Tag Archives: Mayor

What next for Metro now that peace with Culberson has broken out?

Posted on May 20, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

We’ve all had a chance to read over and digest the agreement Metro struck with Rep. John Culberson now. It looked good to me up front (though not to everyone – more on that in a bit), but as always … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

The Mayoral candidates and public transportation

Posted on May 17, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a start. When it comes to traffic, Houstonians and their mayoral candidates agree: The city is gridlocked and only getting worse. Judging by the candidates’ fledgling campaign platforms, many of which mention traffic as a top concern, road improvements … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Statewide Uber bill appears dead

Posted on May 15, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Close, but no cigar. A bill to establish statewide rules for “transportation network companies” like Uber and Lyft has apparently run out of road. Rep. Chris Paddie, who authored the measure, said on Tuesday that looming legislative deadlines had rendered … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Statewide Uber bill appears dead

Mayor Parker’s last budget

Posted on May 14, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Here it is. Despite sounding the alarm for months that a multimillion dollar deficit could force service cuts, new fees and employee layoffs, Mayor Annise Parker rolled out a $5.1 billion city budget on Tuesday that largely preserves spending levels … Continue reading →

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

Moving on to the runoff for the SA Mayor’s race

Posted on May 13, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

This Express News story on the beginning of the Mayoral runoff in San Antonio between Leticia Van de Putte and Ivy Taylor gets to the question of what if anything the two runnersup and their supporters will do. But all … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Who you calling lame duck?

Posted on May 13, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

“Not me”, says Mayor Parker. City Council has voted down or delayed several items put forward by Mayor Annise Parker in recent weeks, events that some City Hall observers interpret as a sign of the term-limited mayor being afflicted with … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Who you calling lame duck?

Turner prepares his exit from the Lege

Posted on May 11, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Looks like we’ll have at least one more legislative special election this year. In 2003, state Rep. Sylvester Turner of Houston made the most definitive decision of his political career. Turner had arrived in the Texas House 14 years earlier, … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

It’s hard out here on a recycler

Posted on May 11, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Whole lot of not so good in there. When Waste Management bought the plant in 2010 and converted it to handle single-bin recycling, commodity prices were high, the city was on board and Houstonians were eager to recycle. As the … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Van de Putte and Taylor in SA Mayor runoff

Posted on May 10, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go. Former state Sen. Leticia Van de Putte is set to face San Antonio Mayor Ivy Taylor in a runoff for the city’s top job. With 95 percent of all precincts reporting late Saturday, Van de Putte led … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Fletcher will run for Sheriff in 2016

Posted on May 8, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Not unexpected. The day after Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia announced he is running for mayor of Houston, Republican state Rep. Allen Fletcher of Cypress said he would abandon his House seat for a bid to replace Garcia. “I will … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2016 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Adrian is in

Posted on May 7, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Speculation time is over. Ending months of speculation, Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia has declared his candidacy for mayor of Houston Wednesday. Garcia, whose strong name recognition and deep law enforcement experience make him a likely frontrunner, will make his … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Homestretch for the SA Mayor’s race

Posted on May 5, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Jeanne Russell, wife of San Antonio Mayoral candidate Mike Villarreal, makes the case for her husband in the Rivard Report. Many people who have known Mike and I professionally associate us most often with our work toward building a stronger, … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Homestretch for the SA Mayor’s race

Dallas writes a letter to the Lege about Lyft and Uber

Posted on May 4, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

They would like for the Lege to not overrule them on regulating these transportation network companies. Dallas city leaders, writing to House Speaker Joe Straus, have underlined their opposition to a bill that would create statewide rules for “transportation network … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Dallas writes a letter to the Lege about Lyft and Uber

Three bad bills

Posted on May 2, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Bad bill #1: State Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, has been trying for months to pass legislation that would make it tougher for local entities to bring in more tax revenue by taking advantage of rising property values. On Thursday, he … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Changing pothole procedures

Posted on May 2, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Mayor Parker seeks to reduce the number of campaign issues for this fall by half. City officials are hoping to replace more concrete segments of streets in lieu of simply patching over Houston’s many potholes, part of an emergency response … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Endorsement watch: Express News goes for LVdP for Mayor

Posted on April 27, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Early voting has begun in San Antonio, and the Express News has made its choice for Mayor. Will San Antonio be blessed enough to elect three exceptionally strong mayors in a row? That’s a tall order. But if any of … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Endorsement watch: Express News goes for LVdP for Mayor

Jailhouse woes for the Sheriff

Posted on April 26, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Been a bad couple of weeks for Sheriff Garcia. A year and a half after a mentally ill inmate was found festering in squalor in a Harris County jail cell – apparently for weeks – Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment, Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

