall reporter.
There's no escaping Carey's camera. He's everywhere with it.
UPDATE (10-10-2006): Here is Matt Stiles' coverage of what is being proposed by the committee.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 10/09/06 10:58 PM |
Sanctuary policy revisions effective today
KHOU-11's News Blog reports that changes to HPD's sanctuary policy are now in effect:
Houston police put their new immigration policy into effect Monday.
Now, anyone who's arrested, even for a misdemeanor, could be asked to show proof of residency.
If they can't, they may be turned over to immigration officials.
Officers are still not allowed to inquire about a person's residency status before they're arrested.
When will City Council be taking up the topic of General Order 500-5?
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 10/09/06 08:43 PM |
Continental gives Mayor White's Prop. G a big boost
Continental Airlines has decided to throw all its weight behind Proposition G, Mayor White's effort to do an end-run around Proposition 2 (via KHOU-11):
Political insiders have told 11 News that Continental plans to spend whatever it takes to pass Proposition G.
Something you don’t see every day is top business executives handing out campaign signs inside their corporate headquarters, asking workers for their votes.
Continental Airlines has launched a corporate campaign blitz asking its 20,000 local employees to vote for an amendment to Houston’s city charter.
“Continental asked because otherwise, we could see the growth of the Houston airport limited. And we don’t want to fall behind American at Dallas/Ft. Worth or Delta in Atlanta,” said Larry Kellner, Continental Airlines CEO.
So Continental is throwing a still-undisclosed amount of money into a political campaign
Everything from Proposition G billboards to a Web site to its airline magazine, in which the CEO urges travelers to back Prop G.
Proposition G would remove Houston’s Aviation Department and a couple of other city departments that actually make money, from limits on the growth of city revenues.
Those limits were passed by voters two years ago in a charter change backed by conservative activists.
“It’s kicking out the stools out from taxpayer protections that the citizens overwhelmingly put into place in 2004,” said Bruce Hotze.
“We already had to put on hold one airport project because of the uncertainty caused by the people who are suing the city,” Bill White, Houston mayor.
Here's the ballot language. Scroll down for Propositions G and H.
Continental's help will certainly be welcomed by Mayor White, as will the votes of many of its 20,000 employees. Imagine the reaction if a big local entity encouraged its employees to vote against something Mayor White wanted.
Does anyone know what airport project the city put on hold due to Prop. 2? I can't recall a story on that.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 10/09/06 07:55 PM |
TxDOT is planting trees; Wulfe & Co. is bulldozing them
Rad Sallee has an informative Q & A with a TxDOT official, discussing all the tree planting (reforestation) TxDOT has been doing along our freeways:
Q: So basically you're planting something like a real forest, not a landscaped garden.
A: It's a reforestation-type planting. The concept was developed in cooperation with the Forest Service, Texas Parks and Wildlife, Texas Commission for Environmental Quality, the Quality of Life Coalition, Trees For Houston, community groups and organizations and the general public.
By contrast, in far north Harris County, a strip of heavily forested land along FM 2920 just east of Falvel Road was bulldozed last winter. When that was done, Wulfe & Co. signs went up, advertising the available land. WulfeCo. couldn't even leave a fringe of trees along the perimeter. Nope, had to strip it bare. All those big, beautiful pine trees gone, just like that. And that's just one example.
Whatever happened to Harris County's tree preservation regulations? Land is being clear cut up here at a rapid pace. Another example: the forested area north of the green arrow in this link is in the process of being bulldozed right now, and the forested area to the right of the arrow is already gone. Sigh.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 10/09/06 06:42 PM |
KTRK: Council to take up graffiti ordinance this week
KTRK-13's Mark Garay reports that Council is about to take up the latest proposal to deal with the city's graffiti problem:
It's a million dollar problem in Houston, and one you may notice when you drive down any street -- graffiti. There's a new effort to stop it. This week, Houston's city council will talk about a new ordinance designed to make those who paint and spray buildings think twice.
[snip]
"It will be against the law for minors or juveniles to purchase or possess graffiti implements," [Councilmember Adrian] Garcia explained.
That includes not only aerosol cans, but also certain pens and markers.
[Councilmember Sue] Lovell said, "There will be a fine of $500 if you do sell graffiti implements, and it will be unlawful for minors to have those implements on their person."
Under the new plan, fines will go up, depending on damage costs. Also, people who cause more than $1,500 in damage will be charged with a felony. What's more, property reported as tagged needs to be cleaned up within 10 days, whether privately or publicly owned. The current window is 30 days.
Earlier proposals included a $500 fine for businesses that do not clean up the graffiti within 10 day of being notified by the City of Houston; Garay did not mention whether that is still in the proposed ordinance.
