11 June 2008
Guess it depends on the meaning of "rise" (Unca Darrell)
Unca Darrell finds the latest Editorial LiveJournalist gaffe (Unca Darrell).
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/11/08 10:50 PM |
Councilman Rodriguez wants 200 more red light cameras!
Houston's elected officials continue finding ways to make the city more inviting.
I wonder if Councilman Rodriguez has considered checking out the engineering at all 200 intersections. Well, actually, I don't wonder at all, because he admits it's about generating revenue:
According to the amendment, Rodriguez wants to use the extra revenue for police "public safety programs including, but not limited to the recruitment of new officers to ensure safer neighborhoods."
If it were about safety (which it never really is -- wink, wink), all engineering issues would be addressed at proposed intersections, and yellow-light times would be increased. But those actions don't generate revenue.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 06/11/08 07:01 PM |
10 June 2008
METRO's consent agreement sidesteps committee vote
Following up on this post which noted that the City's proposed consent agreement with METRO had moved out of committee and onto City Council's agenda, Councilwoman Melissa Noriega emails that the consent agreement did NOT get voted out of the Transportation Committee. It was placed on the agenda without the committee vote ever taking place.
Hmmmm. How exactly does that work? Did committee-members' questions make some folks uncomfortable? Who might have pushed that item onto the agenda?
Curiouser and curiouser!
KEVIN WHITED ADDS: The mayor controls the agenda, so this looks like an example of Mayor White micromanaging once again, but doing it in a way so that if this latest example of Ready-Fire-Aim governance goes awry, he doesn't have direct ownership of any resulting mess.
Maybe our intrepid local media will comment on the political maneuvering (and bypassing of Council's role in vetting this important policy decision). In fairness, though, it's probably not something that Raequel Roberts has emailed to anyone at 801 Texas Avenue for consideration.
UPDATE: KRIV-26's Isiah Carey reports that Councilmember Ron Green has blasted the arrogance of METRO's management, and has called on Frank Wilson to step down.
Obviously, METRO's recent dealings with Council haven't exactly impressed some Councilmembers. Mayor White's answer? Bypass a Council Committee -- Ready-Fire-Aim!
BLOGVERSATION: ABC13.com Political Blog.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 06/10/08 08:48 PM |
09 June 2008
Stros 2008 Season Review, Part Two (Houston's Clear Thinkers)
Tom Kirkendall assesses the Astros 40% of the way through the season, with the sort of statistical analysis rarely deployed by the area's sports journalists. (Houston's Clear Thinkers)
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/09/08 11:00 PM |
METRO's man at the Chron spins dismal ridership statistics
Rad Sallee, METRO's man at 801 Texas Avenue, had this interesting bit of spin in Monday's transportation column:
At the same City Council committee meeting, one speaker claimed loudly that Metro has "decimated" its bus system. You decide.
Local bus boardings for October through April were up 4.2 percent from a year earlier, rail boardings were up 6.3 percent and Park & Ride boardings up 13.1 percent.
Boardings are a rough gauge of ridership, because each transfer is counted as a boarding, so let's look at other measures.
From April 2006 to January 2008, Metro says, it increased the number of bus trips 4.6 percent, bus miles traveled 2 percent and bus hours of operation 2.6 percent.
Metro also says it has increased weekday bus service in each of six consecutive route revisions since August 2006.
Before applauding too loudly, remember that bus boardings were 98 million in 1999 compared to bus and rail boardings of 101 million in 2007.
That's a puny increase of 2 percent in eight years, several of which brought spiraling gasoline costs.
Still, the bus system is a long way from decimated.
Raequel Roberts had to smile after reading that. Perhaps she even supplied the statistics!
Pedantic debates over the verb "decimate" aside, however, the fact is that Harris County's population has surged over a period of years, gasoline prices have surged more recently, and neither METRO system ridership nor METRO bus "service improvements" have come close to matching either. Quite the contrary!
And of course METRO's man at 801 Texas Avenue neglected to mention that the 2003 referendum promised a 50% increase in bus service that has failed to materialize (and, in fact, that broken promise has even disappeared from METRO's website). Apparently that wasn't germane to the dissection of the verb "decimate."
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/09/08 10:54 PM |
Jason Friedman Wins Big (HouStoned Ballz)
HouStoned Ballz posts that the Press' Jason Friedman scored some Lone Star awards over the weekend for his coverage of Rockets' GM Daryl Morey. (HouStoned Ballz).
Congrats to Friedman! When Morey first rolled into town, lazier journalists had quite a good time picking at his statistical background. Few people are laughing at the Rockets' GM these days.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/09/08 12:36 PM |
Now this is a dangerous part of town! (Isiah Carey's Insite)
Isiah Carey describes the madness at Airline and Hall in northeast Houston. (Isiah Carey's Insite).
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/09/08 07:43 AM |
08 June 2008
Revealed: The latest secret to world-classness
In today's Chronicle, Jonathan Smulian, who describes himself as "a practicing urban planner with more than 50 years' international experience," offers the latest secret to Houston-world-classness: "appreciation, preservation and promotion of 150-plus years of history."
Like many who fashion themselves experts in planning the behavior of others (or, some might say, restricting the freedom of others), Smulian's approach to appreciating history is a bit heavy-handed:
The demolition of Houston's historic houses in favor of large mansions often out of character with the rest of these neighborhoods has an impact beyond the initial loss of a history that cannot be replaced. It also has a city-wide negative environmental impact. Tons of debris unnecessarily wind up in the landfill. Mature trees that create shade, save energy and lessen carbon emissions are cut down. Drainage problems are exacerbated as larger new homes and their impervious driveways prevent water from percolating into the subsoil, forcing surface water into the streets.
Nobody doubts that speculators can enjoy higher profits by destroying historic houses and building new ones. However, if we are truly to be a world-class city — and wish to preserve Houston's history — profit cannot be the only consideration.
[snip]
What little is left of Houston's past is quickly being destroyed, but it is not too late to stop the destruction. As the proposed historic ordinance amendments are debated in the weeks to come I urge Mayor Bill White and Houston City Council to weigh the opposition's spurious arguments against the greater good of the city. Preservation of Houston's heritage and our status as a world-class city are at stake.
Experts know better than investors and property owners -- YOU, in other words -- what Houston needs to do with (your) property to be world class. And who can argue with such experts?
BLOGVERSATION: Lose an Eye, It's a Sport.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/08/08 01:09 PM |
Caffeinated Wi-Fi review: Catalina Coffee (Chron TechBlog)
Dwight Silverman likes the "classic indie-coffee-shop feel" of Catalina Coffee on Washington Avenue (TechBlog).
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/08/08 12:37 PM |
Councilwoman Noriega will swoon for wide, shady, pole-free sidewalks
Yesterday's Chronicle carried an op-ed by the (previously) indecisive Councilwoman Melissa Noriega, who has found something she can be decisive about: sidewalks! Not just any sidewalks, mind you. No, she wants sidewalks that are:
[...] shaded by trees, wide enough for couples to walk side by side, unobstructed with poles or signs. Wheelchair users must get through and moms with strollers shouldn't need to step into traffic. The city must set sidewalk standards and hold Metro to those standards.
How idyllic! It'd be almost Portland-ish...well, except for the weather.
Of course, she's referring to the consent agreement METRO is trying to get out of Council. By the way, apparently the committee impasse was broken, because this week's agenda item number 26 is for Council to approve the consent agreement with METRO:
26. ORDINANCE approving and authorizing contract between the City of Houston and the METROPOLITAN TRANSIT AUTHORITY OF HARRIS COUNTY (“METRO”) consenting to the construction and operation of Phase II of the Metro Solutions Plan Light Rail Project; authorizing the Public Works & Engineering Director to approve amendments to the agreement to consent to Metro’s construction of other projects approved by the voters in the 2003 Metro Solutions Election; containing various provisions relating to the subject.
Except that what METRO wants to build isn't exactly what voters approved in 2003, but that's not a concern of any local officials. There is world-classness to attain!
And shady sidewalks that are wide enough for couples to stroll side-by-side on, without the threat of walking into a pole, are just what's needed to get Councilwoman Noriega's stamp of approval.
