Greg Travis, Houston City Council Member District G, released a copy of a letter that he sent to Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo about her statements on re-prioritizing the $2.5 billion in bonds that Harris County voters approved for flood control.
Click here to view a pdf of the letter.
Good for council member Travis. I’m amazed at the lack of focus on this by Harris County Republicans, the Houston mayor, the current candidates for mayor and many others.
The best part of the letter from my perspective is this (emphasis mine)::
I also noticed in a recent communication from your office the “stakeholders” identified for the meetings and discussions of equity. I noticed groups such as the Houston Organizing Movement for Equity, the League of Women Voters, and the Texas Organizing Project. What I failed to notice were any stakeholders from District G, even though Buffalo Bayou runs through my district from Highway 6 all the way into and past downtown Houston.
Might I suggest you add me and my office to that list so that I get notice along with the following groups:
- Memorial Super Neighborhood #16
- Eldridge/West Oaks Super Neighborhood #17
- Briar Forest Super Neighborhood #18
- Houston West Chamber of Commerce
- Super Neighborhood Alliance
- Residents Against Flooding
- Frostwood Flood Committee
- TIRZ 17
- The Energy Corridor District
- The Westchase District
I am asking you to reconsider your proposal. Let’s do the most good for the most people rather than conducting social engineering to decide which projects should be funded immediately. Failing to do so may lead to the continued deterioration of all property values and to the reduced tax revenue for the City of Houston, Hands County and the flood control district.
Regarding the “lack of focus on this by Harris County Republicans,” are you referring to electeds? I’ve seen several officials release statements. If you are referring to the party, they passed a resolution relating to this issue just a few days after the story broke.
The problem isn’t that it is not a focus, but rather there isn’t much that can be done at this stage.
We need specifics from the county administration and until then all we can do is rabble-rouse.
There was an effort to direct activists to the hastily prepared “stakeholders” meeting which was to take place yesterday, but was postponed at the last minute.
Let’s not eat our own, but instead stay diligent and engaged. If we are to impact the actions of the new commissioners court it’s our job to not lose sight.
I hope to see many more updates from BJP on this topic going forward.
I’m talking about all Harris County Republicans. I wasn’t able to attend the last Executive Committee meeting but there is no mention of a resolution against this on the website. There are two other resolutions from that meeting, one about TML and one about Prop B.
If Harris County Republicans are to turn the ship around, we need to stop ‘waiting’ for the details and get ahead of issues. Travis is the first that I’ve seen to directly address this in a forceful way.
Rabble-rousing works. Just sayin’.
http://www.harriscountygop.com/executive_committee_meetings?utm_campaign=resolutions_eblast_for_2_25_19&utm_medium=email&utm_source=hcrp
You will find it as # 8
I voted against that bond because it had no real description of where the money would be spent. It had a lot of scenarios that would be considered if it passed, it also had the governor saying it was premature since the state and feds were working on their funding levels but Ed Emmett insisted on passing it and it passed while he lost. While the majority of residents in my community decided to burden my property with increasing taxes to back all these bonds they are voting for I made other plans. Good luck y’all.
With Harris County government firmly in the hands of the democrats, I think its residents are probably in for a rough ride. We should expect “social justice” and “equity” will drive many Harris County actions in the future. Those residents accustomed to having influence may very well find themselves frozen out. This includes those well-heeled voters foolishly voting democrat. The undeserved influence of the organizations mentioned by Councilman Travis in his letter bear this out.
The City of Houston is already well on its way to acting and looking like one of those failed democrat controlled cities we never envisioned for ourselves. Even in booming economic times, because of bad decision making the city is effectively broke. And, combined with the failed Houston ISD, the city is shaping up to be a city mostly consisting of only the higher and lower economic classes. The middle class that hasn’t already left the city will continue to flee to the suburbs.
Although Harris County is currently financially sound, with unfettered democrat dominance the situation can change rapidly. Some reform in the county’s spending priorities is justified. For instance, poorer neighborhoods should receive the same flood protection as Councilman Travis’ constituents. Also, the county hasn’t spent as much as it should have on pubic health care.
The danger is the county over spending on new “social justice” and “equity” measures. Raising taxes further would be disastrous. In case you haven’t noticed, much of the large business expansion occurring in the area is already out of Harris County. Business can also vote with its feet. Much of business has already left the city.
The judge is a commie what else needs to be said! The social democrats are a plague on our society trust me the real damage has yet to begin.