It's also not clear if any changes are being proposed to improve the reporting system. My experience with a recent complaint was that it took two months and multiple emails to 311 and Councilmembers even to get a city inspector to go look at a defaced property in order to get the 30-day process moving along. The city's graffiti efforts are hindered both by inadequacies in the 311 system and limited manpower (for inspections of reported properties). Those problems will need to be addressed if the new ordinance is to work as effectively as Councilmembers Garcia and Lovell hope.
UPDATE: KHOU-11's Carolyn Campbell says the hefty fine for not abating graffiti within 10 days is still part of the proposal.
BLOGVERSATION: Isiah Carey's Insite.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 10/09/06 07:53 AM |
08 October 2006
Hines covers Washington ... via the internet and C-SPAN
It's good that the Chronicle has its very own D.C. bureau, with a coveted spot in the White House briefing room on the fifth row with other regional newspapers AND its very own opinion columnist to pound the pavement in Washington and dig up the stories important to Houstonians.
And when Cragg Hines is too busy to pound the pavement, well, there's always the good old internet:
Just because much of Washington so easily turns to wallowing in eruptions such as the House page outrage doesn't mean that some of the nation's best minds — or even Newt Gingrich — don't have time for more far-reaching issues.
That was the case when Justice Stephen Breyer and former Justice Sandra Day O'Connor led a conference on fair and independent courts at Georgetown University Law Center co-sponsored by the American Law Institute. It was a natural outgrowth of recent verbal assaults on the judiciary from the Republican right, including suggestions that there should be no surprise at violence against judges.
[snip]
I was out of town during the conference but have caught up by way of Georgetown Law's superb Internet coverage, including a number of transcripts and archived Webcasts, at www.law.georgetown.edu/judiciary/program.html.
Why in the world does the Chronicle maintain an expensive D.C. bureau so its Washington columnist can write about what he finds on C-SPAN and the internet?
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 10/08/06 09:05 AM |
Councilmember suggests a smoking ban revenue stream
Now and then a local news story will feature an idea or quote from a local pol that seems so familiar. Here's an example from a KTRH-740 story on the latest smoking ban debate:
Meanwhile, Council Member Jarvis Johnson advocated making bar owners pay a yearly permit fee to the city, and accept more stringent health requirements, in exchange for Houston allowing those businesses to take down the "no-smoking" sign.
"I want Houston to go smoke-free," said Johnson, "but if an establishment wants to be a smoking establishment, that is their right."
What a fine, Mayor White-style idea! A new revenue stream! But why does it ring a bell?
Dermatologist-Councilwoman Gibbs has led the charge on this matter, calling for an outright ban.
We think Mayor White could reclaim this issue, and give it his signature touch. That's right -- why not turn it into a possibility for a new revenue stream?
Ban smoking outright for now. Allow restaurants that meet certain specifications to allow smoking in designated parts of their restaurants. Create a new "Smoking Establishment Permit" and accompanying bureaucracy for the thing! There you go -- a new revenue stream AND cleaner air!
Mayor White's thinking small on this one. In a city that has a sign inspector and that requires delivery trucks to pay for loading zone permits, surely our creative mayor can figure out a way to squeeze restaurants that would like to allow patrons to smoke.
Because Kevin Whited suggested it one and a half years ago.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 10/08/06 07:55 AM |
07 October 2006
Revenue caps likely to force property tax rate cut
KTRH-740's Brent Fuller reported on Thursday that the City of Houston may have to offer a larger tax-rate cut than Mayor White had planned:
A 2004 voter-approved referendum, known as the "tax cap" or "Proposition 1", required the city to budget its yearly property tax revenue at or below the combined rate of population and inflation growth or 4.5 percent, whichever is lower. The idea is to prevent city administrations from overestimating the money they'll get, which can often leave them scrambling to make cut backs later in the year.
However, Houston's population growth in the past year, mostly due to the influx of Hurricane Katrina evacuees, has not been reflected in the most recent figures from the U.S. Census Bureau. So the city's tax revenue has risen much faster than the reported growth in inflation and population, triggering a legally mandated property tax cut.
Mayor White, who likes to portray himself as a fiscal conservative, already has a backup plan in place to protect his spending priorities:
White has also put forth a new proposition on this November's ballot, known as "Proposition H," which would allow Houston to take in $90 million more than the cap allows for public safety emergencies.
That's a pretty clever way of getting voter approval for significantly higher spending than voters approved via the two spending caps. Mayor White's resourceful that way.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 10/07/06 02:54 PM |
06 October 2006
Food and drink roundup (10-06-2006 edition)
Oh my, how time flies. It's been ages since a roundup went up. Let's get started, shall we?
