Tag Archives: Houston

From the “Shit happens” department

Posted on May 4, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I apologize, I couldn’t help myself. City health officials and Rice University scientists have begun testing Houston wastewater samples for COVID-19, a process they hope will reveal the true spread of the new coronavirus as clinical testing continues to lag. … Continue reading →

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

Houston’s Climate Action Plan

Posted on May 3, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

We have one, with goals for 2050. Houston’s first Climate Action Plan calls on the city’s 4,600 energy companies to lead the transition to renewable sources, while residents are asked to swap car rides for mass transit and work to … Continue reading →

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

Well, they do serve food

Posted on May 3, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Presented (mostly) without comment: A strip club in Houston has won a temporary order from federal court Friday night allowing it to resume business after a confrontation with police over the governor’s order to allow certain types of businesses to … Continue reading →

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

Reopening roundup

Posted on April 29, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Judge Hidalgo adjusts to the new status that has ben imposed on us from Austin. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo on Tuesday announced plans to significantly expand novel coronavirus case tracing, and maintain reserve hospital capacity, to prepare for a … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 28 Comments

The fight over sick leave has to be at the state level

Posted on April 29, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I get this, but it’s not going to work. The coronavirus outbreak is sparking a debate over paid sick leave in Houston, the largest U.S. city without a law requiring businesses to provide paid time off for workers who fall … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston, That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

The city’s vision for I-45

Posted on April 29, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I like the way this is shaping up. The city of Houston is prepared to ask for major changes in state plans to rebuild Interstate 45 that potentially could scale back the planned widening of the freeway and put a … Continue reading →

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And so reopening begins

Posted on April 28, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I have questions. Gov. Greg Abbott said Monday that he will let the state’s stay-at-home order expire Thursday as scheduled and allow businesses to begin reopening in phases the next day, the latest ramp-up in his push to restart the … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Driving may be down, but traffic fatalities are not down as much

Posted on April 27, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a bit of a conundrum. COVID-19 can keep millions of Texans at home and cut vehicle travel roughly in half in many cities, but cannot keep hundreds from dying on state roads — continuing a stubborn trend of carnage … Continue reading →

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

The real problem is those uppity local officials

Posted on April 25, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

My God, the Republican playbook is so predictable these days. Local governments have gone too far in issuing emergency orders during the coronavirus pandemic and can expect to have those powers whittled down when the Texas Legislature meets again, key … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 36 Comments

How about an Arizona/Florida/Texas plan for MLB?

Posted on April 25, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Call it the MLB Plan 3.0 for having a season. With the spread of the novel coronavirus threatening Major League Baseball’s 2020 season, the league and the union continue to seek ways to salvage the year as best they can. … Continue reading →

Posted in Baseball | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The next school year is going to be different, too

Posted on April 24, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

As with many things, just how different remains an open question for now. When Houston campuses finally re-open in 2020-21, at a date very much to-be-determined, the region’s million-plus children will experience a school year unlike any other. Some students … Continue reading →

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Mask up

Posted on April 23, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Time for the next step in virus mitigation. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo on Wednesday ordered residents to cover their faces in public, the latest effort by local governments to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus. The new rules, … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 35 Comments

Turner to ask feds for some relief

Posted on April 23, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Can’t hurt to ask. Mayor Sylvester Turner is asking the federal government to let Houston use an estimated $400 million in aid to help close its ballooning budget gap and reduce the number of expected furloughs in the fiscal year … Continue reading →

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

Did we mention that the next city budget is gonna suck?

Posted on April 22, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Because it is, in case we hadn’t mentioned it before. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said Monday that the coronavirus crisis will impact “every facet of city governance” and require furloughs of city workers, though he declined to say how many … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 20 Comments

Meet your recovery czars

Posted on April 21, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

For Harris County: Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo on Monday named state Rep. Armando Walle the county’s COVID-19 recovery czar as local leaders determine how to eventually ease restrictions on public life meant to slow the spread of the disease. … Continue reading →

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

Coronavirus and delivery workers

Posted on April 20, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

There’s a very obvious answer for this. Couriers delivering online orders of household essentials have become a lifeline for Houstonians hunkering down at home to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus. But a growing number of workers responsible for … Continue reading →

Posted in Bidness | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

The local plea to reopen

Posted on April 19, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I have a lot of sympathy, but I don’t think this is a great idea. A coalition of 350 local businesses is urging Mayor Sylvester Turner and County Judge Lina Hidalgo to begin May 1 to ease stay-at-home restrictions meant … Continue reading →

Posted in Food, glorious food | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 21 Comments

Are we near the peak yet?

