Tag Archives: Houston City Council

Interview with Casey Curry

Moving on in At Large #3, we come to another candidate with an interesting former job, longtime TV meteorologist Casey Curry. After a decade of weather reporting on the local news, Curry is now working in philanthropy and communications. She … Continue reading

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Interview with Twila Carter

Continuing on with At Large #3, today we meet Twila Carter, who among other things has had one of the best jobs of anyone I’ve interviewed: For over a decade, she served as Senior Vice President of Community Relations of … Continue reading

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Endorsement watch: Picking someone in District E

The Chron makes their first candidate endorsement for November 2023. Houston City Council races are officially nonpartisan, but since just about everything seems partisan these days, let’s go ahead and say it: District E, the bizarrely shaped district that conjoins … Continue reading

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Interview with Donnell Cooper

The last open At Large seat is At Large #3, which also has the biggest field of nine candidates. I have interviews with four of them this week, beginning with Donnell Cooper. Cooper is a Houston Community College Acres Homes … Continue reading

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Interview with Marina Coryat

We wrap up our week of interviews with At Large #2 candidates with Marina Coryat, a Trinidadian immigrant who has served as Communications Director for Texas State Representative Senfronia Thompson since 2019. Coryat has worked in the city’s Solid Waste … Continue reading

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City to provide some funding to B-Cycle

Good. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner plans to extend a half-million dollar lifeline to the city’s nonprofit bike share program, he said Wednesday. Turner said he will present City Council next week with a proposal to send funding to Houston Bike … Continue reading

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Interview with Holly Vilaseca

We continue our week of At Large #2 with a familiar name, Holly Flynn Vilaseca, who served for five years as HISD Trustee, being appointed in January 2017 to fill out an unexpired term and then winning a full term … Continue reading

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Interview with Danielle Bess

Next up in At Large #2 we have Danielle Bess, a native Houstonian, Navy veteran, and real estate professional. Bess has been involved in politics for a long time, having worked with campaigns ranging from Obama for America, Sheila Jackson … Continue reading

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Interview with Obes Nwabara

Continuing on in At Large #2, today we talk with Obes Nwabara, who is a son of Nigerian immigrants and a 2009 graduate of UH. He has worked in a number of industries including energy, food service, and healthcare, and … Continue reading

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Interview with Nick Hellyar

We move now into At Large #2, where I will have four candidates to bring to you. First up is Nick Hellyar, who had run for At Large #4 in 2019 and finished third in the field of eleven that … Continue reading

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Once again with the residency question

Every election, without fail. Robin Williams, a police officer in Missouri City, was 16 months into her long-shot bid to become Houston’s next mayor when city officials made a discovery that threatened to suddenly end her campaign: She did not … Continue reading

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Interview with CM Letitia Plummer

As noted yesterday, there are two At Large Council members running for re-election. CM Letitia Plummer is the incumbent in At Large #4, where she has focused on police reform, Houston’s food deserts, and the need for apartment inspectors. She … Continue reading

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Interview with CM Sallie Alcorn

There are three open At Large Council seats this year, which means there are two incumbents running for re-election. Council Member Sallie Alcorn is the incumbent in At Large #5, serving as the chair of the Regulatory and Neighborhood Affairs … Continue reading

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Interview with CM Abbie Kamin

We take a brief diversion from the At Large races today to have a conversation with Council Member Abbie Kamin, the incumbent in District C. A civil rights attorney who served the Associate Regional Director of the Anti-Defamation League’s Southwest … Continue reading

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Interview with Melanie Miles

Continuing on in At Large #1 we have Melanie Miles, a board-certified family law attorney and member of the Harris County Sheriff’s Civil Service Commission. Miles has a degree in computer information systems and worked as a systems engineer for … Continue reading

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Interview with Leah Wolfthal

As I said last week, most of the action is in the At Large races, where there are three open seats and a lot of candidates. There are six candidates in At Large #1, including a current HISD Trustee that … Continue reading

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Houston to fund database to track gun violence

This is a good thing. A data project to track gun injuries will receive city funding as trauma centers across Houston saw a steady increase in firearm injury victims in recent years, but lacked a systematic way to report the … Continue reading

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Interview with CM Tarsha Jackson

