05.24.06
Posted in News at 4:05 pm by Paloma Cruz
Texas sees surge in sales-tax revenue
– reported by the Houston Business Journal
According to Texas Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn, the state collected nearly $1.6 billion in sales tax revenue in April, an increase of 17.2 percent compared with April 2005.
“The Texas economy is healthy and sales tax revenue is expanding at a pace I have not seen since I have been Texas comptroller,” Strayhorn says.
Local governments have also seen double-digit sales tax growth. According to Strayhorn’s office, local governments will receive $501.9 million in May sales tax allocations, an increase of 10.1 percent compared with May 2005.
[snip]
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05.23.06
Posted in News at 4:35 pm by Paloma Cruz
Immigration fight starts war of words on council
Heated debate targets funding of labor site used by those here illegally
– reported by the Houston Chronicle
The national debate over border security fueled a fight at City Hall on Wednesday when a council member seeking a Republican congressional nomination charged that city funding for a day-labor site encouraged illegal immigration.
Supporters of the funding accused Councilwoman Shelley Sekula-Gibbs of flip-flopping on the issue to gain conservative voter support in her bid for the nomination to succeed U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay, R-Sugar Land.
[snip]
Sekula-Gibbs and a few other members delayed a vote on the $100,000, federally funded contract, which would allow Neighborhood Centers Inc. to continue running the Second Ward site where laborers wait for day jobs.
Sekula-Gibbs, who has voted to fund day-labor sites in the past, said the council should stop funding the center in light of growing concern over illegal immigration. She also suggested that the city may be acting illegally by supporting the site.
[snip]
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05.22.06
Posted in News at 4:56 pm by Paloma Cruz
Houston hardest city to navigate, survey finds
– reported by the Houston Business Journal
Houston has earned the distinction of being the hardest city to navigate in the United States, according to a MapQuest Summer Survey.
Driving around the city can be tricky for some, as 54 percent indicated they sometimes or often get lost around town. However, 57 percent noted that their friends and family who visit have no difficulty navigating their way around town.
IBM West
The survey also found that 79 percent of Houston residents say that gasoline prices are affecting their summer travel plans, with 7 percent of those travelers canceling their trips altogether.
[snip]
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Posted in News at 6:50 am by Paloma Cruz
11 mosquitoes test positive for West Nile virus, county reports
Evening spray program activated in affected areas
– reported by the Houston Chronicle
[snip]
The mosquito samples that tested positive were collected in the following zip codes: 77004, 77013, 77016, 77028, 77050, 77077, 77345, 77506, 77536 and 77571.
[snip]
West Nile virus can cause encephalitis. Most people infected with West Nile virus show no symptoms or only mild symptoms, such as low-grade fever and headache. More severe symptoms include high fever, stiff neck, muscle weakness, disorientation and coma.
HCPHES encouraged residents to help control mosquitoes by adhering to the following preventive measures:
- Clean up lawn clippings, leaves and tree limbs from sidewalks and driveways so they don’t wash into storm drains.
- Remove or empty any outdoor containers that may hold water. Change birdbath water at least once a week.
- Keep rain gutters clear.
- Make sure window and door screens are in good condition.
- When outdoors, use an insect repellent containing the chemical compound DEET and apply as directed on the label. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends using a repellent with a concentration of 10 percent or less of DEET on children ages 2 to 12.
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05.21.06
Posted in News at 4:01 pm by Paloma Cruz
This year I am determined to be prepared and not make the same mistakes as last year.
This year Hurricane Preparedness Week is May 21-27, 2006.
The goal of this Hurricane Preparedness Web site is to inform the public about the hurricane hazards and provide knowledge which can be used to take ACTION. This information can be used to save lives at work, home, while on the road, or on the water.
With that in mind, the City of Houston is holding a “get prepared” workshop:
Houston/Galveston National Weather Service
2006 Hurricane Workshop
Katrina and Rita: Lessons Learned for the Next Time
Presented by CenterPoint Energy
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
4:00 PM - 9:00 PM
George R. Brown Convention Center
1001 Avenida de las Americas
Houston, TX 77010
Found via MetroBlogging.
