Tag Archives: Annise Parker

“Litter on a stick”

Posted on September 29, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I think the saddest thing about this story is that it’s basically the only mainstream media coverage the At Large #2 race has received. Houston Mayor Annise Parker announced a crackdown on so-called bandit signs Wednesday, pledging to issue fines … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2011 | Tagged , , , , , | 10 Comments

DA won’t bring charges against CM Jones

Posted on September 20, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Houston Politics: Harris County prosecutors who reviewed ethics complaints against City Councilwoman Jolanda Jones have concluded that criminal prosecution is not warranted. In a letter to the City Attorney David Feldman the Harris County District Attorney’s Office said it had … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , | 12 Comments

San Antonio City Council extends domestic partnership benefits to city employees

Posted on September 18, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Good for them. On Thursday, words like “abomination,” “sin” and “Satan” were commonplace in City Council chambers as the audience weighed in on a tiny portion of San Antonio’s $2.2 billion budget. The council listened to three hours of public … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Mayor extends burn ban in parks

Posted on September 16, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Mayor Parker Extends Parks Burn Ban to Include Smoking Mayor Annise Parker today signed an executive order extending the City’s temporary burn ban to include smoking in City parks.  The smoking ban applies to lighted cigars, cigarettes, … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

My overview of the 2011 election

Posted on September 16, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Note: I was asked to write a guest post at BOR to summarize the 2011 Houston elections. I figure if I’m going to put all that effort into something, I may as well use it here, too. It’s mostly familiar … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2011 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

City may ban smoking in parks

Posted on September 14, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Um, yeah. Mayor Annise Parker said she is considering banning smoking in the city’s 380 parks because of the fire dangers presented by discarded cigarettes. “This drought is a crisis situation,” Parker said.  ”I am leaning toward a ban on smoking cigarettes, … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

No tax rate increase this year

Posted on September 14, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

No surprise. Mayor Annise Parker has officially proposed not raising taxes this year. Through her finance director, the mayor is asking the City Council at its Sept. 21 meeting to adopt the existing property tax rate of 0.63875 per $100 … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

New park protection rules

Posted on September 10, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From the Mayor’s office: People Protecting Our Parks Mayor Annise Parker Announces New Fire Safety Campaign for City Parks Mayor Annise Parker, the Houston Parks and Recreation Department (HPARD) and the Houston Fire Department (HFD) announced People Protecting Our Parks, a new … Continue reading →

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Your 2011 electoral lineup

Posted on September 8, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

There are many candidates running for office this year. Some of them have a better rationale for running than others, but thankfully for them that’s not a requirement. A flurry of late filings to run for city office Wednesday filled … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2011 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

The 70 Percent Solution

Posted on September 4, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Where have I heard this before? November’s election really is about 2013, said lawyer, lobbyist and blogger Robert Miller. He speculates that the mayor needs to win big against low-profile opponents in November to discourage stronger candidates from running against … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2011 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

“Hire Houston First” passes

Posted on September 1, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

One of Mayor Parker’s signature policy items is now law. Houston City Council passed Mayor Annise Parker’s Hire Houston First initiative by a 13-1 vote Wednesday, allowing and sometimes requiring city departments to choose the second lowest bid for purchases … Continue reading →

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Mayor Parker campaign finance data

Posted on August 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

As you know, in my analyses of the campaign finance reports for July, I skipped over Mayor Parker’s report because it was just too damn big for me to plow through. Well, Sue Davis of the Mayor’s campaign heard my … Continue reading →

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RIP, red light cameras

Posted on August 25, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

There they go. Houston’s red-light cameras are done issuing violations. This time, permanently. City Council dealt the controversial cameras a double death blow Wednesday, first ordering their immediate shutdown and then outlawing the use of cameras to catch red-light runners. … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , | 9 Comments

No red light camera action on Friday

Posted on August 22, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Tagged again. City Council passed on an opportunity to outlaw red-light cameras during a special meeting Friday, delaying consideration of the repeal of Houston’s camera ordinance until Wednesday. Councilwoman Sue Lovell tagged the item, a parliamentary maneuver that delays a … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , | 13 Comments

It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s SuperCommittee!

Posted on August 21, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Up, up, and away! A group of 16 elected officials, community leaders, union bosses and pension executives have until Jan. 31 to find ways to tackle the triple threat to the city’s future solvency — ballooning pension obligations, runaway health … Continue reading →

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Can this divorce be saved?

