CITY & COUNTY
News from Houston & Harris County
Harris County Commissioners Court will meet for its regular meeting at 10 a.m. Aug. 29 at 1001 Preston St., Ste. 934, Houston. Meetings are livestreamed at www.harriscountytx.gov. Houston City Council will meet for public comment at 2 p.m. Aug. 15 and regular business at 9 a.m. Aug. 16 at City Hall, 901 Bagby St., Houston. www.houstontx.gov/htv. MEETINGS WE COVER HIGHLIGHTS HARRIS COUNTY O cials led a lawsuit against the state of Texas July 6 in an attempt to allow the courts decide how it should run elections—a direct challenge to Senate Bill 1750, a recently passed law that eliminated the county’s election administrator system. SB 1750 is set to go into e ect Sept. 1, weeks before early voting in the November elections that the county is hosting. If the court temporarily blocks SB 1750, it would allow the county’s election administrator to manage elections and voter registration until a nal decision is reached. Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, wrote the legislation on SB 1750 and in a news release called the county’s lawsuit “frivolous.”
Houston City Council approves 2-year contract for 100 mini murals across city BY LEAH FOREMAN
County considering a ordable housing tax exemption policy HARRIS COUNTY A policy that will consider property tax exemptions for a ordable housing owners is moving forward after a unanimous Commis- sioners Court vote July 18. BY MELISSA ENAJE $20,000/year $35,000/year $50,000/year $75,000/year HOUSING COST BURDEN A countywide housing needs assessment and 10-year strategy in October 2021 found nearly 500,000 families are paying more than they can a ord for their homes.
Houston will soon need a new area code because of growth
Larry Green. Prior to the July 26 authorization, the program had resulted in more than 360 new murals in the Greater Houston area. The cost: The e ort will cost a maximum of $395,000 over the course of two years. The rst $197,500 will be paid from the city’s general govern- ment fund in scal year 2023-24. What they’re saying: District H Coun- cil Member Karla Cisneros said she applauded the diversity of the artists employed to create the pieces. “Up Art has really helped democ- ratize art, to get it to many parts of our city ... where there was nothing like that,” Cisneros said at the July 26 meeting. District K Council Member Mar- tha Castex-Tatum said the art has improved aesthetics around the city’s trails and parks.
HOUSTON More color is coming to the city of Houston. On July 26, Hous- ton City Council members approved a contract for two years of citywide art projects provided by Up Art Studio. The overview: This project entails 100 miniature murals that are to be painted on tra c signal control cabi- nets throughout the city of Houston. The backstory: According to city infor- mation, Houston’s rst tra c signal control cabinet mural was installed at Spring and Sawyer streets on April 15, 2015, and was sponsored by the Washington Avenue Arts District. Beginning in May 2015, several traf- c signal control cabinet art projects were created throughout District K— located in southwest Houston to the south of the cities of Bellaire and West University Place—in a pilot project sponsored by then-Council Member
BY DANICA LLOYD
Annual household earnings Families paying more than they can a ord
HOUSTON The Greater Houston area is outgrowing its four existing area codes. The North American Number Planning Administrator projects area codes 281, 346, 713 and 832 will run out of numbers by the third quarter of 2025, according to a July 6 news release from the Public Utility Commission of Texas. As of press time Aug. 2, the PUCT was slated to accept public com- ments through Aug. 5 on a petition by NANPA for a new area code to accommodate population growth in the Houston region. Adding a fth area code would not a ect existing phone numbers, PUCT o cials con rmed. The new area code would overlay the metro’s existing area code map, including in the city of Houston.
Why it matters: An existing Texas tax code already provides exemptions to certain organizations that meet low-income housing requirements, but each local governing jurisdiction has to approve the tax exemption and specify the allowed threshold amount, said Mary Lawler, the CEO of Avenue, a Houston-based nonpro t a ordable housing builder. “We are struggling right now with rising costs for our apartments and our ability to keep our rents a ordable to working families and seniors who are really in need,” she said. How we got here: In April, commis- sioners directed several county depart- ments to establish a policy related to the approval of tax exemptions for
• 128,767 renters • 46,849 owners
• 124,019 renters • 44,083 owners
• 58,109 renters • 35,582 owners
• 27,751 renters • 34,462 owners
A mini mural can be found on a tra c signal control cabinet at Collingsworth and Elysian streets in Houston.
Occupations • Fast-food and counter workers • Home health and personal care aides
• Retail
• Truck drivers • Administrative assistants • Bookkeepers
• Elementary school teachers • Skilled trade workers
COURTESY CITY OF HOUSTON
salespersons
• Cashiers • Customer service • Waiters • Medical assistants
“[Up Art] has really transformed a lot of the infrastructure that just looks like concrete and metal boxes into beautiful pieces of art across the city, really contributing to the fabric of the culture of our city and improving spaces that traditionally just look like regular concrete,” she said at the meeting. What’s next: The Mayor’s O ce of Cultural A airs will be reviewing rec- ommendations for potential locations of the miniature murals.
representatives
SOURCES: HARRIS COUNTY COMMUNITY SERVICES DEPARTMENT, KINDER INSTITUTE FOR URBAN RESEARCH, TEXAS GENERAL LAND OFFICE, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING & URBAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY IMPACT
certain low-income housing projects. O cials presented a preliminary policy to commissioners in July, and the nalized exemption policy is projected for completion by the end of August.
What else: Thepolicy could make it more nancially feasible for organi- zations to build a ordable housing. A 2021 study found nearly 500,000 households in the county are paying more for housing than they can a ord.
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