It’s more than fair to say that first-term District B Council Member Tarsha Jackson had a long, strange trip to electoral success Even then there were still things that happened, but she made it in the end. Jackson is a … Continue reading

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Interview with Joaquin Martinez

Moving over to District I, there’s a two candidate race to succeed term-limited (and Mayoral candidate) Council Member Robert Gallegos. One of those candidates has no web presence and has filed no finance reports. The other is Joaquin Martinez, who … Continue reading

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Interview with Cynthia Reyes-Revilla

There are five candidates running for the open District H seat on Council, but only two of them had raised any money as of July or shown much in the way of campaign activity. As such, I will conclude my … Continue reading

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Interview with Mario Castillo

We move on to City Council races now. This is a weird year in that only six of the sixteen Council seats are open – 2027 is gonna be crazy, y’all – with most of the fierce action in the … Continue reading

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Drought Contingency Plan Stage Two

From the inbox: The City of Houston will enter Stage Two of the City’s Drought Contingency Plan, effective August 27, 2023. The Drought Contingency Plan calls for Stage Two mandatory water conservation measures when the significant drop in annual rainfall … Continue reading

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Buzbee to run for District G

When will he have the time for this? Tony Buzbee, the high-profile lead lawyer defending impeached Attorney General Ken Paxton, filed to run for Houston City Council on Monday. With hours until the filing deadline, Buzbee livestreamed himself filing to … Continue reading

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Jack Christie enters the Mayor’s race

Sure, why not? Former At-Large Councilmember Jack Christie launched a campaign for Houston mayor on Wednesday, making a late entry into an increasingly crowded race to lead the city for the next four years. Christie, a Republican, launched a website … Continue reading

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Once again with the non-filers

Same story in July as in January. A dozen candidates running for elected positions at Houston City Hall failed to file required campaign finance reports in July, continuing a sloppy reporting period for the slate of candidates hoping to lead … Continue reading

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July 2023 campaign finance reports: City of Houston, part 5

Previously: Congress SD15 City of Houston, part 1 Harris County City of Houston, part 2 City of Houston, part 3 City of Houston, part 4 January finance reports for city of Houston candidates are here. This is at long last … Continue reading

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The traffic signal control cabinet mural program is back

A bit of cool news from the inbox: The Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs (MOCA) is proud to announce that its signature Traffic Signal Control Cabinet Mural Program is back in operation after a one-year hiatus. The program, also known … Continue reading

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July 2023 campaign finance reports: City of Houston, part 3

Previously: Congress SD15 City of Houston, part 1 Harris County City of Houston, part 2 January finance reports for city of Houston candidates are here. This post will look at the various district candidates. I’ll do the Controller’s race and … Continue reading

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July 2023 campaign finance reports: City of Houston, part 2

Previously: Congress SD15 City of Houston, part 1 Harris County January finance reports for city of Houston candidates are here. This post will look at the various At Large candidates. I’ll do the district races and the Controller’s race later. … Continue reading

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The non-filers

I of course have some thoughts about this. Nearly a quarter of candidates running for Houston City Hall positions still have not reported how much money they raised and spent for their campaigns last year, missing the January deadline by six months. About … Continue reading

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HCA Healthcare hacked

A national breach with Houston connections. HCA Healthcare, which operates more than a dozen hospitals in the Houston area, announced that personal information from as many as 11 million patients nationwide has been stolen in a data breach and could be sold … Continue reading

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Jack Christie?

Yeah, I dunno. Former At-Large City Councilmember Jack Christie is considering a run for mayor, and attorney Tony Buzbee said he has not ruled out a run despite taking on Attorney General Ken Paxton’s impeachment defense. Christie, a Republican who also served as Spring Branch ISD … Continue reading

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Is ShotSpotter working?

This story would suggest the answer is No. Houston city leaders deployed the gunshot surveillance system ShotSpotter to strengthen police responses in neighborhoods where gunfire too often rings out. But three years into its deployment, crime statistics show the technology hasn’t made a … Continue reading

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City passes Mayor Turner’s final budget

Get ready, whoever is up next. Houston city staff will see pay raises, money will go toward sidewalk repairs and residents won’t have to maintain their own drainage ditches anymore. All are part of the $6.2 billion budget that passed through Houston … Continue reading

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