Posted on August 19, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

After all their feuding this week, the city and the camera vendor are still trying to work out the terms of their breakup. A day after Mayor Annise Parker ripped American Traffic Solutions for “jerking us around” and failing to … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

No vote on red light cameras today

Posted on August 17, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Tag! The council will not act today on Mayor Annise Parker‘s resolution seeking its approval to shut off the city’s red-light cameras and fight its vendor in court over breach of contract. Councilwoman Sue Lovell tagged it, delaying a vote … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , | 10 Comments

You can’t always get what you want

Posted on August 17, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

But you can always complain about getting what you want. A little over a month ago, Houston Mayor Annise Parker announced she was turning the red-light cameras back on and declared she did not need the City Council’s approval to … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Mayor orders water conservation measures

Posted on August 15, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Mayor Parker Orders Mandatory Water Conservation Measures Due to persistent drought conditions and continuously decreasing water levels in Lake Houston, as of Monday, August 15, 2011, Mayor Annise Parker has mandated the implementation of the City of … Continue reading →

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Red light cameras may get a Council vote

Posted on August 14, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

This ought to be interesting. Houston’s red-light camera vendor said on Friday that Mayor Annise Parker is trying to turn the cameras off again, and it has asked a federal judge to stop her from doing so. City Attorney David … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Fighting blight

Posted on August 13, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Mayor Parker has proposed a new city department to combat the problem of blight. “We for years have said that we’re a city of neighborhoods and we care about neighborhoods. Well, budgets don’t lie. And we have shortchanged neighborhoods,” Parker … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Council approves IAH/United deal

Posted on August 12, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The deal is done. The deal calls for United to put in $686 million and the Houston Airport System $288 million. Although the airport system is a city government function, it runs as a separate business and will not use … Continue reading →

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

Where the line is

Posted on August 11, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Me, July 17: I disagree that anyone who might think about challenging the Mayor will wait two years before taking action. They’ll simply wait to see how Parker does in November. Like all three of her predecessors in the term-limits … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2011 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Look at me! Look at meeeeee!

Posted on August 3, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I have one thing to say about this. With three months until election day, attorney Benjamin Hall still hasn’t declared whether he’s running against Mayor Annise Parker. “I have not taken myself out of the contest,” Hall told me late … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2011 | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

The city and county would like to cooperate, but…

Posted on August 3, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

…it’s hard to do when there’s no money to do it with. City and county officials have not met for months to discuss a joint booking facility, long touted as a way to save taxpayers money. It would get the … Continue reading →

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

Terminal B expansion on the menu

Posted on July 31, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

In late May, the city announced that Terminal B expansion at IAH would go forward. Houston Mayor Annise Parker, the Houston Airport System (HAS), and United Continental Holdings, Inc. Airlines, reaffirm a commitment to overhaul Terminal B at George Bush … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

City asks Metro for Harrisburg underpass

Posted on July 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From the Inbox: Houston Mayor and METRO Seek Common Ground on East End Line Resolution of Harrisburg/Hughes Streets Over/Under Question Becomes a Milestone The city of Houston has concluded there is “strong sentiment” within the East End community for an … Continue reading →

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

Those darned propositions

Posted on July 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. Houston voters can be forgiven if they feel a bit confused. They voted down red-light cameras, but the cameras are on. They may have heard the mayor say that voting for a … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2011 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

We’re #9!

Posted on July 23, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The ninth greenest metro area, at least in terms of “green” jobs, according to a Brookings study. Houston’s “clean” or “green” economy is ranked 9th among the nation’s 100 largest metropolitan areas, according to a new report from the Brookings … Continue reading →

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DA gets Jones case

Posted on July 18, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

What sound does a hot potato make when it gets passed to someone else? The Harris County District Attorney has been asked to review for possible criminal prosecution allegations that Councilwoman Jolanda Jones used city resources to support her private … Continue reading →

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

Finance reports and the Mayor’s race

Posted on July 17, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Finance report updates: David Robinson has filed his corrected report, which includes the $53,095.57 cash on hand total that was omitted in the original. There were no other changes made. Mayoral candidate Kevin Simms has now filed his report. He … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2011 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

The anti-gay stuff has already started

Posted on July 16, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

For the most part, we didn’t see any nasty homophobia in the 2009 Mayoral election until the runoff, at which point it oozed out from several locations. This time around, the gay bashers aren’t wasting any time. First, usual suspect … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2011 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

More campaign finance reports for July

Posted on July 15, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Following up on the earlier post, here are some more highlights from the July campaign finance reports for City of Houston elections. All reports can be found on my 2011 Election page. – Since I dinged Al Hoang for not … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2011 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The long-term recycling deal

Posted on July 11, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I noticed this when it was posted last week but didn’t give it much thought at the time. There’s a 20-year no-bid contract on today’s City Council agenda. That’s legal because it’s an amendment to an existing contract, not a … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments