Tag Archives: Annise Parker

LIBOR lawsuit

Posted on July 24, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

This ought to be interesting. The City of Houston filed suit today for financial damages suffered from the manipulation of the interest rates on its investments against the banks that set the benchmark interest rate known as the London Interbank … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

The Chron continues to rage against the pensions

Posted on July 18, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Hobby horse mounted, away we go! There is something particularly frustrating about municipal pensions, which are funded by the city but controlled by the state. This is a recipe for disaster, which can be seen in ballooning burdens to the … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Mayoral finance reports for July

Posted on July 16, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Let’s go to the press releases for the initial hype. Here’s Mayor Parker’s announcement of her fundraising haul for the July report. Houston Mayor Annise Parker has raised more than $2.2 million for her re-election campaign since February, with the … Continue reading →

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Mayoral multitude

Posted on July 15, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Campos has an update on who’s running for what. Commentary dropped by the City Secretary Office a couple of days ago to check out the latest campaign treasurer designations. Here is who I will add to my political page later … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2013 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Eric Dick is just trolling us now

Posted on July 7, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Like a three-year-old having a tantrum – and against our better judgment – he gets the attention he so desperately seeks. Two City Council candidates facing thousands of dollars in fines for violating the city’s sign ordinance during their 2011 … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2013 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

First Hackathon project released

Posted on July 7, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Cool. Budget Bootcamp, a new city website application that provides easy access to city budget information, is the first Houston Hackathon project to become reality.  Budget Bootcamp is hosted on the Finance Department’s website and provides citizens an educational walkthrough of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Websurfing | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

What does the DOMA decision mean for Texas?

Posted on July 1, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Last week, the day after the disappointing SCOTUS ruling on the Voting Rights Act, we got a much more heartening ruling on DOMA, declaring it to be unconstitutional. However, not all of DOMA was struck down. In a landmark Supreme … Continue reading →

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Full speed ahead for Parks By You

Posted on June 30, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Excellent. Houston City Council on Wednesday approved an agreement with the Houston Parks Board to tackle the ambitious trails plan voters approved in a $166 million bond issue last November. The Bayou Greenways 2020 project fulfills a century-old vision first … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: The firefighters still don’t like the Mayor

Posted on June 28, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Last week, the Ben Hall campaign teased on its Facebook page that it was about to get a “game-changer” endorsement. This week, that endorsement was announced. The Houston Professional Fire Fighters Association announced they will be endorsing Ben Hall in … Continue reading →

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A woman for the Governor’s Mansion

Posted on June 26, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Annie’s List sent out the following email last week: We’ve had it with Rick Perry.  First he added insulting anti-choice legislation to the Special Session agenda while ignoring funding for our schools. Then he did the unthinkable–vetoing the Texas Lilly … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2014 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Seniors get a tax cut from Council

Posted on June 21, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Good for them. Houston City Council voted to provide property tax relief to seniors Wednesday, one of many votes at a marathon meeting at which council unanimously approved a $4.5 billion budget for the fiscal year that starts July 1. … Continue reading →

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City seeks One Bin For All RFQs

Posted on June 17, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Calling all vendors. The city of Houston took a step forward on its “One Bin for All” project this week. The project would allow residents to discard trash and recyclables in one bin to be sorted at a new $100 … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

What we missed by not getting a payday lending bill

Posted on June 16, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Better Texas Blog reminds us of what could have been SB 1247, the omnibus reform bill filed by Sen. John Carona … included the ability to repay standards, loan limits, and refinance limitations, among numerous other provisions. According to the … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Budget time in Houston

Posted on June 14, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Houston City Council has begun the process of debating Mayor Parker’s budget for the next fiscal year by proposing 60 amendments to it. Parker’s budget would spend $4.5 billion, including fee-supported enterprise funds such as the aviation department and utility … Continue reading →

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Less is more, local legislative edition

Posted on June 5, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Harris County and the city of Houston generally play more defense than offense when the Legislature is in session, so as a rule the fewer bills that get passed that affect them, the better. County and city lobbyists said their … Continue reading →

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Midyear 2013 election update

Posted on June 4, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Back in January, I took an early look at the 2013 elections in Houston. At the request of the folks at the Burnt Orange Report, who also printed my initial overview, here’s an update on the races in the city … Continue reading →

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Hooray for the hotels

Posted on May 30, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

We’re going to have a lot of people coming into town for Super Bowl LI. We’re going to have to put them somewhere. Mayor Annise Parker said Thursday that hosting the 2017 Super Bowl will be another step in Houston’s … Continue reading →

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Making downtown parking easier

