Tag Archives: Annise Parker

The 380 agreement

Posted on September 14, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the proposed 380 agreement between the city and Ainbinder for the site now known as “Washington Heights”. It’s all fairly dense legalese, and I confess my eyes glazed over while reading it. If there’s something in here that’s unexpected … Continue reading →

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

Another Wal-Mart meeting

Posted on September 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

There was another meeting about the proposed Wal-Mart on Wednesday, this time for residents only. [I]n the second public meeting in eight days addressing concerns over the Walmart-Ainbinder Company development, the city’s proposed 380 Agreement with the developers took center … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Videos of the city’s Wal-Mart presentation from last week

Posted on August 31, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

You can see three videos on Mayor Parker’s YouTube channel from last week’s meeting at the GRB to discuss the Wal-Mart development on Yale. This includes the Mayor’s opening remarks and the city’s slide show presentation, a bit less than … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Videos of the city’s Wal-Mart presentation from last week

The next Wal-Mart public meeting

Posted on August 30, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Mayor Annise Parker Cordially invites you to attend A 2nd public meeting regarding the Koehler Street Development Wednesday, September 1, 2010 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. High School for Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice 4701 Dickson Street … Continue reading →

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

The Wal-Mart meeting at the GRB

Posted on August 26, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Lots of sound and fury, that’s for sure. The city is negotiating a deal with the developer of Washington Heights — a proposed Walmart-anchored shopping center near Interstate 10 and Yale – that would reimburse the local builder for as … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

More on the red light camera Council vote

Posted on August 25, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The fuller version of the Chron story addresses the question about whether the petition drive was lawful or not according to the city’s charter. “It is your absolute sworn duty to place this on the ballot,” [Mayor Annise] Parker told … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 18 Comments

There’s supporters, and then there’s “supporters”

Posted on August 25, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This Chron story is about “supporters and opponents” of the “Heights” Wal-Mart debuting their webpages. See if you can spot the problem with this: The opponents, led by a group of concerned citizens who began organizing around a Facebook website … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , | 12 Comments

Public meeting regarding Koehler Street Development

Posted on August 23, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Public Meeting Regarding Koehler Street Development Mayor Annise Parker Cordially invites you to attend A public meeting regarding the Koehler Street Development Wednesday, August 25, 2010 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. George R. Brown Convention Center 1001 … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Public meeting regarding Koehler Street Development

Term limits referendum not adopted by Council

Posted on August 18, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This is a bit of a surprise. The Houston City Council today surprised Mayor Annise Parker and rejected a proposal to change the terms to which city officials are elected from three, two-year terms to two, four-year terms. The seven … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Term limits referendum not adopted by Council

Is it worth it to just tinker at the edges?

Posted on August 17, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I mostly feel the same way as the Chron about term limits and the proposal from the Term Limits Commission to alter them. [T]he logic in limiting city officials to three two-year terms, with the necessity for virtually nonstop campaigning … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Is it worth it to just tinker at the edges?

Renew Houston proposition officially on the ballot

Posted on August 13, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

City Council voted to put the Renew Houston referendum on the ballot Wednesday. Details about how much the drainage fee it calls for will be, and other aspects of it are still to be worked out by the city before … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

The residency referendum

Posted on August 12, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, Houston will get two more City Council districts after the 2010 Census is completed. To allow potential candidates sufficient time to adjust to the new map, Council will put a charter amendment on the ballot that reduces … Continue reading →

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

The city of Houston’s social media guidelines

Posted on August 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I received the following email from Justin Concepcion, who manages social media for Mayor Parker’s office, in response to the questions I asked in this post about how the city of Houston handles social media: We are in the process … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on The city of Houston’s social media guidelines

Ready or not, here comes Wal-Mart

Posted on July 31, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a done deal. Wal-Mart has placed 16 acres of land in the Washington Avenue corridor under contract, company spokeswoman Kellie Duhr confirmed Thursday. The deal comes two days after concerned Heights-area residents voiced their opposition to the project to … Continue reading →

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

The new Historic Preservation ordinance

Posted on July 22, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From Swamplot: The mayor’s office is out with a “public comment draft” of proposed changes to Houston’s Historic Preservation Ordinance. The biggest (and most expected) change: There’ll be no more 90-day “compliance waivers” issued for historic-district properties. Under the previous … Continue reading →

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

Term limits commission makes its recommendation

Posted on July 16, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The Term Limits Commission finished its work on Monday and voted on a proposal that will be considered by Council. Houston’s Term Limits Review Commission voted Monday night to recommend changing the existing limits from three 2-year terms to two … Continue reading →

