Houston City Council notes, prepared by Emily J Hynds.

Agenda

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

Monthly Financial Report

The Greater Houston Partnership (GHP) released a report which apparently caused quite a stir at yesterday’s meeting. I didn’t watch it, nor am I going to, just letting you know in case you want to, and for context leading up to today’s discussion.

Controller Chris Brown and Finance Director Will Jones make a report at the first council meeting of each month. It’s usually ~business as usual~ and frankly, I tune right out. Today, Controller Brown decided to go on about Houston’s “structurally unbalanced budget,” as he is wont to do. He is especially wont to do it when the Mayor is absent, as he was today. A structurally unbalanced budget means, in essence, the City is spending more money than it raises in revenue. Controller Brown cited the GHP report, said Houston is hurtling towards a financial cliff, and cautioned against relying on one-time federal funding during emergencies (like money from the American Rescue Plan Act).

Director Jones agrees that the City’s budget is unbalanced, but takes a less “sky is falling” approach and more a “this is normal and how city governments are run” approach. He called the GHP report “factually incorrect” and said the GHP did not work with the finance department to create it. Instead, he said the GHP “skipped over facts” and overhyped problems. Jones said that police and fire make up the largest portion of the City’s expenses, which can’t be cut, so next up on the chopping block are parks and libraries, which nobody wants to close either. Jones thinks the most recently passed budget is strong and praised the unprecedentedly large fund balance.

CM Martin, serving as Mayor Pro Tem in Turner’s absence, confirmed that the GHP did not reach out to anyone in the City’s finance department except for Controller Brown (a notorious doomsayer on the city’s financial situation). Martin also said the GHP has privately acknowledged “inaccuracies” in the report.

CM Thomas said we are in the season of “storytelling,” (maybe cuz elections? maybe cuz the year is almost over?) and praised Director Jones for his leadership and work ethic. She said, “I would personally and professionally stand ten toes down with any financial document that you present because I know the integrity that you lead your department with.” When talking about the potential of closing parks and libraries to keep police and fire afloat, she said that would turn us into Gotham City.

CM Pollard minimized the GHP report, saying this is a big city that will always have budget shortfalls. He wants to see solutions, not divisive grandstanding. “Bring us solutions. Don’t bring us a white paper. Bring us conversation and dialogue. Be leaders of the city by working with the leaders of the city.”

CM Knox butted heads with Director Jones over whether the GHP is correct in saying the City’s budget is structurally unbalanced. Director Jones agreed the budget is unbalanced and was visibly annoyed. It seemed like he would have liked to say more, but refrained.

CM Martin referenced a “PFM report” and IDK what that is, but let me know if you do! Martin said the PFM’s first recommendation to reduce spending was to lay off 600 firefighters (not ideal for obvious reasons) and the second was to switch to a different type of retirement / pension program, which Martin agrees with.

CM Alcorn encouraged the use of outcome-based budgeting (like always!!), which she says will make sure the City is meeting constituent expectations and allow flexibility that will result in cost saving.

CM Martin went on the offense!! He pointed out specific inaccuracies in the GHP report, such as misreported asset sales. He accused the report of being too conservative with sales tax revenue and got into *quite* a back and forth with Controller Brown over the whole thing. When Martin asked Brown what he thinks should be cut, considering police and fire take up 74% of the budget, Brown derisively and somewhat snidely remarked, “Welcome to the discussion,” like this is what he’s been trying to point out the whole time. Brown said that the controller’s office is not responsible for crafting policy, prompting Martin to fire back, “I would invite you to quit making comments then.” BURN.

That was the end of this spicy finance discussion, and we were able to move on.

A Public Hearing

Today’s public hearing was for the City to use part of Trotter Park as a temporary staging ground during construction that will replace a wastewater line. Construction will last ~seven months and the park will be new and improved upon completion.

The Mayor’s Report

• The City is pumpkin composting once again this year. You can drop off your pumpkins at the Reuse Warehouse on weekdays between 9am-4pm from November 1-8.
• An HPD cadet class graduated yesterday, marking 2,392 new cadets since Mayor Turner took office.
• Houston’s Veterans Day celebration is on November 11 at 10am at City Hall, followed by a parade at 11:30am.
• Congrats to the Dynamo on their playoff win.
• The Memorial Park Running Complex has a grand opening on Saturday, November 4 from 10am–2pm.
• It is election season!! You can vote early until Friday, November 3 and Election Day is Tuesday, November 7.

Agenda Items, Selected Works

• Item 11 approved a “Resolution of No Objection” for an affordable housing apartment complex in District B, which will allow them to apply for state tax credits. Item 12 approved the same application for a development at FM 1960 and Mills Road.
• Item 13 approved the adoption of the Hazard Mitigation Plan, a requirement to be eligible for disaster funding from the federal government.
• Item 19 approved an additional $1.3M in grant funding for Dian Street Villas, an affordable rental development for working families in District C.
• Item 23 approved the acceptance of a $500K grant from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for a re-entry program for formerly incarcerated people.
• Item 24 approved the acceptance of a 5-year, $960K grant from the Department of State Health Services for a tobacco prevention and control program.
• Item 25 approved the acceptance of a 3-year, $1.6M grant from the federal Department of Justice for the City’s program to combat opioid abuse.
• Item 26 approved a $65K settlement to a Houston Fire Department inspector with several claims against the fire department, including claims of a hostile work environment, retaliation, sex discrimination and an Equal Pay Act violation.
• Item 27 approved $520K for various library upgrades: printing kiosks, new digitization lab equipment, and public-facing computers.
• Item 32 approved $599K for court costs and fees leading up to the construction of a new library in District A.
• Item 45 approved transferring maintenance of Burnett-Bayland Park from the City to Harris County. The park is owned by the County but the City has been responsible for the maintenance, until now.

Council Member Pop-Off

• CM Robinson commemorated All Saints Day and Día de los Muertos. He also said, “We … are keeping those in the Middle East in our prayers – in Israel, in Palestine. And in particular, I want to pray for those Americans who are still being held hostage.”
• CM Alcorn plugged the pumpkin compost program.
• CM Peck gave information about a days-long fire battle in District A, which is contained but not extinguished. The fire is over several acres of cleared-but-not-developed land, and Peck insinuated that the fire might be caused by the developers leaving a bunch of felled trees around during a drought. There will be an investigation and Peck looks forward to holding those responsible accountable.
• CM Jackson highlighted two items today that will support parks in District B: Item 29 for Hobart Taylor Park and Item 30 for Jensen Park. She also lamented recent racial incidents in the district and plugged a community meeting on Saturday at 11am to address.
• CM Kamin plugged the Memorial Park Running Complex opening on Saturday and an electronic recycle drop-off on 11/18 at All Saints Catholic Church.
• CM Pollard thanked his colleagues for their support after the recent passing of his mother.
• CM Gallegos plugged a Día de los Muertos festival at Sam Houston Park on Saturday at 2pm, followed by a parade at 6:30pm.

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/nov11/
https://www.memorialparkconservancy.org/events/memorial-park-running-complex-grand-opening/

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

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