Posted on May 19, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Makes sense. In downtown Houston, there are about 3,200 parking spaces on the street – and a whopping 5,800 signs drivers must decipher to use them without getting towed or ticketed. Aiming to fix this “confusing mishmash of signs,” as … Continue reading →

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It sure is nice to budget when you have money

Posted on May 16, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Mayor Parker has released her FY2014 budget, and it’s great news for those of you that have been waiting for their single-stream recycling bin. More than 100,000 Houston homes will be added to the city’s single-stream recycling program by this … Continue reading →

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From the “Tax breaks for me but not for thee” department

Posted on May 15, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

There are two types of people in Texas: Those for whom the tax code is written to favor, and everybody else. The Dallas Country Club, not a place usually thought of as needing a huge tax break, used a quirk … Continue reading →

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Memorial Park will not become the Riverwalk

Posted on May 14, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Council will vote on the proposed Uptown/Memorial TIRZ this week, which may or may not put an end to some of the wild speculation about what expanding the Uptown TIRZ boundaries to include Memorial Park may mean. Imagine you’re jogging … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Mayor Parker kicks off her campaign

Posted on May 12, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

It’s the time of the season for Mayor Parker, who has a serious challenger this time, but also a stronger hand to play. In her tenure, Parker has given teeth to the city’s historic preservation rules, broken a deadlock with … Continue reading →

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Council approves safe passing ordinance

Posted on May 9, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

From the press release: Mayor Annise Parker and Houston City Council Members today unanimously approved an ordinance to protect Houston’s cyclists and other vulnerable road users by requiring cars and other motor vehicles to keep a separation of more than … Continue reading →

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If only it were that easy to get our act together

Posted on May 5, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Outgoing Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has some blunt words for Houston about light rail. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood likes Houston’s light rail that’s up and running but warns that regional transit officials have squandered opportunities the past decade by … Continue reading →

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Bike trails bill

Posted on May 4, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

A bill that will clear the way for bike trails to be built on CenterPoint utility rights of way in Harris County has passed both chambers in the Lege and now awaits Rick Perry’s signature. “We are really, really pleased … Continue reading →

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Ben Hall’s tax problem

Posted on May 3, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Oops. A campaign video shows Ben Hall, the former city attorney who is now running for mayor, sitting in a classroom amid a group of schoolchildren as his voiceover talks about the importance of education. “Our children are our future,” … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2013 | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

The Houston Hackathon

Posted on May 2, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

From the Mayor’s office: Houston Mayor Annise Parker today announced the City of Houston will host a 24-hour “Open Innovation Hackathon” on May 17-18 at the Houston Technology Center and at Start Houston. A hackathon is a day-long event in … Continue reading →

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Have your say on the Uptown/Memorial Park TIRZ

Posted on May 2, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox, and the office of CM Oliver Pennington: To the Residents of District G: As many of you are aware, the May 1, 2013, Council Agenda contained several items related to the Reinvestment Zone Number Sixteen (Uptown Zone), … Continue reading →

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Questions about the Memorial Park part of the Uptown/Memorial TIRZ

Posted on April 30, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Lisa Falkenberg reports that some people have raised questions about the Memorial Park part of the Uptown/Memorial TIRZ. Reforestation is sorely needed in a park devastated by hurricane damage and drought. This is a great deal, city leaders and supporters … Continue reading →

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Tweet My Jobs Houston

Posted on April 27, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

On Friday, Mayor Parker delivered the State of the City 2013. Her address was heavy on accomplishments from the past year – there are a lot of them, and there is an election coming up – but there were also … Continue reading →

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Revamped Chapter 42 ordinance finally passes

Posted on April 26, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Strangely enough, in the end it was not very contentious. Houston City Council on Wednesday voted 14-3 to allow greater single-family home density outside Loop 610, while also strengthening the proposal’s already robust protections for neighborhoods concerned about unwelcome development. … Continue reading →

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Today is Chapter 42 day

Posted on April 24, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Actually, today is almost certainly the day that the Chapter 42 revisions get tagged by multiple members of Council, thus pushing it back for a week. Nonetheless, this is the beginning of the end of a long, long journey. Here’s … Continue reading →

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It’s Chapter 42 week

Posted on April 16, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

We won’t know for years what the upcoming revisions to Chapter 42, the development and density codes in Houston, will mean to the city and its development and population patterns. There’s certainly a lot of hope that the changes will … Continue reading →

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The Uptown/Memorial TIRZ

Posted on April 15, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Big projects, big plans, big funding mechanism. Transit and trees – things that make urban areas move quickly and look pretty – are the centerpieces of a $500 million project that would remake the Uptown area and reinvigorate Memorial Park. … Continue reading →

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