05.15.08
Posted in News at 12:15 am by Paloma Cruz
White’s budget includes modest tax cut, more police
– Houston Chronicle2
Mayor Bill White unveiled a record $4 billion budget proposal
Tuesday, calling for a sharp increase in spending on public safety
while cutting the property tax rate by a half-cent.
The mayor’s fiscal 2009 budget also would, if approved, create a
dedicated set-aside of tax revenues to pay for drainage improvements,
fund the addition of 150 police officers and add 50,000 homes to the
curbside recycling program.
[snip]
Footnotes
2 = article may expire in a few weeks.
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05.05.08
Posted in News at 11:57 am by Paloma Cruz
Houston honored as most accessible city for people with disabilities
– Houston Business Journal
While some recent surveys point to Houston being among the fattest
and the dumbest cities in the nation, Mayor Bill White on Friday
accepted with pride his city’s designation as the most accessible to
handicapped people.
The National Organization on Disability presented a $25,000 check
to White at the Vale-Asche Foundation Playground in Memorial Park.
Houston earned the seventh annual Accessible America Contest
because of its “focus on disability issues and successful design of
programs, services and facilities that are accessible for citizens and
visitors who have disabilities,” according to NOD.
[snip]
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Posted in News at 11:10 am by Paloma Cruz
Houston gets schooled in ’smart’ survey
Bayou City ranks near the bottom of the heap in education-based listing of 100 smartest U.S. cities
– Houston Business Journal
Houston has landed near the bottom of a new ranking of the 100 smartest cities in the U.S., according to a recent study by Bizjournals.
Houston ranked 83rd on the list — which identified metros with the highest levels of collective brain power based on education levels — with an index of 41 on a 100-point scale. The study found that only 9.2 percent of Houstonians have a graduate or professional degree; 20 percent did not complete high school; and 25 percent stopped their education at a high school diploma.
Local economic and education experts don’t dispute Houston’s ranking, saying that the study brings to light some alarming statistics.
Steven Klineberg, a sociology professor at Rice University, says Houston’s numbers represent an “incipient crisis” among the city’s demographics.
[snip]
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Posted in News at 11:06 am by Paloma Cruz
Evening commuters could get reprieve from rains
– Houston Chronicle2
Heavy rains are expected to continue across southeast Texas late
this morning and into the afternoon, but evening rush-hour travelers
could get a break, forecasters said.
“We think the rain will diminish beginning late this afternoon,
probably between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.,” National Weather Service
forecaster Charles Roeseler said today.
[snip]
Footnotes
2 = article may expire in a few weeks.
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Posted in News at 10:56 am by Paloma Cruz
If you didn’t watch Iron Man this weekend, you’re in the minority. I went to see it on Saturday and was a bit disappointed. Robert Downey, Jr. was great, but the movie was a bit… lacking. Just my personal opinion.
Ticket sales cast in iron
– Houston Chronicle2
Iron Man was pure gold at the box office.
The Marvel Comics adaptation, starring Robert Downey Jr. as the guy in the metal suit, hauled in $100.7 million during its opening weekend and $104.2 million since debuting Thursday night, the second-best premiere ever for a nonsequel, according to studio estimates.
The film’s debut was the 10th-biggest opening of all time and the fourth-biggest for a superhero movie.
[snip]
Footnotes
2 = article may expire in a few weeks.
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05.01.08
Posted in News at 10:58 pm by Paloma Cruz
Rally calls for immigration reform, end to raids
– Houston Chronicle2
More than 200 supporters of immigrant rights rallied in downtown Houston on Thursday, calling for an overhaul of immigration laws and an end to a recent spate of workplace raids.
The afternoon march and rally at downtown’s Antioch Park coincided with national protests in major cities, including Los Angeles, Chicago and Miami. The Houston protest also drew a few dozen counter-protestors, who gathered across the street from the rally, yelling through bull horns and carrying signs that read “Stop the Invasion.”
[snip]
Footnotes
2 = article may expire in a few weeks.
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Posted in News at 10:31 pm by Paloma Cruz
Houston OKs ‘green’ energy code for new businesses
Mayor says cost hike for builders will be offset by utility savings
– Houston Chronicle2
Starting Aug. 1, new commercial buildings will have to meet
energy-efficiency benchmarks through the use of “green” design, under a
new energy code approved Wednesday by the City Council.
[snip]
Footnotes
2 = article may expire in a few weeks.
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