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

Renew Houston submits petitions

Posted on July 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Renew Houston has submitted signatures to get its drainage improvement proposition on the ballot this November. Renew Houston, a group of influential local engineers, has collected more than 30,000 signatures in a push to seek voter approval for an $8 … Continue reading →

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

Water rate rebate passes Council

Posted on July 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Back in April, Council approved a water rate hike. There were some complaints from apartment owners at the time about the size of the rate increase that would apply to them, and the city agreed to make some changes to … Continue reading →

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

The Chronic Consumer Stabilization Initiative

Posted on July 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

In the comments to my previous post about mental illness and the criminal justice system, reader Katherine reminded me of this Houston Press article from last December, about a pilot program between HPD and the Mental Health Mental Retardation Authority … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Mayor Parker on the proposed Heights Wal-Mart

Posted on July 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Hair Balls has an update. Walmart spokesman William Wertz told Hair Balls that Walmart is considering the expansion at this time but no plans have been approved. “We can confirm that we are looking at this site, but discussions are … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

Council redistricting news

Posted on July 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Campos had an interesting tidbit from the other day. The H-Town City Council [Wednesday] morning started discussing next year’s redistricting process. Instead of creating a city council committee on redistricting, the H-Town Mayor mentioned that she will probably let the … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Council redistricting news

City gets OK on water rate hike

Posted on June 25, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

One obstacle cleared. In a letter to lawyers representing the city and conservative activists Bruce Hotze and Paul Bettencourt on Monday, state District Judge Stephen Yelenosky said the rate increases do not violate a charter amendment approved by voters in … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on City gets OK on water rate hike

Mayor Parker’s first budget passes

Posted on June 24, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The deed is done. We know the basic shape of the budget from earlier stories, so I just want to highlight a couple of things. First, an amendment to trim Council members’ budgets that ultimately was defeated: City Councilman Al … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Mayor Parker’s first budget passes

Bilingual budget amendment controversy

Posted on June 21, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Given the budget situation we’re in, there’s been a surprising lack of overt controversy about how to deal with it. Council members submitted their budget amendments last week, and one of them has generated a stir. KUHF reported on the … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Bilingual budget amendment controversy

Metro working on its critics

Posted on June 18, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Now that it has much of its litigation-related unpleasantness behind it, Metro is working on improving its image, both with the public as a whole and with its more persistent critics. The need to re-brand Metro as an institution worthy … Continue reading →

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

More on Renew Houston

Posted on June 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The effort to create a dedicated fund for flooding and drainage is moving along at a good clip. Renew Houston, the non-profit committee formed to seek at least 22,000 ballot signatures in a bid to put the matter to voters … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Changes coming to the preservation ordinance?

Posted on May 29, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Swamplot has a scoop. Some major changes to the implementation of Houston’s long-ridiculed historic preservation ordinance may be coming very soon, if a proposal supported by Mayor Annise Parker passes a city council vote that could occur as early as … Continue reading →

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

Demolition Day

Posted on May 22, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Get ready to say goodbye to a bunch of abandoned buildings. “Demolition Day,” which Mayor Annise Parker announced in her state of the city speech last month, is the culmination of months of effort by the Houston Police Department’s Neighborhood … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Demolition Day

More on city term limits

Posted on May 20, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the Chron story about the 2010 term limits survey and recommendations by the Term Limits Commission. Of interest is what the immediate prospects are for action by City Council. [Dr. Robert] Stein, a commission member who has polled voters … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on More on city term limits

2010 Houston term limits survey

Posted on May 19, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Last month, I posted several links with information and research relating to term limits, including the results of a 2004 City of Houston survey about them and the proposed wording for an updated survey. That updated survey has been done, … Continue reading →

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

And the bitching about the water rate hike begins

Posted on May 16, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

It took a little longer than I might have thought it would take, but as the sun rises in the east, the kind of person who gets outraged when the government does something other than lower taxes is outraged about … Continue reading →

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

White and Parker

Posted on May 15, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I’m not particularly concerned about this. Gov. Rick Perry has found an unlikely — and apparently unwitting — ally in his effort to paint Bill White as a liberal spendthrift who left Houston in arrears: Mayor Annise Parker. As she … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on White and Parker

Austin divests itself from Arizona

Posted on May 15, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Good for them. The Austin City Council decided Thursday to end business and travel ties with the state of Arizona to protest a new state law that will allow law enforcement officers there to detain people they suspect are in … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Austin divests itself from Arizona

Mayor Parker’s first budget

Posted on May 12, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

It sounds good, and she kept her promises about not raising the property tax rate, at least for this year, but there are some blanks that still need to be filled in. Mayor Annise Parker unveiled a $4.1 billion spending … Continue reading →

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