B-Cycle’s future

Posted on April 25, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

There’s some trouble in San Antonio. San Antonio B-Cycle could be on the verge of following rideshare and disappearing from the San Antonio landscape, multiple sources have told the Rivard Report, unless it can win the local government, corporate and … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

TxDOT reveals its I-45 plan

Posted on April 24, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. Just, wow. A massive reconstruction of Interstate 45 through most of Houston would topple one of downtown’s most frustrating barriers – the Pierce Elevated – and move the freeway east of the central business district. That’s just one of … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Statewide Uber/Lyft bill passes out of committee

Posted on April 23, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

It’s gotten better, but it’s still not good enough. A bill to establish statewide rules for “transportation network companies” like Uber and Lyft has been tweaked to address some concerns that its background check requirements weren’t stringent enough. That change … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Statewide Uber/Lyft bill passes out of committee

Minjarez wins in HD124

Posted on April 22, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

At long last, that’s a wrap. Former Bexar County prosecutor Ina Minjarez cruised to victory late Tuesday in the runoff for José Menéndez’s old seat in Texas House District 124 the last vacancy this session in the Legislature. With all … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Pennington withdraws from Mayor’s race

Posted on April 18, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Sad news. City Councilman Oliver Pennington announced he would end his candidacy for mayor on Friday, citing his wife’s health. The term-limited councilman, who represents west Houston’s District G, said in a press release he would complete his third and … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Pennington withdraws from Mayor’s race

Pothole progress

Posted on April 16, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Hooray. Two months after Mayor Annise Parker called Houston’s pockmarked streets a “crisis situation” and pledged to clear a mounting pothole repair backlog, the city has reduced open work requests by about 1,000 despite a steep increase in calls for … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

How many crimes does your police department solve?

Posted on April 13, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Fewer than you think, unfortunately. Violent crime in America has been falling for two decades. That’s the good news. The bad news is, when crimes occur, they mostly go unpunished. In fact, for most major crimes, police don’t even make … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Where’s Adrian?

Posted on April 12, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

I suspect a lot of people have been wondering the same thing. Standing on the cusp of what could easily be the most competitive mayoral race in Houston history many wonder what Adrian Garcia is waiting for. Still officially on … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Where’s Adrian?

Yes, turnout stunk in HD124

Posted on April 7, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

What did you expect? How low can you go? Apparently 2.25 percent. That’s the share of registered voters who cast ballots Tuesday in the special election for Texas House District 124. According to unofficial results, less than 2,000 of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Yes, turnout stunk in HD124

Turner & Whitmire

Posted on April 5, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

No, not the latest buddy cop movie, just two old legislative friends helping each other out. Texas’ most senior state senator turned to the crowd during a September fundraiser for state Rep. Sylvester Turner and ribbed his friend and would-be … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Uber officially departs San Antonio

Posted on April 4, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

As expected. Uber’s ride in the Alamo City ended Wednesday as the ride-share company has stopped operating within San Antonio city limits. The decision to end all operations in San Antonio stems from the city council’s vote to approve a … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Uber officially departs San Antonio

Council approves Memorial Park plan

Posted on April 2, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Done deal. The plan, which could see up to $300 million invested, also would restore the park’s ecosystem, which was greatly harmed in the 2011 drought, through ambitious plans to add fire suppression and irrigation systems and improve drainage to … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

What kind of Memorial Park do you want?

Posted on April 1, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Council is set to vote on the Memorial Park Conservancy plan, whether you like it or not. Joe Turner does not want more drawings gathering dust on a shelf. Houston’s parks and recreation director inherited more than a few unrealized … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Still unclear where One Bin For All stands

Posted on March 31, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Your guess is as good as mine. The fate of the city’s cutting-edge “one bin” waste system that would feature a privately built, $100 million sorting facility is becoming increasingly uncertain, as sources familiar with the company proposals say there … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Still unclear where One Bin For All stands

Endorsement watch: Pushback on the process

Posted on March 27, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

The early endorsement by the firefighters’ union – and now the Houston Police Officers Union – of Rep. Sylvester Turner for Mayor has ruffled some feathers. The Houston Police Officers’ Union on Tuesday followed their firefighter counterparts who on Monday … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

WaPo profiles Mayor Parker

Posted on March 25, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Nothing we didn’t already know, but a nice story nonetheless. Annise Parker keeps a leather-bound journal on the desk in her wood-paneled office in City Hall. If it had a title, she says, it would be: “Would This Have Happened … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on WaPo profiles Mayor Parker

Endorsement watch: Firefighters for Turner

Posted on March 24, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: HOUSTON, March 23, 2015 – State Rep. Sylvester Turner has earned the endorsement of the Houston Professional Fire Fighters Association in this year’s mayoral race, the HPFFA said today. HPFFA President Alvin W. White, Jr. said 84 … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment