Tag Archives: Houston

Shrinking the Astrodome

Posted on April 28, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

You know what we need? Another crazy scheme to save the Astrodome, that’s what. Houston architect Imad Abdullah presented the most recent plan to save the Astrodome to Harris County Commissioners recently. But the same question remains: How to pay … Continue reading →

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Here come the lobbyists

Posted on April 27, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It’s getting real in the United versus Southwest fight. Both sides have enlisted A-list lobbying teams. United’s includes Marty Stein, who until little more than a year ago was Mayor Annise Parker’s agenda director; former City Attorney Anthony Hall and … Continue reading →

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Bike sharing is officially almost here

Posted on April 27, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

From Citizens Net: Beginning Wednesday, May 2, 2012, Houston will be one of only 15 U.S. cities to launch a bike share program to make getting around downtown a whole lot easier. The bike share program, known as Houston B-cycle, … Continue reading →

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“Bum Phillips: The Opera”

Posted on April 26, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Would you like to see an opera based on the life of legendary former Houston Oilers head coach Bum Phillips? Of course you would. And you can make it happen. BUM PHILLIPS is a world premiere operatic work inspired by … Continue reading →

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Brown’s staff departures

Posted on April 25, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Normally there’s nothing terribly newsworthy about a couple of Council staffers moving on, but there’s never been anything normal about CM Helena Brown’s office. Councilwoman Helena Brown’s two highest-ranking staff members have resigned less than four months into her two-year … Continue reading →

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Houston area transit preferences in 2012

Posted on April 25, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The 2012 Houston Area Survey is in the can, and though the data has not been published to their website yet, there have been a few preview tidbits tossed out to whet everyone’s appetite. One of them has to do … Continue reading →

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Urban chickens update

Posted on April 25, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

From TM Daily Post: A survey of Texas chicken husbandry regulations showed an overall tolerance for backyard fowl as long as the noise and smell don’t offend your neighbors (although some cities, like Plano, forbid chickens). The regs require considerable … Continue reading →

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Collecting unpaid red light camera fines update

Posted on April 23, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

You may recall that when the city settled its lawsuit with red light camera vendor ATS, they agreed to pay a certain amount of money that would be generated by collecting still-unpaid red light camera fines. Ted Oberg has an … Continue reading →

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Homeless feeding ordinance town hall tonight

Posted on April 23, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It’s at 6:30 PM at the Christ Evangelical Presbyterian Church, 8300 Katy Freeway. You can see a map here and the flyer for the town hall here. Judging by the organizers and the fact that the email I was forwarded … Continue reading →

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Council is skeptical of Hobby International

Posted on April 19, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Not so clear skies for expanding Hobby Airport into an international terminal. A consultant’s study that forecasts an economic boon for Houston if Hobby is made into an international airport came under fire from city council members Monday as “biased” … Continue reading →

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How much would it really cost to tear down the Astrodome?

Posted on April 18, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Perhaps not as much as Harris Country officials have been saying. The expected price tag to demolish the Reliant Astrodome that Harris County officials have cited in recent years far exceeds the cost of razing other stadiums across the country, … Continue reading →

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Re-Plant Houston

Posted on April 17, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Memorial Park is about to get some needed attention. As last year’s drought killed thousands of trees in Memorial Park, caretakers realized it was time to speed the pace of a long-planned reforestation. On Friday, Mayor Annise Parker announced that … Continue reading →

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We need a much fuller public conversation about the homeless feeding ordinance

Posted on April 16, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

As Neil noted, some of us had the opportunity on Friday to ask Mayor Parker questions over lunch on Friday. Not surprisingly, the homeless feeding ordinance came up, and we spent quite a bit of time discussing it. The Mayor … Continue reading →

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State of the City 2012

Posted on April 15, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It’s getting better. Saying Houston has “rounded the corner” on the recession, Mayor Annise Parker on Thursday credited City Hall with providing incentives that businesses used to create or retain 13,000 jobs and invest $1 billion locally during the tough … Continue reading →

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Unconventional

Posted on April 14, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Looking for something interesting to do today? Consider going to Rice’s UnConvention. For 100 years, Rice faculty, researchers and students have believed that anything is possible — that drive, devotion and innovative thinking can turn ideas into achievements. We call … Continue reading →

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The plot thickens

Posted on April 13, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Once again, I got nothing. Houston City Councilwoman Helena Brown voted against a city construction project Wednesday, warning that in signing off on two energy-efficient building projects the council was handing millions of dollars to a “non-American initiative and interests.” … Continue reading →

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Groundbreaking on the county’s new DNA forensics lab

Posted on April 13, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Cool. Harris County officials on Tuesday broke ground on a new forensic genetics laboratory, to open later this year, which will let county scientists test DNA evidence in a growing number of cases. The 15,000-square-foot facility, on Holcombe in the … Continue reading →

