Last week's news was punctuated by several stories about sex and the sex industry, including a court victory in the city's effort to shut down an alleged "hot sheet" motel. Though Houston lacks zoning, an ordinance passed over a decade ago, but challenged in courts until the Supreme Court refused to hear the case, prohibits sexually-oriented businesses (or SOBs) from operating within 1,500 feet of churches, schools, day care centers, and parks.
Friday April 3
Vile trade Pimping children is closer to home than you'd imagine - Houston's a hub. [Houston Chronicle] "According to the nonprofit group Children at Risk, Houston is the nation's largest hub for child trafficking. Near a national border, we're known for a free-and-easy attitude toward sex businesses. The FBI divides human trafficking into two categories: international and domestic. International cases involve people - usually girls - born in foreign countries. (In multicultural Houston, that can mean anywhere in the world. Guatemala leads the list.)"
‘Hot sheet' motel loses court battle, Guilty verdict a victory for city's campaign: Cases against 2 other motels pending [Houston Chronicle] "The city won a unanimous verdict against the El Rondo Motor Lodge, at 8016 Livingston in Sunnyside, in its first attempt to confront in court what Mayor Bill White has called "hot sheet" motels. Police and nearby residents testified throughout the trial, which began Monday, that the hotel was a haven for prostitution, one where condoms were sold at check-in and rooms rented by the hour...For more than a decade, the city's ordinance prohibiting "sexually-oriented businesses" from operating within 1,500 feet of neighborhoods was mired in court challenges. But the city has finally begun to see success after suing to shutter some establishments through state nuisance laws." Here is a response from the motel owner's attorney.
THE TEXAS LEGISLATURE HOUSE OKs TAX ON STRIP CLUBS 10% levy on entry fees would replace $5 charge per patron in plan going to Senate TAX: Critics say clubs could find ways around new fee [Houston Chronicle] "The adult entertainment industry pushed hard for the change because it would cost them less."
Cruising in Houston [Houston Chronicle]
Thursday April 2
Local shuttle bus service from The Woodlands to Huntsville faces funding cuts Ridership numbers remain low along the 47-mile route [Houston Chronicle]
CENTRAL HOUSTON Residents on Washington Avenue approve of plan for quiet zone Project similar to one in Bellaire, West U. areas [Houston Chronicle] "In quiet zones, train crews are exempt from sounding their horns as the train approaches roads that cross the railroad tracks." See this extraordinary video of a train going through the neighborhood on Swamplot.
Baytown coastline gets major cleaning 400 Houston residents attend annual event [Houston Chronicle] "More than six months after Hurricane Ike ripped through southeast Texas, debris piles were still untouched where city trucks and cleanup crews had limited access. On Saturday, about 400 children and adults withstood the windy, cold weather to help clear those piles that remained along the shoreline of the Baytown Nature Center."
Freedmen's Town minister's home gets historical marker Colonial-style house located at 1319 Andrews [Houston Chronicle]
Negative becomes positive DesignWorks recovers from Ike [Houston Chronicle] "Now, after months of renovations, DesignWorks is back in business with a group exhibition of gallery artists aptly titled Return. Rebuild. Renew."
PASADENA Park and ride service starts April 6: Bus service to the downtown area includes the medical center [Houston Chronicle]
Fresh and local: local Farm-to-table dining is starting to catch on in the Bayou City Local: Two other events sold out [Houston Chronicle] "For those local foodies who missed it, FM150 isn't a new radio station but a new culinary gathering (or frequency, if you will) that marked its first farm-to-table dinner Saturday. Central to the FM150 concept is using foodstuff from farmers and purveyors within 150 miles of Houston, perhaps off the farm-to-market roads, hence FM150."
Parks director improves Katy's play areas Jennifer Archer receives award for her innovative work [Houston Chronicle]
Wednesday April 1
CITY PLANS ITS OWN STIMULUS Council may vote to reimburse developers to help jump-start multimillion-dollar projects [Houston Chronicle] "The plan aims to entice developers not to put their multimillion-dollar projects on hold in exchange for millions in incentives if the companies begin building soon and agree to make improvements to public roadways, sidewalks and streetscapes. City Council is scheduled to vote today on what would be the first such incentive package for Regent Square, a planned 4-million-square-foot, $850 million mixed-use development that city officials said was about to be put on hold indefinitely by Boston-based GID Urban Development Group. The development will abut Allen Parkway near Dunlavy and Dallas."
FIRE: One truck may have run red light, police say [Houston Chronicle] "Leigh Boone, 29, had been cycling to her job as an executive assistant at the Houston Center for Photography when the 40-ton ladder truck toppled onto a four-door Infiniti sedan and crushed Boone's bike." Here's the Tuesday report on the crash.
Monday March 30
A car that gets 4,000 mpg? That's the goal for three students at UH who are building a vehicle with super fuel efficiency in mind [Houston Chronicle]
Sunday March 29
HOUSING CRISIS Homeowners blame foreclosures as their neighborhoods fall into decay" Subdivisions fight a slide into slums HOMES: Homeowners associations affected [Houston Chronicle]
