Public Works: You citizens should be more insistent we fix things!
KHOU-11's Carolyn Campbell reports on a problem with Houston Public Works:
He warned them. A Houston man said he called the city to tell them about a destructive problem, but believes his words fell on deaf ears.
The pressure was so strong it broke the back windshield of Bothe's Mercedes.
Jason Bothe's car was not in a flood, but it certainly looks like it was.
"Even the windows, you couldn't see anything. It was just a wall of water," he said.
Jason Bothe thought there might be trouble when he spotted a water main leak Monday afternoon. So he called the city.
"They said, "Well it's a minor, it would take up to 72 hours to respond,' is what they said. It went on through the night. No one showed up to do anything. And this morning I woke up to do breakfast and it's Niagara Falls outside," Bothe said.
Houston Public Works seems to be responding about as well as HPD, although at least HPD has the excuse of being undermanned.
Unfortunately, the following attitude is becoming more prevalent in the city government headed by Mayor White:
"We always get the bum rap," a Public Works employee said.
But this time it wasn't the city's fault. A private contractor said it was tapping into the city water line for new townhouses.
However, Public Works spokesperson Wes Johnson said the city is responsible for shutting off the water if there's a problem. But that's not simple either.
"We get anywhere between 50 and 60 water main break calls every single day," Johnson said. "If the response you're getting is not satisfactory, ask for a supervisor."
Here's a novel thought for Mr. Johnson -- perhaps the city needs to be more responsive to citizens, and he needs to take steps to ensure that his department will be more responsive in the future!
Mayor White's department heads -- Johnson and Chief Hurtt -- need to stop trying to pass the buck, and stand up and be accountable (or be replaced). For that matter, Mayor White is always talking about running the city like a business. This doesn't seem very businesslike.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/29/05 09:42 PM | Print |
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