BY TOMER RONEN
Missouri City tightens solicitation rules Missouri City will enforce tighter solicita- tion rules following enforcement challenges and public safety concerns. Zooming in The ordinance—which applies to any person going door-to-door for commercial purposes—prohibits solicitation between 7 p.m. and 9 a.m., per agenda documents. Other key changes in the ordinance include: • Reducing applicant registration from 180 days to 90 days • Introducing a $1,000 surety bond • Allowing permit denial or revocation • Creating a nonrefundable registration fee • Setting escalating minimum fines for violations • Eliminating the appeal process
Sugar Land study shows mosquito spray may be ineffective Mosquito spray may be ineffective across Sugar Land, a city study found. Zooming in At a Feb. 24 meeting, Sugar Land City Council concurred with city staff’s recommendation to decrease spray totals to one per week from the current two with additional sprays in zones where mosquitoes test positive for disease. The decision came after Director of Public Works Herc Meier presented data from a nine-week spray treatment study, which showed that no-spray zones may have fewer mosquitoes than those with one or two sprays. Meier said the lack of mosquito population decrease could be due to many factors, including:
Mosquito study results
Average mosquitoes collected per trap
Typical range
No spray 65.2 One-spray
Typical range
79.6
Typical range
Two-sprays
82.4
SOURCE: CITY OF SUGAR LAND/COMMUNITY IMPACT
• High baseline population • High replacement rate • Migration from neighboring areas • Pesticide resistance
The study split the city into six spray zones with three spray treatments—no spray, one spray and two sprays—Meier said. Zones received a different spray treatment each week to determine spray effectiveness. The city currently sprays for mosquitoes once a week from May to October, Meier said. What’s next? Based on City Council direction, Meier said another recommendation may be presented next year after more data is collected.
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SUGAR LAND - MISSOURI CITY EDITION
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