This Week at City Hall

Dec. 6, 2013Office of Council Member Ellen Cohen


Run-off Election Underway

District C voters have the opportunity to cast a ballot in several of the run-off elections currently in progress, including two Houston City Council seats.

Houston City Council, At-Large Position 2Andrew Burks vs. David Robinson
Houston City Council, At-Large Position 3Michael Kubosh vs. Roy Morales

Houston Community College Trustee Dist. IZeph Capo vs. Yolanda Navarro Flores
Houston Community College Trustee Dist. VRobert Glaser vs. Phil Kunetka

All District C voters can vote in both At-Large Council races. Portions of Houston Community College Districts I and V overlap with portions of District C, so only some District C residents will be able to vote in one of these two races.

Early voting hours:
Friday, Dec. 6 & Saturday, Dec. 7:  7AM to 7PM  |  Sunday, Dec. 8:  1PM – 6PM
Monday, Dec. 9 – Tuesday, Dec. 10:  7AM – 7PM

ELECTION DAY is Saturday, December 14, 7AM – 7PM.
Please visit www.harrisvotes.org for more voting information.

Weigh in on Memorial Park

The Memorial Park Conservancy (MPC) will host the third in a series of public meetings to discuss the Long-Range Master Plan for Memorial Park. This meeting will be heldTuesday, December 10th at 6:30pm at St. Theresa Catholic Church, 6622 Haskell St. (MAP). For those unable to attend the public meetings, the MPC has made available anonline survey. Comments received online will be consolidated, analyzed, and presented to MPC board members to further help inform the Master Plan.

On the Agenda

After a competitive application process, District C’s Pershing Middle School was selected, along with nine other Houston schools, for participation in the 2013-2014 After-School Achievement Program. Council authorized the Parks and Recreation Department to contract with Houston ISD to provide grants within the range of $20,000 to $45,000 to each of the 10 chosen schools (depending on average daily attendance in each after-school program.) To be accepted, each school was required to commit minimum matching funds of $10,000 cash and $10,000 in-kind.

What’s Happening in the Annex

Council Member Cohen met with Crime Stoppers Executive Director Rania Mankarious and Programs Manager Sonia Soto to discuss their upcoming projects for 2014. Though most well-known for their tip hotline (713.222.TIPS), Crime Stoppers operates many programs in Houston that play a critical role in preventing crime. The Safe School Program educates students on the importance of ‘See Something Say Something’ and the tip line; and the Domestic Violence Prevention Campaign collaborates with the Houston Area Women’s Center and other groups to provide an opportunity for the public to help families affected by domestic abuse. To further the efficiency of these and their many other programs, Crime Stoppers plans to open a centralized office facility in 2014, to be located within District C’s portion of Midtown.