CITY& COUNTY
News from Harris County and the city of Jersey Village
QUOTEOFNOTE “I’VE SEEN THE
NewJerseyVillage police chief o cially takes over JERSEY VILLAGE After a three- month search process, the city of Jersey Village brought a new police chief on board March 1. City o cials announced at a BY SHAWN ARRAJJ
IMPACT OF A FEDERAL IMMIGRATION SYSTEM THAT IS SOBROKENAND CONVOLUTED THAT FOLKS ARE DESPERATE
JUST TOHAVE AN ANSWER TO THEIR CASE.” LINA HIDALGO, HARRIS COUNTY JUDGE
Feb. 17 Jersey Village City Council meeting that interim police Chief Kirk Riggs had been o ered the job. Riggs was appointed as interim chief in early November following the city’s decision to cut ties with former police Chief Eric Foerster, who had served in the role since 2010. The search process yielded 53 applicants, City Manager Austin Bleess said. “We did a pretty competitive national search,” he said. Riggs formerly served as police chief in Rockwall, a city of roughly 44,000 east of Dallas. He joined the force as the assistant chief in 2006 before being promoted to chief in 2015, according to information from the Rockwall department. He pre- viously served the Farmers Branch Police Department for 25 years.
OTHER HIGHLIGHTS JERSEYVILLAGE All three incumbents running for re-election on the Jersey Village City Council are slated to run unopposed this May. The incumbents include Drew Wasson, James Singleton and Gary Wubbenhorst, who led for places 1, 4 and 5 on the council, respectively. Council members in Jersey Village serve two-year terms. HARRIS COUNTY Harris County Commissioners Court unanimously appointed Peter Key as the interim executive director for the Harris County Toll Road Authority during its Feb. 11 meeting. Key, formerly HCTRA’s chief nancial o cer, took over for Gary Trietsch e ective Feb. 12. Trietsch, who announced his retirement in early January, had served as HCTRA’s executive director since August 2014. HARRIS COUNTY In response to a global coronavirus outbreak, Harris County launched a rumor- control website and increased Harris County Public Health’s budget for scal year 2020-21 by an additional $2.7 million in hopes of giving the agency greater capacity to deal with such diseases. The public health department was originally slated to see a bump of $3 million for emergency response positions, but commissioners unanimously voted to increase that total to $5.7 million at a Feb. 11 meeting. The Jersey Village City Council meets every month at 7 p.m. on the third Monday. The next meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. April 20 at Jersey Village City Hall, 16327 Lakeview Drive, Jersey Village. 713-466-2100. www.jerseyvillagetx.com The Harris County Commissioners Court meets twice a month at 10 a.m. Tuesday mornings. The next meeting is scheduled for 10 a.m. March 24 at 1001 Preston St., Ste. 934, Houston. 713-755-6444. www.harriscountytx.gov MEETINGSWE COVER
Kirk Riggs became Jersey Village police chief onMarch 1. (Shawn Arrajj/Community Impact Newspaper)
Newimmigrant legal defense fundunderway inHarrisCounty was drawn to Jersey Village because of its supportive community and because of the work ethic of the other o cers. “I just really enjoy being able to work closely with people,” he said. “I knew if I ever did take on another chief job, it would be a smaller agency where you can really have an impact on the men and women and be a leader.”
Bleess said the city was looking for an e ective communicator who demonstrated ethical integrity. Riggs also brings budgeting and sta ng experience, he said. “[We want] someone that can recognize the complexity of policing a place like Jersey Village—a small community surrounded by a large metro area,” Bleess said. In a phone interview, Riggs said he
Commissioners vote to replace Bill Jackson as chief budget o cer inHarris County
BY SHAWN ARRAJJ
to continue to serve as budget chief while the search is underway. The two dissenting com- missioners—Precinct 3’s Steve Radack and Precinct 4’s Jack Cagle—criticized the move for lacking transparency. Radack said Jackson helped the county earn its AAA bond rating. Hidalgo said, regardless of who the new budget chief is, she is dedicated to maintaining the county’s nancial strength. “I will of course not accept any replacement that doesn’t maintain our bond rating and that doesn’t maintain a strong scal position,” she said. Jackson has led the budget man- agement department since 2011. The department is responsible for creating annual budgets for the county’s general fund and the Har- ris County Flood Control District in addition to managing debt service for other county entities.
HARRIS COUNTY Harris County commissioners voted 3-2 at a Feb. 25 meeting to begin the process of replacing Bill Jackson as chief budget o cer. The motion was placed on the agenda by Precinct 2 Com- missioner Adrian Garcia and received votes of support from County Judge Lina Hidalgo and Precinct 1 Commissioner Rodney Ellis. Hidalgo said she believes a change in leadership at the budget department is necessary to carry out a larger e ort that involves making budgeting more transparent in terms of why each department receives the alloca- tion it does. The court will appoint a com- mittee of ve chiefs of sta —one representing each court member—to launch a national search process for a new budget director. Jackson indicated at the meeting he intends
BY DANICA SMITHWICK
HARRIS COUNTY Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo proposed estab- lishing an immigrant legal defense fund for county residents at a Feb. 25 meeting. The Commissioners Court pushed the resolution forth with a 3-2 vote as Commissioners Steve Radack and Jack Cagle opposed. Hidalgo said this program would “inject a measure of fairness into our justice system” for individuals and families who do not have access to legal services.
Immigrants in Harris County
Roughly 412,000 residents are living in the country illegally. About 18,000 county immigrants do not have access to representation. The new program could cost $500,000 in its rst year.
SOURCE: HARRIS COUNTY COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
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CY FAIR EDITION • MARCH 2020
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