The Woodlands Township Meeting - June 24, 2009

These are exciting times for The Woodlands. The Woodlands Township Board of Directors is working with The Community Associations of The Woodlands to transition into the governance role effective January 1, 2010, according to The Transition Agreement and their Vision Plan. At that time, resident's assessments will be levied as property tax and become deductible. Currently, The Township has 11 Directors: Nelda Blair-Chairwoman, Lloyd Matthews and Bruce Tough-Vice Chairmen, Alex Sutton-Secretary, Vicki Richmond-Treasurer and Assistant Secretary, and Directors - Tom Campbell, Kemba DeGroot, Peggy Hausman, Claude, Hunter, Bob Kinnear and Rev. Ed Robb. In May 2010, The Township Board will change to 7 Directors with 4 being elected by residents of The Woodlands.

This was a very well run and interesting meeting with a lengthy agenda. The "Public Comment" section of the agenda gives residents a chance to voice their opinions. Some highlights of this meeting were residents speaking about their concerns and suggestions including objections to: 1) the $432,000 payment authorized by The Woodlands to be paid to Shenandoah and Oak Ridge for law enforcement services; 2) actions by the Development Standards Committee, 3) the possible lack of life-saving medical equipment at a 2008 triathalon event, and 4) the VillaSports complex. Points of view about the noise level of VillaSports Athletic Club & Spa were presented by a Panther Creek resident, The Woodlands Association, The Woodlands Commercial Owners Association, and VillaSports. A committee is working to resolve these issues and to avoid future similar issues. Here's a highlight of other topics. TXDOT gave a presentation on the proposed widening of Highway 242 to 6 lanes in 2011, and the Board passed a resolution in support of this expansion project. There is no specific construction schedule and no funding at this time. The Board approved a resolution to remove the Township from the boundaries and taxing jurisdiction of the Metropolitan Transit Authority. New summer programs are in the works for The Waterway Square Fountain area, in addition to the "Live at 5" and "Live at Lunch" events. Check out the new patriotic music at the Waterway Square Fountains. The Board appointed 4 members to The Woodlands Convention and Vistors Bureau. They established future Town Hall meetings to be held in July and January and will add more as needed. The next Town Hall Meeting is July 29, 2009. The 2009 legislative update includes a Pavillion event admissions tax of 5% to fund cultural events, and a Supplemental Hotel Occupancy tax of 1% in 2011, and an additional 1% in 2012.

See archived video of meeting
See meeting minutes

Terrorists in our backyards!!!

Financial Terrorist Allan Stanford is being held in federal detention in Conroe. Quick, send this guy to Guantanamo -- I don't want him in my backyard!

Read More.

County making use of stimulus money

Montgomery County will receive a $3.2 million grant as part of the federal "stimulus package" to increase energy efficiency in county buildings by replacing air conditioning units and light fixtures. The county will recognize a 20% reduction in electricity costs at those facilities. What a strange twist of irony that the county that originated HCR 50 in the last legislative session, declaring Texas Sovereinty from the federal government, is now seen with its hat in hand. Far from defying the "opressive hand". The County as well as all other government entities should look to make these important investments in energy efficiency, even if the funds aren't coming from the federal or state level. As both the County and the City of Conroe have proven, these investments pay off in a short period of time and then yield both significant cost savings and a healthier environment.

Chron.com 6/16/2009

Juneteenth 2009

I had a great time yesterday at the annual Juneteenth Festival in Conroe's Heritage Park. This event is sponsored by the Concerned Citizens of Conroe and celebrates the week in 1865 when slaves received word of the Emancipation Proclamantion. Learn more about Juneteenth.

The Montgomery County Democratic Party was represented with a booth where attendees could register to vote and practice using the E-Slate voting machine, among other things.

If you are interested in becoming involved in the Concerned Citizens of Conroe, please contact Lucresha Vinson at lucresha01@yahoo.com.

Willis City Council Meeting - 6-16-2009

Background

The Willis City Council is composed of a mayor and five alderman. The mayor is Leonard Reed. The Aldermen are Tamara Young (Place 1), John Lovelady (Place 2), Josey Billnoske (Place 3), Anna Ross (Place 4), and Bill Van Alstyne (Place 5). The City Manager is Jim McAlister and the City Attorney is Larry Forester. The City of Willis web site is http://www.ci.willis.tx.us.

Meeting

Leonard Reed, Tamara Young, John Lovelady, Josey Billnoske, Bill Van Alstyne, and Larry Forester were present. The main item on the agenda was a public hearing on a proposed zoning ordinance for the city. A copy of the ordinance may be found here. In addition, the council approved the drafting of a “solicitation” ordinance to enable the police department to better deal with parties who attempt to purchase drugs within the city. The City Police Chief and the City Attorney will draw up a proposed ordinance and submit it to the Council. Bill Van Alstyne was selected as Mayor Pro-Tem before the council went into executive session to assess and evaluate applicants for the position of City Manager.

