Houston city council notes, prepared by Emily J Hynds.

Agenda

1. Mayor’s Report
2. Consent Agenda (items that require a vote, like purchases, resolutions, ordinances, etc)
3. Council Member Pop-Off

Mayor’s Report

• Mayor Turner had nice things to say about the grand opening of the Land Bridge and Prairie project at Memorial Park this past weekend. He claimed the New York Times said it’s the “11th ecological wonder of the world,” but I couldn’t find that source.
• A new Navigation Center for the homeless opened in Fifth Ward on Tuesday, enabling the Chartres encampment to be “decommissioned.” The Navigation Center provides temporary housing and wrap around services while people await permanent housing. Turner reported that one client has already found permanent housing. He thanked all of the Coalition for the Homeless, Harmony House, The Harris Center, Harris Health, Bread of Life, and Marc Eichenbaum from the Mayor’s Office for Homeless Initiatives.
• The 3rd gun buyback event is this Saturday 2/18 at Deussen Park, hosted by Commissioner Ellis and Sheriff Gonzalez. People can exchange guns (no questions asked) to get gift cards from $50 – $200. No ghost guns allowed.
• The first Houston Roughnecks game is this Saturday at the TDECU stadium.
• Houston First is hosting a Black History Month celebration every Saturday in February from 2pm-6pm in front of the George R Brown Convention Center.
• Mayor Turner concluded with some remarks on his priorities of diversity, equity, and inclusion. He highlighted the difference between diversity and equity and said “these are our values.” He encouraged businesses, educational institutions, etc to embrace these values as well.

Item 10 – Affordable Housing Shenanigans

Item 10 approved support for affordable housing developments in seven districts across the city. In order to apply for a 9% housing tax credit from the state, the developers need a resolution of support from the city. Houston uses a rubric to score each development on criteria like location, access to mass transit, nearby school zones, etc. If the development gets a score of ten or higher, the city votes to support its tax credit application, and therefore its further development.

This turned into ~kind of a thing~ today. CMs Huffman, Peck, and Pollard all made motions to remove a project from the group so it could be voted on separately.

• CM Pollard (of District J) made a motion to remove the Cypress Crossing development for separate consideration because residents object and he hoped to tag it to give more time for community engagement. This turned out to be complicated because Cypress Crossing is currently in District C, but because of the recent redistricting process, it will be in J once the development starts.
  • Mayor Turner implied that Pollard was meddling in another districts affairs, saying it was a bad precedent to set and called Pollard’s motives disingenuous. He said these developments all came to the Housing Committee (implying objections should have been raised then). Turner said “everyone is entitled to housing” and “just because people are objecting, doesn’t mean it’s (their objections) are valid.” We don’t often hear this sentiment from elected officials, so it caught my ear.
  • CM Pollard argued that because District J is so dense (he said 85% of J lives in apartment complexes) new development in the district must be extra-scrutinized.
  • CM Kamin, in whose district Cypress Crossing currently is, said she didn’t have much to contribute to the conversation because residents have been communicating with District J. A sore point? Perhaps. She feels that people are misinformed about the nature of the development (it’s actually for seniors, not families), and that she is trying to facilitate conversations with the developer.
  • CM Thomas acknowledged Pollard’s concerns, but pushed back on the idea that these developments will bring new people into the neighborhood. She said this development will serve the current community that is already living in the district. It will help get people, seniors in this case, out of crappy apartment complexes that don’t serve their needs and into new-builds that they are requesting, all while allowing them to stay in the neighborhood they call home.
  • CM Kamin hopped back in to say that because this development is in Meyerland, some people are concerned about flooding. She pointed out that mitigation requirements for new-builds are often stronger and help reduce flooding in the area. She refused to support claims that affordable housing increases criminal activity in the area. She concluded by saying she doesn’t think we should separate any of the developments from the larger item because that has gotten us into trouble with HUD in the past. She would not support Pollard’s motion to separate Cypress Crossing from the main item.
  • Despite pressure from the Mayor, Pollard declined to remove his motion, so it went to a vote. People who voted yes (to remove Cypress Crossing from the main item so it could be considered separately): Peck, Evans-Shabazz, Huffman, Pollard, Kubosh, and Alcorn. People who voted no (so that Cypress Crossing would get voted on with the main item): Turner, Kamin, Martin, Thomas, Plummer, Gallegos, Knox, Robinson. The motion failed.
• Moving on, CM Huffman made a motion to remove the Felicity Oaks development because residents said there was no community engagement. Mayor Turner apparently supported the removal from the main item because he thought Huffman was going to tag, which would give another week for community engagement, but she pushed a vote. When Mayor Turner expressed surprise because she said she would tag it, Huffman said no – “you indicated to me that’s what you would like me to do … and I agreed to consider it.” LOL. Huffman said that conversation was one week ago and the developer still has not made community engagement efforts. Turner was astonished at her duplicity. Kubosh tagged the item to keep the peace.
• CM Peck made a motion to remove the development in Upland due to flooding and traffic concerns. She actually did tag it as promised, so I assume she remains in the Mayor’s good graces for today.
• CM Plummer was disappointed in CM Huffman – she said that it’s not okay for a council member to make promises to other CMs to get their support, and then switch tactics mid-vote.
• Felicity Oaks and Upland will be back before council next week. The rest of the developments, including the one Pollard tried to remove, were approved today, so those developers can go ahead and apply for their tax credits.

Agenda Items, Selected Works

• Item 3 approved some nominations to the Greater Southeast Management District Board of Directors. CM Gallegos has been trying to get the various management districts to adopt sections of the Gulf Freeway and hopes to see that come to fruition soon.
• Item 4 approved an increase in the Lake Livingston Project 2023 budget, from $4.7M to $5.3M. The Lake Livingston Project is operated by the Trinity River Authority, “a conservation and reclamation district that … manages Lake Livingston for the benefit of the COH and the TRA.” Houston owns 70% of the water rights, the TRA owns 30%. Lake Livingston represents 73% of the city’s total water rights. This budget increase is due to salary increases, the rising cost of fuel, replacing of equipment and systems, and some capital expenses like construction and vehicle purchases. I just think where and how the city gets and manages its water is interesting!
• There was lots of spending and resolutions passed today regarding affordable housing, like usual. I’ll highlight Item 14, which approved a $270K grant to The Coalition for the Homeless for the Navigation Center in Fifth Ward.
• Item 20 approved increasing a contract for services to the Houston Information Technology Service and the Houston Airport Service from $10.5M to $17.4M. CM Kamin highlighted that some of this money is supporting HPD and the Office of Emergency Management via the Public Safety Video Network and Mayor Turner’s One Safe Houston. She said more conversations are needed regarding video network policies and surveillance, and I agree!
• Item 29 approved a grant application to the Railroad Crossing Elimination Program for Districts H and I. CM Gallegos and Cisneros vocally supported. If granted, funding would support the creation of underpasses to go under railroad crossings, including pedestrian and bicycle safe spaces.

Council Member Pop-Off

• CM Gallegos praised the Land Bridge and Prairie project at Memorial Park and said he was proud to have supported the effort with past votes.
• CM Robinson also cheered the land bridge (which he rode to on his bicycle with his girlfriend) and commented on a spaceport seminar/workshop he went to on Monday. He remarked on the two year anniversary of Winter Storm Uri and said we have to preserve the planet while looking to the future at the same time.
• CM Kubosh commended the Mayor’s effort to eradicate homelessness and said “you’re doing god’s work.”
• CM Thomas plugged a Loving Our Seniors Event on Saturday and a ribbon cutting at Harwin Park, also on Saturday.
• CM Alcorn thanked Mayor Turner for his aggressive stance on dangerous buildings and said there are 400 waiting to be torn down. She mentioned a Houston Chronicle article by R.A. Schuetz on the decommission of the Chartres encampment and said “Houston has risen to the occasion.” She criticized Mayor Turner’s timeline for the Conservation District initiative, saying that the community needs more time to engage.
• CM Kamin said the land bridge opening was “unbelievable” is excited about what the future holds. She plugged the Public Safety and Homeland Security committee meeting on Thursday, which will have a ShotSpotter update and a presentation from the forensic center. She applauded Public Works for answering 26,330 311 calls in District C alone in 2022, the highest of all the districts. She once again noted that District C has the oldest infrastructure in the city.
• CM Evans-Shabazz plugged TSU day at City Hall next Tuesday.
• CM Cisneros plugged some pet events. She is excited about Conservation Districts and reminded us there is a public hearing on them at next week’s meeting.

Who took these notes? And what resources did they use?

My name is Emily Hynds and I am a small business owner, producer of the monthly storytelling series Grown-up Storytime, and lifelong Houstonian. I am not a journalist or government official. I am a local government enthusiast who believes meaningful change starts at home. These notes are presented from my point of view and with my framing, and are not comprehensive. Your notes will certainly be different, and I would love to read them if you attend.

While compiling these notes I used the following sources:

https://houston.novusagenda.com/agendapublic/
https://www.houstontx.gov/homeless/
https://www.houstontx.gov/moc/housing-navigation-center-opens.html
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/housing/article/houston-closes-homeless-encampment-minute-maid-17762851.php

You can find your City Council Member and their contact info at: http://www.houstontx.gov/council/whoismycm.html

My Patreon is patreon.com/emilytakesnotes.