Sorry, Kirby Drive, no op-ed for you.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 06/08/08 07:24 AM |
Taser audit ready
KTRK-13 got an advance look at the city's Taser audit which shows African-Americans have been on the receiving end a majority of the time:
We got these numbers ahead of the city controller's audit expected to come out any day. It shows 64% of the Taser incidents since the implementation involve African Americans. In a city where less than 25% of the population is black, some say these numbers are alarming.
[snip]
From December 3rd of 2004 to April 30th of this year, HPD's statistics show officers used their Tasers more than 1,600 times. More males are stunned with them than females and by far more African Americans.
Out of the 1,675 uses, 380 involved a Hispanic suspect, 202 were used against whites and in more than a 1,000 cases the suspect was black.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 06/08/08 06:05 AM |
07 June 2008
Adventures in Ready-Fire-Aim governance (cont'd)
The Chronicle's Mike Snyder checks in with the latest developments with regard to the city's poorly considered floodway ordinance:
The Harris County Appraisal District has increased the taxable value on thousands of properties in floodways even as potential buyers cancel contracts because they are leery of new city restrictions on developing the land.
The increased values are based in part on an interpretation that the city's 2006 floodway ordinance will allow new construction on vacant land if a building has ever stood on the property.
However, floodway property owners and Harris County Tax Assessor-Collector Paul Bettencourt said they had never heard of that interpretation. It is not mentioned in a "frequently asked questions" page about the floodway ordinance on the city's Web site. And an owner whose building permit application was rejected this week because of the floodway restrictions said he was not asked about the property's history.
The confusion over what the ordinance requires is adding to the frustrations of property owners who believe the law has eliminated most of their land's value."This is not a well-thought-out social-economic experiment," said Bettencourt, adding that the full effects of the ordinance on land values have yet to be felt in the marketplace.
Bettencourt said this week that he had never heard that the city was allowing construction on vacant floodway land if buildings had stood on it in the past.
Complaints from property owners facing potentially higher tax bills are the latest development in a controversy that began after the City Council's October 2006 vote to tighten regulations on development in floodways — areas near bayous and streams considered necessary to convey floodwaters.
When Mayor White and his Council ram through sweeping ordinances without proper vetting or consideration, this is the sort of confusion that can result. Unfortunately, fixing this latest example of Ready-Fire-Aim governance gone awry will almost certainly fall to the next mayor.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/07/08 12:49 PM |
JSC is a cosmopolitan arena?
This sentence from the Editorial LiveJournalists caught our eye today:
The Houston area, including Friendswood, near the cosmopolitan arena of the Johnson Space Center, is becoming more diverse.
The Johnson Space Center is a cosmopolitan arena?
That sounds like a place for the next intergalactic basketball championships! Or maybe it's the new "world class." So exciting!
In any case, it seems unlikely that the Editorial LiveJournalists borrowed this writing from the New York Times.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/07/08 11:43 AM |
05 June 2008
Continental announces downsizing; $1.2B IAH expansion unaffected
Following the lead of other legacy carriers in the current fuel-cost environment, Continental Airlines today announced that it would be shrinking both its workforce and (mainly) domestic flight capacity:
Citing a "crisis" because of record fuel prices, Houston-based Continental Airlines said today it will cut 3,000 jobs and reduce 11 percent of its domestic flight capacity starting later this summer.
Most of the job reductions should come from voluntary departures but there will be layoffs, the company said. Some management positions also will be affected.
[snip]
Continental expects its number of domestic depatures [sic] in the fourth quarter of this year to be down 16 percent from the same period in 2007. Specific flights and cities that will be affected should be laid out by the end of next week, [Larry] Kellner and [Jeff] Smisek said.
Continental's international schedule, which is more lucrative, will see a slight decrease in fourth-quarter capacity, but that could increase slightly in 2009.
The company's top two leaders also noted they will stop taking a salary for the remainder of the year and will decline any bonuses.
Remember several weeks ago when we raised questions about the rush to spend tons of money revamping Terminal B? Mayor White says not to worry, the city is still committed to spending that money:
Houston Mayor Bill White said Kellner advised him of the announcement shortly before it was made and it should not affect the planned $1.2 billion renovation and expansion of Bush Intercontinental Airport's Terminal B.