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Posted in News at 3:42 pm by Paloma Cruz
Gulf Coast residents wary over hurricanes
But experts are baffled that over half of all U.S. coastal residents don’t see a threat
– reported by the Houston Chronicle
Coastal residents on the Southeast and Southwest Gulf Coast feel they are more vulnerable to damage from a hurricane, tornado or flooding than do residents farther north, according to a recent poll released Tuesday.
The poll, conducted by Mason-Dixon Polling and Research, showed that nearly 58 percent of residents from Texas to North Carolina feel vulnerable, compared with 30 percent of those farther north.
[snip]
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05.15.06
Posted in News at 2:57 pm by Paloma Cruz
2006 hurricanes may hit northeast, sparing the Gulf Coast
– reported by KTRK ABC Channel 13
In two weeks, the 2006 hurricane season will officially begin — and it may well be different from recent years.
The good news, experts say, is that due to a cyclical pattern, the hard-hit Gulf Coast most likey will escape the devastation it experienced last season.
“We’re projecting two-thirds of activity of last year, not as much as last year,” said Dr. Bill Gray, a hurricane expert at Colorado State University.
The bad news is that the concentration of hurricane activity is predicted to move up the eastern seaboard this season.
“We think that the mid to latter part of the season, the heart of the hurricane season, is going to be an especially busy one along eastern seaboard,” said Joe Bastardi, a hurricane forecaster at Accuweather.
One of the worst-case scenarios is a hurricane hitting the Northeast.
[snip]
The Gulf of Mexico was hit earliest and hardest this past hurricane season, but this year it may well escape a major blow. It is possible that New Orleans, still reeling from the destruction of Hurricane Katrina, could be hit again, but experts predict that would be rather unlikely.
A record-breaking number of tropical storms and major hurricanes hit the Atlantic Coast last season, the strongest of which — Katrina, Dennis, Wilma and Rita — slammed the western Gulf Coast. They were the some the deadliest and costliest hurricanes in history.
[snip]
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05.13.06
Posted in News at 7:07 pm by Paloma Cruz
BLUEPRINT HOUSTON
No shortage of vision for a better future, but the means and the will are constrained
– reported by the Houston Chronicle
Blueprint Houston, an organization dedicated to giving Houstonians more say in the development of their city, periodically surveys residents on their views and priorities. Three years ago it detected a high degree of concern over the lack of vision and planning in dealing with local problems.
If there were a shortage of imagination and foresight then, there is an abundance now. The problem is that the means and will to implement civic ambitions are constrained.
While the region has much to offer, the city of Houston still falls short on providing basic city services. It has too few libraries and too little parkspace. Police Chief Harold Hurtt told the Chronicle that the city is seriously underpoliced, a factor in the rising rate of violent crime in some neighborhoods.
[snip]
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05.09.06
Posted in News at 3:04 pm by Paloma Cruz
Houston Under Consideration For 2016 Olympic Bid
U.S. Olympic Committee Visits Houston
– reported by Click2Houston.com
The United States Olympic Committee met with Houston city and business leaders Monday, KPRC Local 2 reported.
Officials said they are looking for a bid that is privately financed and puts athletes first. They said they do not want any fee to the city or taxpayer money used.
[snip]
The committee will also visit Philadelphia, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
They will look at all five cities and then make a decision on one of those cities, or none of them.
The committee has until March 31, 2007, to decide if the United States will try for a bid for the 2016 Olympics.
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Posted in News at 5:46 am by Paloma Cruz
According to a recent MSN article, Texas averages $1,328 in yearly costs to insure a home. Thats more than twice the national average of $668.
Hurricane-prone states like Florida and Louisiana, along with windy dust-up states like Kansas and Oklahoma, are among the 10 most expensive states for homeowners insurance.
As if just having the hurricanes wasn’t enough bad news.
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