Houston City Council

The Parking Ordinance Battle Has Just Begun

There's something quaintly likable about the small-town vibe of Houston City Council meetings. The Art Deco chambers on the second floor of City Hall can only hold about 250 people, most of whom seem to know each other in that typically close-knit Houston way. This past Wednesday, Councilwoman Wanda ... More >>

City of Houston vs. Retired Houston Firefighters at the Texas Supreme Court

Beginning today in Austin, the City of Houston will continue fighting retired firefighters with fire (and vice versa). In 2010, the city asked the state legislature to do something about the firefighters' pension plans. At the time, City of Houston Attorney David Feldman said that a number of reti ... More >>

Rocks Off's 10 Biggest Musical Disappointments of 2012

Everyone's mother once told them, or should have, that life is not always going to be a puppy mill full of unicorns and rainbows. Remember why all those puppies are there. Sometimes life -- and especially pop music -- doesn't turn out like you were expecting, so now we present Rocks Off's Biggest Mu ... More >>

This Week In Deliciousness: Anonymity, Terrorism, and other Keywords That Will Draw Traffic From the FBI

Welcome back to the weekly roundup here at Eating... Our Words, where we've spent the last few days allergy-sick, lying around watching cable TV and wondering who has the worst rate of success: Intervention or Gordon Ramsey's Kitchen Nightmares. With some of the restaurant owners they feature, it se ... More >>

Houston Musicians Gather To Support Noise Ordinance Revision

Disclaimer: Marco Torres was hired by Red Bull to take photos at Monday's #LOUD event, so we asked him to report back. -- ed. Last October, Houston's City Council passed a new sound ordinance that dropped the Houston Police Department's requirement of using decibal meters when responding to noise ... More >>

Who's Behind Helena Brown?

Some say the councilwoman known for her diatribes is influenced by senior adviser William Park, who last year was banned from the investments industry.

Noise Ordinance Bombs

Kill Us Now: We Covered the Houston City Council Today

Things at a Houston City Council meeting can get pretty dull. And by dull, we mean crushingly boring. As in, it was so lifeless today that matters got desperate for several reporters listening to the council members drone on and on. And on. One TV reporter -- an exceedingly friendly fellow -- took ... More >>

Noise Ordinance Is Bombing In Court; Cases Dropped

Due to a lack of witnesses and insufficient evidence, the Harris County court system shuttered each and every sound ordinance case that was heard late last week. Local musicians, DJs and bar owners have been under the microscope since Houston City Council overhauled its decade-old sound ordinance ... More >>

Houston's Cryptic New Noise Ordinance

Confusing new law has bar and club owners screaming.

Cover Story: Houston's Noise Ordinance Has Bar and Club Owners Screaming

Things have been quite noisy since Houston's new noise ordinance became law. In this week's cover story, Houston Press examined the effects of the citywide sound ordinance, which Houston City Council passed on October 10. While a Houston Police Department officer is confident that the noise ordin ... More >>

Cover Story: Houston's Controversial Noise Ordinance

In this week's cover story, Houston Press examined the effects of the citywide sound ordinance, which Houston City Council passed on October 10. While a Houston Police Department officer is confident that the noise ordinance task force (whose members aren't required to carry decibel meters) is doi ... More >>

United vs. Southwest Deathcage Match: Your Campaign Donations Scorecard

Houston City Council is currently in an uproar over Mayor Annise Parker's tentative proposal to allow Southwest to have international flights out of Hobby Airport. Councilmembers have said the proposal is rushed and would harm United Airlines, which, of course, merged with Continental and flies int ... More >>

It's Now Illegal to Feed [More Than Five] Homeless People [at Once] on Public Property

After a protracted debate and opposition from nearly every political and religious group in the city, Houston's City Council passed an ordinance last week that bans serving charitable meals on properties -- public or private -- where the property owner hadn't granted express permission for you to do ... More >>

Saturday Night: Praia Urbana At Last Concert Cafe

Praia Urbana Last Concert Cafe March 10, 2011 Between the unrelenting rain and RodeoHouston traffic, Saturday night got a little messy as Aftermath attempted to weave through the outskirts of downtown for the Last Concert Café's all-day electronica festival Praia Urbana. Nevertheless, considerin ... More >>

Controversial Noise Ordinance Leads To Lively New Facebook Group

There is no more contentious issue within the local music community right now than the City of Houston's stricter new noise ordinance, which many venue owners, sound engineers and even everyday music fans view as unreasonable and even draconian. Since the ordinance passed Houston City Council nearl ... More >>

Occupy Houston: Where Everything Is An Emergency That Local Media (Including Us) Fall For

Photo by Brittanie SheyOccupy Houston holds an impromptu assembly.​Hair Balls now has something in common with the local Fox and CBS affiliates. We're all suckers. On Tuesday afternoon, in light of the recent shutdown of Occupy Oakland, Hair Balls did some recon by contacting one of our sourc ... More >>

HPD: No Crime Found in Gay-Mag Publisher's Claims

The article on Ellen Cohen that started it all has been pulled​After investigating a magazine publisher's claims that he was threatened by the head of the GLBT Political Caucus last week, Houston Police have determined no criminal activity occurred and have closed the case. Caucus President ... More >>

HPD Kingwood Under Investigation for Alleged Overtime Abuses

Bryan Bennett became the HPD Kingwood captain two years ago ​An anonymous source has chronicled to Hair Balls a recent history of overtime funding abuses by the Houston Police Department Kingwood Division. The first, according to the source, occurred on May 22 during a private benefit for Ser ... More >>

Glenbrook Valley, Our Recent Cover-Story Subject, Becomes a Historic District

​Just before 10 a.m. today, Houston City Council approved the historic district applications for Glenbrook Valley, Woodland Heights and Heights South. The mid-century modern neighborhood Glenbrook Valley, at the center of a contentious debate and the subject of the Press' June 23 cover story, ... More >>

Pools And Community Centers Come Under Parker's Budget Ax

Pool's closed today, and all summer​Eight swimming pool pools and seven community centers won't open this summer and about 750 city employees will be laid off under the new budget proposed by Mayor Annise Parker today.The fire and police departments avoided layoffs. "Developing this budget h ... More >>

Jessica Tata: Legislature Acts to Help Increase Daycare Inspections

Jessica Tata spurs lege to act​Blink once and you might have missed state rep Carol Alvarado's bill in the House Urban Affairs last week that offered at least one more stopgap measure to prevent the West Houston daycare fire that took the lives of four small children. Former day care operator ... More >>

R.I.P Kathryn McGuire, Houston's Transvestite Socialite

Kathryn McGuire, dead at 68​Kathryn McGuire, who made a big splash in the Houston social scene as a transvestite before undergoing a sex-change operation and moving away, has died. Her son James tells Hair Balls she passed away at the age of 68 in Palm Springs, California, last week. We did ... More >>

Dynamo's Stadium: A Date for the Groundbreaking Has Been Set

Groundbreaking this month​Barring some last-minute glitches, the Houston Dynamo plan to have a groundbreaking ceremony for their $80 million stadium January 29, the club announced today. The Houston Business Journal reports that the only formality remaining before the team can go ahead is for ... More >>

Heights-Area Walmart Poised For Vote Today: Let's Look At Three Recent Stop-Walmart! Fights

The City Council could vote today to bring a Heights Walmart one step closer. ​This morning, the Houston City Council is set to vote on a proposed "380 agreement" with developer Michael Ainbinder that would help him build a Walmart-anchored retail center near the Heights. The agreement, posted on ... More >>

Post KTRU/KUHF, Possible Houston Mergers & Acquisitions To Come

Photo illustrations by John Seaborn GrayGozer has designs on the Galleria.​Rice University and the University of Houston have reached a deal to convert KTRU into a 24-hour white-noise station to help our city's insomniacs. Fitzgerald's was just bought out by the guys who made Mango's a viable ... More >>

City Says Smoking Ban Has Had No Impact On Bars

Photo by porcelaingirlTwo years ago, Houston City Council approved a smoking ban for local bars. This week, it was announced that the city had spent $12,000 to measure the impact of the ban.Their conclusion? It had no impact on bar sales whatsoever. "It's reassuring that we did the right thing ... More >>

Breaking News: Cops Don't Like Being Told They're Fat

Photo by sylvarSo far, no one's pointed to any evidence linking lack of physical fitness among some Houston Police Department officers with problems like the disproportionate Tasering of minorities, the shootings of quite a few mentally ill folks, or even the supreme fuck-up that put an innocent man ... More >>

Residents File Their Own Suit Against Treatment Plant

Less than a month ago, Houston City Council members responded to an avalanche of complaints about explosions and sickening smells coming from a CES Environmental Services Inc. waste treatment plant in southeast Houston and decided to sue the company under nuisance laws in an attempt to remove the fa ... More >>

The Nanny State Hates The Cars On Your Front Lawn

As goes Port Arthur, so goes Houston.The noble Golden Triangle town recently passed an ordinance banning people from parking their cars on their front lawns.Always eager to take their lifestyle cues from Port Arthur, the Houston City Council has followed suit with an ordinance of its own.Homeowners ... More >>

A Man. A Plan. A Small Battery-Operated Device.

How many times have you wished you had your own drumset, so you could bust out a rim shot every time your buddy says something outrageously funny, like "Get-r-done!"? Well, one Houston man is trying to turn that dream into reality. Glen Jackson, a 48-year-old refinery worker, recently patented the ... More >>

A City's Shame: Inflatable Gorillas

Some Relief From Those Booting A-Holes

The Initial Bill For Clean-Up In Houston: Almost $100 Million

We're Not Sure About Cathy Mincberg, But You Definitely Have a Problem Writing Original Headlines

An iFest Fan (and Former Music Programmer) Responds

An open letter to Racket from Rick Mitchell, with Racket's reply

Law? What Law?

City Council proposed; City Hall didn't dispose

Star-Crossed

No World Series this year, an Astro-loger says

Best Lobbyist

Bill Miller

The Schmooze Returns to City Hall

Facing an out-of-control council, Brown recalls a veteran vote saver

Best Politician

Carol Alvarado

Best Band to Leave Houston

I-45

Insider

Board Out of Its Gourd!

After-School Aftershocks

Advocates unite to tell HISD and Houston not to overlook vital program

Model-Netics Hooks City Hall

Santa's Push Cards

Letters

Lounge Act

Sheila Keeps Quiet

Press Picks