Is it possible that now isn't the best time to be spending so much money on Terminal B, in light of other city priorities? Nobody else seems willing to suggest that to Mayor White or Richard Vacar, so we'll toss it out again for consideration.
As usual, some of the best discussion on Continental's move can be found on FlyerTalk.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/05/08 10:03 PM |
McGuff: I made the Houston Chronicle!
Local blogger and KTRK-13 web producer Mike McGuff wins a Lone Star Emmy. The Chronicle notices! (Mike McGuff)
Congrats!
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/05/08 09:47 AM |
Lose an Eye: Planning your trip, METRO-style
Cory Crow experiments with METRO's trip planner. (Lose an Eye, It's a Sport)
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/05/08 09:44 AM |
TechBlog: Houston Web 2.0 HQ open-house/party Saturday
Dwight Silverman posts that the Caroline Collective, a "commercial co-working initiative," is hosting a grand-opening party Saturday night for anyone who wants to know what it's all about. (Chron TechBlog)
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/05/08 09:40 AM |
04 June 2008
Maybe he should see Doctor-Former-Congresswoman?
The Chronicle's Plagiarist weighs in today on the side of the cops who have challenged Chief Hurtt's misguided beard policy:
IF you think I'll take the side of the four Houston cops who have sued to be allowed to wear beards just because I have one myself, you are wrong.
I'll take their side because of Richard Nixon, an Irish-American Sikh New Yorker, a Las Vegas Jew, Newark Muslims, the Waco experience and other rational arguments.
Let's begin at the beginning. When I first grew this beard back in the 1960s, it wasn't because that's what rebels did.
It was because I had the same medical condition the four officers have. It's a skin problem caused by closely-shaved curly hairs growing back into the skin and becoming infected.
It was not only unattractively splotchy, but it hurt.
It was probably not as serious a condition as with the officers. I could shave without problems if I did not drag the razor against the grain for closeness.
The result was a five o'clock shadow well before noon.
Three letters are adequate to describe this: TMI.
Surely the Chron's metro columnists could occasionally find more interesting topics in our city than themselves, with elections upcoming and scandals swirling and all the usual shenanigans. Surely.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 06/04/08 10:15 PM |
Chron reporter is baffled: What's there to see outside of Houston?
In a post about how Harris County commissioners don't think they are getting their money's worth from the GHCVB, the Chron's Liz Peterson lets slip that she doesn't think there's much to see or do outside of Houston city limits:
At today's hearing, Commissioners Court approved the creation of a panel to work with the tourism bureau on better promoting Harris County attractions.
As lovely as I'm sure it is, I don't know how many tourists are going to make the trip to Edna Mae Washington Park in scenic Baytown.
First, if Liz wants to discuss scenic destinations, maybe she can post some pictures of the Chron building's newly restored facade. Goodness knows THAT eyesore was lovely for tourists to gaze upon year after year. After year. It'd be great to see how that finally turned out.
Second, how about we help Liz with some ideas of places to visit within Harris County, but outside of Houston. I'll bet she'd appreciate the suggestions.
I'll start with the Mercer Arboretum in Humble, and the Pearl Fincher Museum of Fine Arts in Spring.
Please add your suggestions in the forum.
BLOGVERSATION: Bayou City Madman.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 06/04/08 07:25 PM |
Council votes to waste $150,000
KTRK-13's Miya Shay reports that City Council has authorized spending $150,000 to defend Chief Hurtt's ridiculous no-facial-hair policy:
The city council has decided to spend $150,000 to hire outside council to defend itself against this lawsuit.
"What this issue will do is take away the right of African American males on the police department," said Sgt. Shelby Stewart with the Houston Police Dapartment. "That's what it is in a nutshell."
"We've been discussing this and I have some concern. I'm not sure which way I'm going to fall out on this because I see a lot of concern on both sides," said Councilmember Melissa Noreiga.
Way to be decisive there, Councilwoman Noriega. That's what people look for in an elected official -- wishy-washiness. Even the Chronicle's editorial board got this one right, it's such a no-brainer.
This whole sorry episode speaks volumes about Houston's leadership.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 06/04/08 06:40 PM |
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