The Guidry News
© 1996, Guidry News
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The Guidry News
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© 1996, Guidry News
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The League City City Council on Tuesday voted 4-3, with Thomas Cones, Mike Hembree, and Jim Nelson opposed, to postpone an interlocal agreement between Clear Creek Independent School District and the City of League City regarding infrastructure improvements for the construction of the school district’s High School Number 4. Photos Council member Jon Keeney said that the interlocal agreement was pulled due to a lack of cooperation from the school district and a need for public hearings on the matter. “We got an email from the school district saying that they would not have any more representation at any meetings regarding the location of the Palomino school, that they got what they wanted, and they’re not willing to work with the city to try to explain or talk about some other options,” Keeney said. During his report, Mayor Jeff Harrison read aloud the email from the school district. Listen Download Hembree and Cones said they were surprised that the item was pulled from the agenda. “I’m confused tonight to find out from citizens in the audience that this agenda item was going to be pulled, and I’m just a council member, but I think we should know about it beforehand,” Cones said, adding that the bridge to West NASA Boulevard is not included in the interlocal agreement. Hembree expressed indignation that he would no longer have a chance to vote on the issue and said that one of the reasons the item was placed on Tuesday’s agenda was so that the current council would make the decision. During a public hearing, resident Jim Whitely said that the City of League City can not afford to pay for the bridge extension of Palomino Road and the traffic problems that may follow such action. Mary Sullivan, who lives in the Clear Creek Shores subdivision, said that under the comprehensive plan, the proposed bridge would be built over her home. Sullivan requested that the city council hold a public hearing regarding the interlocal agreement. Listen Download “I’ve worked all my life to achieve some level of success, and I don’t want to live under a bridge,” Sullivan said. “I didn’t work this hard to one day live under a bridge.” The city council voted unanimously to set the date of June 27 for a workshop to discuss a tax exemption for persons who are 65 years of age or older or who are disabled. Jon Keeney advised staff to be well prepared in advance of the meeting in order to come up with the best possible plan for the tax exemptions. The city council voted unanimously, with Keith Dill absent, to approve a dedication agreement with Grace M. Lewis Family Trust for the dedication of right-of-way for Big League Dreams Parkway. A temporary revocable license agreement with Grace M. Lewis Family Trust providing for public access to the Big League Dreams Sports Park was pulled from the agenda. The city council voted unanimously to approve the reallocation of funds for the Aberdeen Drive Storm Sewer Rehabilitation Project. The city council voted unanimously to approve the reallocation of funds for the Aberdeen Drive Storm Sewer Rehabilitation project. The city council voted unanimously to approve the reallocation of funds from the Fire Station Number Five project to the Fire Station Number One project for improvements and the purchase of furniture, fixtures and equipment. The city council voted unanimously to approve a permit application by HSC Pipeline Partnership, L.P., to construct a pipeline within the existing CenterPoint Energy Corridor. All other agenda items were unanimously approved. Mayor Jeff Harrison proclaimed Thursday, April 28 as “College of the Mainland Day” in the city of League City. Dickinson City Council on Tuesday voted to table ordinance that declares junked boats and trailers, visible from public rights of ways and other public places, to be public nuisances. The action was taken on the recommendation of city staff. The city council approved the second of three readings of an ordinance to abandon a 20-foot alley located in Nicholstone subdivision. The city council approved the first of three readings of an ordinance to permit the chief of police to appoint members to the Police Reserve Force. The city council approved an interlocal agreement with participating agencies in the Dickinson Bayou Watershed. All other agenda items were approved. Houston City Council today held a lengthy discussion of the pros and cons of an ordinance proposed by Council Member Ronald Green to regulate the use of mini-motorbikes. However, the item was tagged by Pam Holm. Listen Download Photos"If we’re concerned about speed, we have laws on the books about speed," Holm said. "If we’re concerned whether it’s a vehicle or not, then we need to certify it as a vehicle. If we’re concerned about safety, then why is it just this equipment? Why is it not motorized scooters, why isn’t skateboards and four-wheelers and go-karts and mopeds." Holm complained that there was only one committee meeting about the ordinance before it was put on the agenda. "If these are not already ‘street-legal’ vehicles, then why would we need an ordinance to prohibit them from being on the street?" asked Ada Edwards. "If you look before me, there is a mini-bike (in front of the council table). But I cannot see that bike. And that ought to give you an indication of a person in a vehicle who is driving and if this vehicle is in front of your car, you cannot see the person on the bike," said Green. "I think a lot of citizens want us to do what we can to make their neighborhood safer and if it means crafting an ordinance that specifically deals with mini-bikes, then that’s what I think we’re here to do." Green said he will visit with each member of council this week to discuss again the proposed ordinance before it returns to the agenda next week. Some other items also were tagged, or delayed for one week, by individual members of the city council. Green and Carol Galloway tagged a recommendation that the director of the Building Services Department by authorized to use the competitive sealed proposal method for facility construction projects estimated to be $1 million or more. Tony Lawrence tagged an ordinance authorizing settlement of a claim from Coats, Rose, Yale, Ryman & Lee for legal work the firm did for the city. Addie Wiseman tagged an ordinance to appropriate $4.3 million from the Airport Improvement Fund and awarding a contract to Honeywell International for access control modification and upgrades at the Houston Airport System. Wiseman, Galloway, Green, Lawrence, Mark Goldberg, M. J. Khan, and Carol Alvarado tagged an ordinance giving TVMAX Houston, L.P. a franchise to operate a cable television system in the city. An ordinance awarding a $511,839.60, five-year contract to OCE North American, Inc. for the lease of two wide-format, multifunction copiers for the Public Works Department was not received at the table during council and was not acted on. A proposed ordinance that would appropriate $1.95 million out of the Airports Improvement Fund for a professional consulting services contract with Derek Consulting Group, Inc. was pulled from the agenda. In other action, the city council voted 13-1, with Shelley Sekula-Gibbs opposed, to approve a $15,113,464 contract with SAP Public Services, Inc for an Enterprise Resource Planning System and appropriating $7.6 million from various funds for expenses related to the implementation of the system. The city council voted 12-2, with Edwards and Wiseman opposed, to approve rules and regulations for the use of the Houston Public Libraries. The city council unanimously approved the appointment of Dean Corgey to the Ethics Committee and Mary K. Vargo to Panel B of the Building and Standards Commission. The city council unanimously approved the appointments of R. Quinn Meads, Leeshan Birney and Danny David and the reappointments of Redick Edwards, John Brodie, John A. Gonzales and Felix Fraga to the Houston Housing Finance Corporation board of directors. All other items were unanimously approved. Adrian Garcia was absent. Port Arthur City Council on Tuesday voted 6-1, with Mayor Oscar Ortiz opposed, to disannex more than 900 acres of land in Sabine Pass, and to release a portion of the city's extraterritorial jurisdiction to facilitate the establishment of a liquefied natural gas facility by ExxonMobil Corporation. The city council voted unanimously to disannex three tracts of land in conjunction with a request to incorporate Taylor Landing, Texas as a Class C Municipality in the area of the Port Arthur Country Club. The disannexation of the property will permit the proponents of the incorporation to petition Jefferson County Commissioners Court to hold an election on the issue. John J. Burkay, attorney for the incorporation effort, told the city council that he believes that nearby Labelle Properties will not oppose the incorporation and that he is communicating with the owners of the country club to answer their concerns. "I want to assure the council that I have had extensive conversations with Jerry Braxton and Harry Wright regarding the proposed incorporation," Burkay said. "I understand that they wish to remain outside the incorporation, despite extensive assurances regarding protection of their investment." All other agenda items were approved with unanimous votes. GoldStar Emergency Medical Services, Inc. GoldStar Emergency Medical Services Inc., based in Port Arthur, but with operations in several other areas including Galveston County, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy this week. GoldStar is the subject of an investigation by the FBI, the Inspector General's Office of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Texas Attorney General's Office. "Things will be business as usual and we will likewise deliver quality service and care," GoldStar said in a statement, explaining that the reorganization will permit continued operations. Port Arthur City Manager Steve Fitzgibbons told Guidry News Service that he is hopeful that the reorganization is successful, but that other options are available if it is not. In addition to GoldStar, the city also dispatches EMS calls to MetroCare. The Houston Airport System reports that international passenger traffic at George Bush Intercontinental Airport rose by 20.4 percent in March 2005, compared to the same month in 2004, and is ahead of last year's record-setting pace by 19.4 percent. "Combined, IAH's and William P. Hobby Airport's monthly total passenger traffic exceeded the previous March by 11.4 percent and is up 9 percent so far this year," said a news release. "Also in March, IAH's domestic traffic ran 14 percent ahead of the same month the previous year, and year-to-date is up 10.1 percent." The report said that Continental Airlines (up 10.2 percent) and Continental Express (up 27.5 percent), had much higher passenger numbers to their U.S. destinations than March of 2004. "The sharpest upturns for Continental passenger volume appeared in its domestic flights out of IAH," the release said. "The Houston-based carrier moved 169,264 more domestic passengers in March '05 than in March '04." Continental Express had 107,050 more domestic passengers than in March of 2004, a 21.6 percent improvement. "Internationally, Continental also had exceptional passenger increases to every global region it serves from IAH: Mexico (11.5 percent), Central/South America (19.1 percent) and Europe (8.3 percent)," the release reported. "Overall, the airlines that fly internationally from IAH are moving more passengers to every region: Mexico (up 25.7 percent, with 56,521 more passengers), Central/South America (up 18 percent), Europe (up 7.1 percent), Canada (up 28.8 percent) and Asia/Africa/Australia (up 40.6 percent)." Clear Creek Independent School District The Clear Creek Independent School District reports that all high school graduation ceremonies will be held in the District