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SJL talks high speed rail

Posted on April 13, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The dream lives on. Officials in Japan and South Korea told Houston Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee that they are interested in helping Texas build a high-speed rail line between Houston and Dallas. The Houston Democrat said the foreign officials described … Continue reading →

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Houston Airport System sides with Southwest

Posted on April 9, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Hot out of the inbox: In a memorandum to Mayor Annise Parker, Houston Director of Aviation Mario Diaz recommends the City of Houston work with Southwest Airlines (Southwest) to expand the federal inspection services (FIS) facility at William P. Hobby … Continue reading →

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Today’s the day for the airport report

Posted on April 9, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Today’s the day when we get that report from Houston Airport System Director Mario Diaz that makes a recommendation to Mayor Parker and City Council about whether or not to expand Hobby Airport to include international flights. We will also … Continue reading →

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RIP, Bubba the roach

Posted on April 8, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Another Houston institution bites the dust. For 42 years, a 2-ton sign featuring a neon-lighted cockroach blazed over the Southwest Freeway near Westpark, a garish but iconic advertisement for Holder’s Pest Control. The 8-foot-by-16-foot sign, nicknamed Bubba, was taken down … Continue reading →

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Why gay marriage is inevitable

Posted on April 7, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Professor Stephen Klineberg – you know, the fancy movie star – looks at 30 years worth of Houston Area Survey data and sees the future. The findings from the 31st year of the Kinder Houston Area Survey (1982-2012) will be … Continue reading →

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Catching up on United versus Southwest

Posted on April 6, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

There have been a few news stories of interest since we first heard about the Southwest Airlines plan for international flights at Hobby Airport, which is being vigorously opposed by United, who wants to keep IAH as the only international … Continue reading →

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Homeless feeding ordinance, such as it is, passes Council

Posted on April 6, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Whatever. City Council outlawed feeding homeless people anywhere in Houston without permission of the property owner, voting 11-6 Wednesday after a month of protest that persisted even as the ordinance was vastly scaled back from its original form. […] Mayor … Continue reading →

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Homeless feeding ordinance, take three

Posted on April 4, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Mayor Parker does a third revision of the controversial proposed ordinance about feeding the homeless. Parker has whittled an original proposal that would have set rules on preparation, storage and server training down to a plan that mandates only that … Continue reading →

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Still waiting on the new density rules

Posted on April 4, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

With all that went on last year in Houston, one item that had been on the table was a revision of Chapter 42, to redefine the rules about density and other codes for developers. The planned revisions never made it … Continue reading →

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The Grand Prix is back

Posted on April 3, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

For those of you who are into that sort of thing. After a six-year hiatus, the Grand Prix of Houston will be returning in 2013. With city and race officials on hand, IZOD IndyCar Series CEO Randy Bernard announced Wednesday … Continue reading →

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North Forest gets a reprieve

Posted on April 2, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

For a year. The long-troubled North Forest school district will remain intact for at least another year as Texas Education Commissioner Robert Scott granted it a rare reprieve Friday from having to close in July. Scott said he would give … Continue reading →

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HBU wants a name change

Posted on March 31, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Always a challenging task. Half a century after being founded by the Baptist General Convention of Texas as “a Christian college of the highest order,” Houston Baptist University may soon erase the religious designation in its name. Saying that the … Continue reading →

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She showed me her manifesto, I had no reply

Posted on March 29, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I got nothing. District E Councilman Mike Sullivan, until January by far the Council’s most conservative member, was so outflanked from the right by a Council newcomer Wednesday that he found himself uttering into his microphone: “I am not a … Continue reading →

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Bromwich on the Mayor’s crime lab proposal

Posted on March 29, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Michael Bromwich, the author of the report that laid out all of the problems with HPD’s crime lab, expresses his approval of Mayor Parker’s proposal for an independent crime lab. Mayor Annise Parker and her administration have proposed removing the … Continue reading →

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San Antonio B-Cycle keeps on growing

Posted on March 27, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It’s very cool to watch. [B-cycle and city officials announced] plans to add three bicycle stations in April, at HemisView Village apartments, the San Antonio Housing Authority park on South Flores Street, and the 1221 Broadway apartments, said Cindi Snell, … Continue reading →

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Always in motion the future is

Posted on March 25, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

That won’t stop some people from trying to predict it. A Houston think tank has seen the city’s future. Make that two futures. One version shows the Houston metropolitan area in 2040 as beginning to grow after decades of economic … Continue reading →

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When will Ashby rise?

Posted on March 25, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Real Soon Now, developers promise. After more than four years in the works, the so-called Ashby high-rise is expected to break ground by year-end. A lawsuit keeping the project from being built was settled last week. The proposed building pitted … Continue reading →

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