Good morning, Houston. We suppose Tex-Mex is finally official: The New York Times wrote about it yesterday in an article that looked at famed Mexican joints in Houston, Dallas and San Antonio. "Neon signs flicker above pastel storefronts promising excellent Mexican food in virtually every block of the city," the Times' Joe Drape writes of Houston. "The trick is to figure out which places will deliver on that promise." Indeed. Drape visited El Jardin...
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Results tagged “houstoncitycouncil”
Good morning, Houston. These days, when everyone and their dog has a computer, it's getting harder to remember the days when all "official" writing was done on typewriters. The practical modern typewriter was invented in 1868 by an engineer named Christopher Latham Sholes, but it wasn't until 121 years ago today — Sept. 14, 1886 — that George K. Anderson of Memphis got a patent for the typewriter ribbon. They were originally made of...
This morning, Houston City Council designated Old Sixth Ward as the first and only Protected Historic District in the city. This new status will enable the Houston Archaeological and Historical Commission to prohibit the demolition of historic structures within Old Sixth Ward's 33.8 acres. There was only one dissenting vote for this measure, which came from council member/real estate broker Michael Berry. As far as actual limitations on properties within the district, the Greater Houston...
We knew there had to be some history behind Houston's opening its doors to hurricane evacuees from New Orleans a couple of summers ago — and now, thanks to the Chronicle's addictive Bayou City History blog, we know what it was: Early in 1949, the Houston City Council annexed the city of New Orleans. So, hey, all you transplanted New Orleanians: Welcome home! It all started Dec. 31, 1948, when Houston annexed more than...
Yesterday, 50 new American citizens were sworn in at a naturalization ceremony at the State Department headquarters in Washington, D.C. During the ceremony, Houston City Council Member M.J. Khan also received the prestigious "Americans by Choice" award. The award honors the outstanding achievements of naturalized U.S. citizens. Recipients "have demonstrated their commitment to this country through civic participation, professional achievement, and responsible citizenship" and have shown "unwavering dedication to the common civic values that unite Americans."
Houston City Council Member M.J. Khan of District F will be traveling to Doha, Qatar April 6-13 as a representative of the State Department's Speaker and Specialist Program. Council Member Khan will be meeting with local businessman, dignitaries, academics, students, and politicians from the region. During these visits, he will discuss topics ranging from Houston council business to the American political process and living as a Muslim in the United States. He will visit students at some of the local universities and schools including Qatar University and the Texas A&M University Campus in Doha. He will also visit with the Central Municipal Council, Pakistani Youth Society, and Qatar Businessmen’s Association.
Houston smokers, it looks like you'll have a new favorite hangout when the city's smoking ban takes effect in September: Last night, the Bellaire City Council voted down a similar ban in their city.
More on the possibility of the city having to hold a costly special election to fill Shelley Sekula-Gibbs' vacant City Council seat for a few months: According to the Chronicle, Mayor Bill White plans to ask the state Legislature for some leeway in the election law that would require a special election. The issue: A special election couldn't be held before May, meaning that whoever won it would have to run again in a general election in November — and a special election plus runoff, if one were needed, would cost the city $3 million. That's a lot of money to put someone on council for six months, White said:
Shelley Sekula-Gibbs told the Chronicle this morning that she will resign her seat on the Houston City Council as soon as the results of Tuesday's Congressional District 22 special election are certified, paving the way for her to head to Washington to spread a little sunshine around the halls of Congress. For a few weeks, anyway. Sekula-Gibbs, a write-in Republican candidate to fill out Tom DeLay's expired term in the House, beat out three other...
Next time you wonder why Houston isn't able to reduce its pollution levels, think about the local lawmakers who voted against legislation designed to protect the public from toxic air pollution. Seems 20 of 34 state representatives from the Houston metro area — all Republicans, some representing industrial districts east of Houston — voted to table five measures that would have tightened health screening levels for pollution, set fines for the periodic release of...
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