Alison Cook loved the burgers at Christian's Tailgate Bar & Grill in Midtown. I don't know if I can talk myself into going to a chic Midtown ice house, but her description of the burgers might just convince me to give it a try. She also reviewed Nelore Churrascaria Brazilian Steakhouse located in Montrose. Several bH-ers had dinner there last night, some of us for the second time. Alison was right. Some days the place is good; some days it's so so. Last night it was good.
Robb Walsh reviewed Gulfgate's Doneraki Authentic Mexican Restaurant. One reason I love to read Robb Walsh, it's not just about the restaurant. One gets a food history too. Only in a Robb Walsh review could little gyros figure into a review of a local Tex-Mex restaurant. He also tried Afghan Tandoori King on Bissonnet and doesn't recommend the lunch buffet.
Ken Hoffman found Subway's Steak & Cheese Sub lacking in the meat department.
Last week, Zeke Minaya wrote a nice article on Rice's Valhalla.
And Lance Scott Walker checks out Club Tejano Country in the city's East End.
Last but not least, it's Greek Festival time.
World Class, all of it. Enjoy!!
Posted by Callie Markantonis @ 10/06/06 12:12 PM |
Two councilmembers asked for payroll-related records
The latest developments in the investigation related to the Mayor Pro Tem's office got buried somewhat by yesterday's power outage at Chron.com.
As Matt Stiles reported for the Chronicle, the DA's office has asked for records of two other councilmembers as part of a broader investigation of council payrolls:
Harris County prosecutors have requested campaign-finance records filed by City Council members Michael Berry and Jarvis Johnson as part of the probe sparked by payroll padding in the Office of Mayor Pro Tem.
An investigator working for District Attorney Chuck Rosenthal last month asked the city for Berry's forms going back four years and Johnson's records for 2006, according to a letter obtained by the Houston Chronicle under the Texas Public Information Act.
Rosenthal has said previously that his office was reviewing city procedures and officials beyond the unauthorized bonuses and pay increases in the Office of Mayor Pro Tem. He has declined to elaborate on the latter probe.
Rosenthal said Wednesday that his staff was "just trying to be thorough" in asking for the records, even though the letter states that the campaign reports were needed "pursuant to an official investigation."
"I don't think it would be accurate to say that these records were part of an ongoing investigation," he said. "We just need to have them."
Berry and Johnson, interviewed at City Hall on Wednesday, said they hadn't been contacted by investigators.
Later in the story, Stiles suggests the interest in these particular records may be related to the late filing of recent campaign reports by Berry and Johnson. Both councilmembers pledged to cooperate fully with investigators, if it comes to that.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 10/06/06 08:11 AM |
Cy-Fair ISD to raise tax rates; trustees don't feel residents' pain
So, officials in Cy-Fair ISD (home of the fabulous $70 million Berry Center) want to raise the property tax rate and some local residents are none too happy about that idea (KTRH-740):
The school district’s administration, headed up by Superintendent Dr. David Anthony, is recommending trustees raise the maintenance and operations property tax rate to just over $1.35 per $100 valuation. It was lowered from $1.50 to $1.33 per $100 valuation under the school finance reform passed this year by lawmakers in Austin.
[snip]
School Trustee Al Martinez Jr. said “I will not apologize for the Berry Center. We could have a Stadium on Barker Cypress, an arena on Skinner, a food service center somewhere else…combining it all was a savings to the district. If we’re going to support our kids, we need the facilities to support them.”
Well, that's easy for Trustee Martinez to say since, as Lone Star Times helpfully pointed out, Martinez is one of several Cy-Fair ISD board members who hasn't seen an increase in his property appraisal in several years.
And Superintendent David Anthony adds a typical educrat scare tactic:
Anthony also said the alternative to this tax hike is cutting programs that help kids, like tutoring.
Let's have a look-see at Cy-Fair's budget and see if all the fluff has already been cut out. How many extra administrators and associated administrative costs have been cut? How about administrative junkets, meetings, parties, team-building seminars, etc, etc.?
The first thing on Superintendent Anthony's list to cut is tutoring for students. And anyone who opposes his plan will be villified.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 10/06/06 06:47 AM |
05 October 2006
Sarnoff returns to Chronicle
Back in June, we whined about the news that Chronicle real-estate columnist Nancy Sarnoff had left the newspaper.
We were happy to see the news on James Campbell's blog that Sarnoff will be returning to the Chronicle.
Campbell also notes the return of Jerome Solomon to the sports pages, which we commented on previously at Bad Sports.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 10/05/06 03:26 PM |
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