Galveston City Council Report
By District 5 Council Member Danny Weber
February 10, 2005

Ladies and gentlemen, since last we met complaints in District 5 have again centered on bad streets and drainage.

Residents in the area of 77^th Street, I have been advised that this area is the very next area to be worked. I do not have a start date but we are half way through the 2^nd quarter of the Fiscal year and is past time to get these streets repaired.

Residents of the Colony Park/Pine area, South Drive has gotten so bad it is a driving hazard, please navigate with caution. The construction at Weis School has caused the problem to increase and until City crews can get some repairs complete it is probably best to use an alternative route. Fortunately this is not a major thoroughfare however, it is a primary route for some and we can only ask that you please proceed with caution.

Residents in the area of 67^th and 68^th Streets, the Public Works Director is aware of the drainage problems, he has reviewed the drains and drainage routes. It has been a couple of months since I last spoke to him about this area specific but at last conversation he did have a tentative plan of action to relieve some of the drainage issues. This morning I sent e-mail requesting an update and I will keep you informed.

I have received numerous complaints about the vacant lot between Steward Road and Oleander, directly behind Village Hardware and the new Bastien Development. This lot is and has been overgrown for some time. The location has been turned in to Planning for code enforcement to take whatever action necessary to remedy. I submitted this request some time ago and as yet we have seen no improvement, I must believe the grace periods are about to expire and we should see some clean up action in the near future.

Residents of District 5 PLEASE be ADVISED, Code Enforcement Officials are reviewing all districts in the City and they are compiling a list of violations, trash, junk and litter accumulation, dilapidated structures, abandoned vehicles, overgrown lots these are all potential code violations. Please pay heed to the notices and make the necessary contacts and arrangements for repair and/or clean up. Remember, this Council has committed to help the citizens clean up the City. Council has directed the City Manager and staff to see to it that the City does its part to help clean up the City. You clean it up and put it out and the City will pick it up.

A brief note on the neighborhood adjacent to the Convention Center. The neighborhood as well as the City was told repeatedly that there was no problem with the HVAC unit; it was properly installed and functioning properly. Well upon investigation by HVAC engineers it was found that the unit did indeed have a malfunctioning motor and/or bearings, which were, causing the shrieking whining sound that was so unsettling. The malfunctioning parts have been replaced and once warmer weather sets in and the unit begins to operate at full force again the problem will be reevaluated as to any additional measures that may be required. The City is looking at the other problems and has taken it upon itself to try and remedy the problems created by the construction. I know that this has been a long and frustrating process, as a City Representative I can only apologize and say that the issues are not dead, they are ongoing and I will keep them on the minds of City officials.     

If you are a regular reader of the Galveston Daily News you are daily exposed to the opinion of the Newspaper, either in the form of editorial or opinion column. Please remember that these articles are exactly what they are defined as and that is OPINION.

When newspaper personnel write these articles they are exercising their right to express opinion. There is no need to cloud this opinion with fact. Neither I nor any elected official nor member of an appointed board nor City Staff, none of us, singularly or collectively has enough ink or access to the amount of ink that the newspaper does. Consequently, no one of us can win a battle or a war of words with the newspaper. As a result you, the reader, will undoubtedly continue to receive the slanted opinion of the newspaper.

I can only emphasis to you that the opinions are simply that they are opinions to which the authors are entitled. Everyone knows about opinions almost everyone of us have at least a couple. It is unfortunate that those who have the greatest opportunity to express opinion many times express the opinion as fact. Technically there is much caution given to ensure that the conjecture is technically opinion regardless of the presentation.. Reader please be ware form your own opinion, gather facts, ask questions be informed do not read and accept the written opinion as fact, get the facts and form you own opinion.

Mardi Gras 05 is officially over and in less than one week preparations for Mardi Gras o6 will begin. Many things were taken into consideration for this year. The loss of Mardi Gras fund revenues and the recommendations of the Mardi Gras Coalition were the areas of primary focus. I have been asked for thoughts on the preliminary numbers that have been released. I can only say that these numbers are preliminary it will be at least 30 days before the final numbers are in. However, the reported drop in admissions is not a major concern and I do not believe the reduction is necessarily a bad thing. Conversely, one of the recommendations of the Coalition was to begin reducing the event until it was to a manageable, efficient and economically sound size event. It appears this is one goal that was reached. However, I must reiterate that the numbers are preliminary. There were also great reductions in expense to offset the reduction in admissions. I will caution that there is always speculation as to how we can reduce expense by reducing the amount of security, traffic, clean up and public safety personnel. The caution is that this is a very dangerous and potentially hazardous theory. Public Safety, Security, Clean up, Traffic these are all Vital areas. Vital not only to our visitors but also to our every day taxpaying citizens. These are areas that simply cannot be compromised to satisfy number crunchers and profit-oriented people. The compromise of Public Safety and Health is not and cannot become an option.

Overall this year’s event was tremendous, I believe highlighted by the Children’s Parade.

Kudos’, congratulations, best wishes for the future and a sincere Thank You to the Firefighters Union for picking this event up and doing such an excellent job.

Residents of District 5, Thank You for making me your representative. You keep me informed and I will keep you informed. Remember, Shop Local and Hire Local.