Stadium for the first time in nearly 20 years. The Clear Creek High graduation ceremony will be at 6:30 p.m., on Friday, May 27; Clear Lake High graduation is at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday May 28; and Clear Brook High graduation is at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 28 "As an added convenience for out of town guests, all three graduation ceremonies will be broadcast live on the District website www.CCISD.net," said a news release. "In addition to the live broadcast via the district website, the ceremony will be broadcast live in the Clear Creek High School auditorium for guests who are sensitive to the heat." There also will be park and ride options to ease traffic flow at the District Stadium. San Jacinto College will host a free, three-day camp for junior and senior high school students on Monday, June 6 through Wednesday, June 8. “Summer Adventure’s/Camp San Jac Safari For Success event offers many interactive workshops which cover topics such as note taking, test anxiety, money management, learning styles, communications and personality," said a news release. "Also, the event features a drawing for 12 $500 scholarships, which can be used for tuition and fees." The event also includes free food and snacks, a free movie pass giveaway, free T-shirts, guest speakers and interaction with other high school students. For more information call (281) 476-1877 for the Central Campus; (281) 459-7112 for the North Campus; or (281) 929-4633 for the South Campus. Also, registration information can be found at www.sjcd.edu. More than 6,900 volunteers removed 116 tons of trash off Texas beaches last weekend. "This year's spring cleanup was a huge success, and we have thousands of volunteers to thank for it," said Jerry Patterson, commissioner of the Texas General Land Office. "If we had to pay for what these folks do, it would cost a small fortune. Anyone who goes to a Texas beach should be grateful to them." The Texas General Land Office's Adopt-A-Beach Cleanup is an all-volunteer effort to remove trash from Texas shores. Most of the trash consisted of typical items, such as cigarette butts, soda cans, beer bottles, beach toys and tires. Among the less typical items found were a chopstick, computer chip and router, hazardous waste suit, gas pump, 1960 Pearl Beer bottle, $20 bill, coconut, music stand base, bullet casing, 42 DD bra, burned mattress, waffle iron, toilet seat, 6-pack of beer, traffic sign, vacuum cleaner, computer monitor, hair piece, hard hat, typewriter, hot tub, Mexican bleach bottle, jar of mayonnaise, pregnancy test, welding mask, car stereo, circuit breaker, burned math book, Greek antiperspirant bottle top, hot water heater, BB gun, pool pass and car engine, as well as syringes, Mexican and Chinese cigarettes, Korean money, phosphoric acid, air conditioner units, Mexican pottery and televisions. "Texas beaches receive large amounts of marine debris due to a convergence of currents in the Gulf of Mexico," Patterson said. "Since 1986, more than 327,000 Adopt-A-Beach volunteers have picked up more than 6,200 tons of this debris, some of it originating from as far away as South America." For additional information visit www.texasadoptabeach.org, or contact the GLO at (877) TXCOAST (892-6278). American National Insurance Company Alice Wygant, author of Yours for Life, the story of American National Insurance Company's first 100 years, will appear for a book-signing and presentation at the Moody Mansion Museum at 2618 Broadway at 2 p.m. on Sunday. Proceeds from the sale of the book will benefit Galveston's Rosenberg Library. Admission to the book-signing is open to the general public free of charge, and light refreshments will be served. Guests are also invited to tour the museum's new exhibit, Business as Usual. Camp KidsHope, a three-week camp sponsored by Adoptions Abroad, a non-profit, licensed adoption agency that provides potential parents "an opportunity to host and enjoy the experience of taking Russian children into their home" will be held in Houston this summer. Twenty-five Russian orphans, ages 6-12, will participate in the program. Adoptions Abroad President Jan Melis said that most of the children, are available for adoption. “Adoption is a word that means hope to children without hope,” Melis said. “Camp KidsHope has made that hope a reality for over 130 children who have been adopted through the camp” Melis said that Camp KidsHope is in need of adults to host the children in their home for three weeks. "The children need families that have a heart to embrace them forever," Melis said. An informational meeting will be held at 7 p.m. on Monday, May 16 at Gateway Community Church in Clear Lake. For additional information call (281) 218-6120. Guidry News Service coverage of Tuesday's visit by President George W. Bush includes a video recording of the forum on Social Security provided by the University of Texas Medical Branch; a streaming audio version of the meeting, as well as an MP3 file, suitable for download to an iPod or other MP3 Player; a video of the President's motorcade as it passed the Lindale Neighborhood, provided by Robert John Mihovil; and photos of the event provided by Mark Reiff. Additional photos of the event are being processed to post on The Online News Station. Click Here Scheduled
Meetings Today, April 27 Gulf
Coast E-news,
published by Guidry News Service, provides comprehensive
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Upper Texas Gulf Coast. Jim and Lynda Guidry are publishers of Gulf Coast E-news and The Online News Station. Jim Young is Houston City Correspondent. Dana Patricia Burke is the Bay Area Houston Correspondent. Chuck Lawrence is Galveston City Correspondent. Carl Guidry covers events in Jefferson County. Anita Donatto covers the education beat in Galveston. Patty Mayeux and Dana Patricia Burke are editors of Gulf Coast E-news. Robert John Mihovil is a special photographic correspondent for Guidry News Service We
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