Posted on April 18, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

We sure hope so, but it’s still a little soon to tell. After weeks of grim, ever-worsening statistics, Houston medical and public health leaders say the area has begun to flatten the COVID-19 curve, the rate at which the disease … Continue reading →

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Texas Central opponents see an opportunity

Posted on April 18, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Never waste an opportunity. Examination of a planned high-speed rail line between Houston and Dallas should be halted as the country addresses the new coronavirus pandemic and the company rethinks its financial shape, 30 elected officials in Texas told federal … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Goodbye, Greenlink

Posted on April 13, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Another version of Metro’s downtown trolley system is shut down due to coronavirus, and likely won’t come back, at least not in that format. Downtown Houston’s free shuttle may have hauled its last passenger, a victim of the central district’s … Continue reading →

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We still have no idea how many people have been infected

Posted on April 12, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

There’s just a real lack of testing being done. Six times in three weeks, Marci Rosenberg and her ailing husband and teenage children tried to get tested for the new coronavirus — only to be turned away each time, either … Continue reading →

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Coronavirus and crime

Posted on April 12, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

It’s down around the country. Turns out having everyone stay inside has a salutary effect, for the most part. Crime rates plunged in cities and counties across the U.S. over the second half of March as the coronavirus pandemic drove … Continue reading →

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

Coronavirus and driving

Posted on April 11, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

There are a lot fewer cars on the road now, though the decrease may not be quite as much as you’d think. Traffic around the country has plummeted since governments began enacting stay-at-home orders amid the coronavirus outbreak, but data … Continue reading →

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

Coronavirus and beer

Posted on April 9, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Houston’s craft breweries are adjusting to life with closed taprooms and beer-to-go sales. The team at Saint Arnold Brewing sat down to taste some test beers one Wednesday morning, as its members do when they work on new releases. But … Continue reading →

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Metro will get some stimulus money

Posted on April 8, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Transit agencies in southeastern Texas are set to receive more than $300 million to stem revenue losses linked to COVID-19, federal officials announced Thursday, most of it coming to Houston. As part of the first round of Congress-approved stimulus … Continue reading →

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The digital divide

Posted on April 7, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Online learning is great, if you can get online. The lack of access to technology among students — commonly referred to as the “digital divide” — has come into sharper focus in recent weeks as school districts across Houston transition … Continue reading →

Posted in School days, Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Coronavirus is taking its toll on the Census

Posted on April 7, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

The timing of this pandemic really sucks. The nonprofit Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston had more than 15 tabling events planned over the next several weeks where volunteers were going to post up at festivals, fairs and other community gatherings … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

We don’t really know how many COVID-19 patients there are in Texas hospitals

Posted on April 6, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

For a variety of reasons, the data is hard to get a handle on. Texas is bracing for a pandemic that is projected to kill tens of thousands of people across the U.S., but health officials and state leaders are … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Is it finally going to be Infrastructure Week?

Posted on April 5, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this: Lawmakers have been talking about striking a deal to rebuild the nation’s infrastructure for years. It might take a pandemic to finally get them to do it, and Texas officials are already … Continue reading →

Posted in National news, Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Congratulations, Rudy T!

Posted on April 5, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Long overdue. 2-Time NBA Champion First place medal Gold Medalist Medium star 5-Time NBA All Star A HALL OF FAMER! — Houston Rockets (@HoustonRockets) 11:37 AM – 04 April 2020 At last, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame no longer … Continue reading →

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Won’t you join our lawsuit?

Posted on April 4, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This is going to keep giving me content for years. After filing two sign stealing-related lawsuits against the Astros on behalf of Houston season-ticket holders, a Corpus Christi law firm is asking Dodgers and Yankees fans who attended 2017 postseason … Continue reading →

Posted in Baseball | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Three cheers for grocery store workers

Posted on April 3, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

They deserve them, and more. They are the friendly cashiers, the helpful baggers, the essential stockers and warehouse workers. The receivers who unload the delivery trucks, the personal shoppers who fulfill online orders and the teenagers who haul back all … Continue reading →

Posted in Food, glorious food | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Another lawsuit the Astros want tossed

Posted on April 3, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

It was the first one filed against them relating to the banging scheme. The Astros have asked a Los Angeles Superior Court judge to dismiss a lawsuit filed against the team, owner Jim Crane and baseball operations employee Derek Vigoa … Continue reading →

Posted in Baseball | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Cities and counties are going to need their own bailout

Posted on April 2, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This story is about the rough financial future that the city of Houston faces as we go through the coronavirus shutdown, but it’s not just Houston that is in this position. As Mayor Sylvester Turner’s administration continues efforts to slow … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments