Houston City Council notes, prepared by Emily J Hynds.

Agenda

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

Two Public Hearings

Public Hearing #1 considered an amendment to the Code of Ordinances, providing an exemption to allow rooftop signs on protected landmark buildings, as long as those buildings originally had a rooftop sign and are two stories tall or less. This is an effort to aid preservation and restoration efforts. The El Dorado Ballroom was issued as an example.

Public Hearing #2 considered a tax credit for Brookside Gardens, an affordable housing apartment complex in an extra-territorial jurisdiction (ETJ) near Beltway 8 and 288.

• Houston’s ETJ is a five-mile band around city limits with limited regulatory control.
• When CM Plummer asked the developer’s representative how they plan to address already existing concerns from residents, he expressed faith in their property management company.
• Plummer then said it might be difficult to enforce hability codes in the ETJ, but hopes the developer’s partnership with Houston Housing Authority will yield results. She concluded by saying, “We need to make sure that we are watching this closely.”
• CM Evans-Shabazz seemed to take offense and said, “Just to be very clear, we always keep a close watch on what’s going on.”

The Mayor’s Report

Most of the Mayor’s Report was spent talking about water main leaks. Turner highlighted that Houston Public Works has fixed 3,956 leaks since the start of June, about 400 per week. He complained about old pipes that have been in place for 100 years, but said the heat and drought affect new pipes as well. He commended HPW employees and contractors, saying they are going as quick as they can and spending lots of money to fix the problems.

HPW Director Haddock and HPW Chief Operating Officer Randy Macchi were present to answer questions.

Director Haddock said HPW is staffed to handle 100-200 leaks per week, which is normal during non-drought times. The water system is under stress and we need to keep up the pressure for firefighting, and for medical facilities including dialysis centers, schools, nursing homes, etc. She agreed it is frustrating to be asked to restrict outdoor water use for lawn maintenance, especially when you see a leak running on the street for weeks, but begged patience and affirmed that HPW crews are working 7 days a week to get things repaired.

If you see a leak, call 311 and do not assume someone else has reported it. If a leak looks like it has gotten worse or is gushing, call 311 again so they can adjust priorities.

CM Kamin asked HPW to quantify the cost of the leaks for possible reimbursement. She asked if there is new tech we could be using and Haddock said no, PVC is the current standard and we are already using that.

CM Thomas asked for a general repair timeline to pass on to constituents. COO Macchi said to expect 2-4 weeks. I can relate! There’s been one a block away from me for about two weeks.

Director Haddock issued one final ominous warning – sewer pipes are sensitive to heat and drought as well! If you notice your toilet or bathtub draining slowly, call 311 ASAP and it will be prioritized. The city does not mess around when it comes to poo water, and you already know I am paraphrasing. Director Haddock did not use the words poo water.

Moving on from the water leaks:

• Crystal Okorafor is stepping down as the Deputy Inspector General for the Office of Policing Reform and Accountability. She is moving to the Inspector General role at Harris County. As Deputy Inspector General, Okorafor facilitated police reform, including revamping the IPOB, police transparency dashboards, gun buyback events, and One Safe Houston. Her protegee, Christina Nowak, will take her place. Okorafor said, “It was an experience of a lifetime. Wherever I go, I don’t think it’ll ever be what this was to me at this time … My boys mean the world to me, and the changes that we’ve made for my two black boys will make a difference as they get older.”
• There is a donation drive for victims of the Moroccan earthquake this Saturday and Sunday at the Arab American Cultural and Community Center from 10am-3pm. See their social media for requested items.
• The State of the City address is on 9/27 from 11:30am-1:30pm.
• To commemorate National Hispanic Heritage Month, Avenidas Houston will host Party on the Plaza on 9/16 from 6pm-9pm.
• Referencing the Astro’s 2017 World Series win, and their (apparent) current struggles, Mayor Turner said, “The Astros carried us during Hurricane Harvey and afterwards, well, let us now carry the Astros. They need us, y’all … So let me ask Houstonians to step up and let’s carry the Astros across the finish line. So send them a text or send them a tweet or light a candle, say a prayer, get on your knees, wear a jersey shirt, whatever.”

Agenda Items, Selected Works

• Agenda Item 5 approved final payment for a $26M project to build a new Fountainview Regional Lift Station. CM Pollard said the lift station at Fountainview and Richmond is in a very busy intersection and wants it to be kept up appropriately. He complained that long grass and general eye-soreness made it difficult to ask neighbors to keep up appearances also.
• CM Plummer tagged Items 6 and 8 because of concerns about MWBE requirements on co-op purchases. (see last week’s notes). She would have tagged Items 10 and 11 also, but refrained because 10 had to do with parts for school zone traffic signals and 11 had to do with PVC piping for HPW.
• Item 9 approved $222K for 6 hybrid vans for HPD.
• Item 14 approved a $5.2M non-amortizing, forgivable loan of Uptown TIRZ funds for two affordable housing developments in District H.
• Item 28 approved a Public Hearing on the City’s new tax rate on 9/27 at 9am.
• Last week, Council Member Knox tagged Item 31, $2.3M for design of a drainage project in District J, because he takes issue with Dedicated Drainage and Street Renewal Funds (DDSRF) being used for work that isn’t actually breaking ground. He expressed the same sentiment this week, encouraging other funds to be used, but could no longer delay a vote.
  • District J Council Member Pollard was glad to finally vote on this item today and said, “It’s their tax dollars. At the end of the day, I don’t think they care what bucket it comes out of, because it’s their money … They want their tax dollars to go towards projects to mitigate the flood risk that they experience.”
  • CM Alcorn said “I will argue all day long that the engineering for a drainage project is part of the drainage project.” This item passed today with only CM Knox voting no.

Council Member Pop-Off

• CM Evans Shabazz (District D) is concerned about deaths in the neighborhood. She plugged two career fairs, the One Houston One Book Block Party, and a suicide prevention workshop this Saturday 9/16 at TSU.
• CM Huffman (G) plugged a Conversation on Crime on Thursday 9/14 at St. Martin’s Episcopal Church.
• CM Cisneros (H) assured Denver Harbor residents that the emergency water line repairs at I10 and Cress should be completed by Thursday. She commemorated today’s anniversary of Hurricane Ike and said “We’re not out of hurricane season yet.”
• CM Martin (E) plugged two Town Halls, calling them his “farewell tour.”
• CM Castex-Tatum (K) outlined some construction on the Sims Bridge on 288 that should last for the next four weeks. Drive288.com for more info. There is a Harris County Flood Control District virtual meeting on Tuesday 9/26 regarding Sims Bayou.
• CM Gallegos (I) gave a history lesson type speech to commemorate the start of Hispanic Heritage Month.
• CM Peck (A) outlined some local projects and plugged a Coffee with Cops event.
• CM Kamin (C) plugged extended pool hours on Saturdays and Sundays at the TC Jester Pool through the end of October, water temperature allowing. She wished a Happy Rosh Hoshanah to all those celebrating, starting Friday.
• CM Pollard (J) plugged the Dia de la Independencia Parade in Gulfton.

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

My name is Emily Hynds and I am a writer, 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://houwatch.com
https://www.houstontx.gov/planning/Annexation/
https://www.avenidahouston.com/nhhm/

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

Thank you to Houston In Action and ACLU TX for supporting these notes.
My Patreon is patreon.com/emilytakesnotes.