Reflection

The city council was businesslike and professional. City employees testified on items concerning their departments and public comment was accepted. Mayor Reed ran the meeting efficiently.

Montgomery County Commissioner's Court 6/15/09

Background

The county commissioner’s court is composed of the county judge, elected county wide, and four county commissioners, elected within four commissioner precincts within the county. (See map.) The Montgomery County Judge is Alan B. Sadler. The four commissioners are Mike Meador (Precinct 1, North County), Craig Doyal (Precinct 2, West County), Ed Chance (Precinct 3, The Woodlands and Oak Ridge), and Ed Rinehart (Precinct 4, East County). Commissioners of precincts 2 and 4 are up for election in 2010.

The commissioner’s court controls the county budget and sets the county tax rate. It is responsible for maintenance of county roads, controls the budget for the sheriff’s department and district and county court system, funds the Montgomery County Library System and is responsible for indigent citizens. The members of the court are the core administrative structure of Texas government. In Montgomery County, the 2008 county budget was $200,702,107. Based on number of employees, the county is probably the second largest employer in Montgomery County. (The seven county school districts are first.)

Court Session

Agendas for commissioner’s court meetings and other county information are posted at the Montgomery County Web Site http://www.co.montgomery.tx.us. The June 15 meeting agenda may be viewed here.

Most county business is agreed to by all parties beforehand, thus most of the June 15 meeting involved a brief presentation by the interested party to transfer funds or approve a transaction, the County Judge asking for a motion to approve and second, those motions being made, and a 5-0 approval vote being given. Red flags are raised when:

1. 1. A commissioner feels a prearranged agreement has been misunderstood, forgotten, or broken. An example in this meeting occurred when an employee in a court position was recommended for promotion to a higher salary level. Mike Meador asked if the change he suggested had been made and the presenter of the suggestion said it had not. Questions were immediately raised by Meador and Sadler and the item was deferred until a change had been made. Reconsideration of the item later in the meeting resulted in the salary being approved at a lower level than was originally recommended. Lesson 1: Don’t ask for budget increases without doing groundwork beforehand with all commissioners. Blue Dog Democratic “Pay-As-You-Go” doctrine is alive and well in Montgomery County government regardless of commissioner party affiliation. If you want an increase you need to find the funds somewhere else in your budget. In public session, the court is Scotch with county money.

1. 2. Public testimony highlights a legal or public approval problem. An example occurred in this session on consideration of an order prohibiting certain fireworks in unincorporated areas of Montgomery County under certain conditions during the fourth of July fireworks season. A county employee requested such an order, but the largest fireworks business owner in the county pointed out in public testimony that the law requires such an order must be approved before the 15th of the month. Since today’s date was the 15th, the order would be legally void. Commissioners Chance and Meador focused on the “letter of the law” detail of the owner’s complaint until County Attorney David Walker asked for a deferral for a few minutes while his staff researched the law. Mr. Walker sent a member of his staff to research the issue. On his return, the item was addressed again and Mr. Walker quoted a section of state law indicating that expiration dates occurring on non-working days (the 14th was a Sunday) pushed forward the actual expiration date to the next legal work day, in this case the 15th. Given Mr. Walker’s legal opinion, the court approved the order prohibiting the fireworks under the required conditions. Lesson 2: Don’t put the court in a position where it could face legal liability or public opprobrium. Lesson 3: If you disagree with an issue before the court, get yourself on the agenda and state your position publicly.

Reflection

Most attendees at the meeting were public service employees looking out for their department and employees or interested private parties with financial interest in the transactions. I was and have been impressed with the professionalism of the public service employees of Montgomery County.

The preplanned nature of the meetings requires that members of the Commissioner’s Court be of high moral character. Any immoral “deal making” in the numerous items on the agenda will take place before the public session. Many such “deals” should leave tracks of a pattern of behavior that can be traced to an individual unworthy of the public trust.

If you disagree with an item before the court, get on the agenda and state your case.

Parking meters get opposition

The debate over parking meters in downtown Conroe heated up today as longtime downtown barber and business owner Bobby Shephard took his fight to the local airwaves. Mr. Shephard, who has operated his business in downtown for decades raises a valid concern when he questions how this would affect downtown businesses.

The city has only expressed a general interest in the use of parking meters to mitigate the parking issues downtown. The bottom line is that there must be a compromise between the parking problem and the interests of a thriving downtown that the city has an interest in protecting. First of all, most customers to these small businesses are "regulars" and will continue to be so regardless of the parking situation. To the extent that the meters could have a small impact on business, the city could allow certain special "merchant validated" meters at each business so that their customers would still have the ability to park without fee. This would satisfy the needs of business owners like Mr. Shephard and also help the city combat an important parking congestion issue and generate an additional revenue stream.

This fight is only in its nascent stages but the grassroots efforts of Mr. Shephard should be applauded. His mobilization of citizens via petition is a shining beacon of democracy in Conroe, Texas.

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