Inside Today: Our BUSINESS LEADERS section takes a look at working near home • Page 1B
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SATURDAY | May 4, 2013 | Vol. 59 | No. 27 | www.theleadernews.com | @heightsleader
THE BRIEF. sponsored by
Celebrate Mom
s ’ e n e l r a D
t a E o t e m i T
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Meeting to unravel complex Chapter 42
Give-and-take at town hall meeting
Councilmembers Ed Gonzalez and Ellen Cohen, who represent Leader neighborhoods, are sponsoring a meeting from 6:30-8 p.m. May 9 at Oak Forest Elementary School, 1401 W. 43rd St., that will address the implementation of Chapter 42. The controversial measure – often referred to a “Houston’s development rule book” – received its first update in 14 years when it passed council, 14-3, last week after months of discussion and compromise. The revision provides for greater residential density outside the Loop to encourage development of blighted areas and more affordable housing close-in, but preserves deed restricted neighborhoods. For information, go to www.houstonplanning.com and click to the link to Chapter 42, or call 713-837-7701.
by Charlotte Aguilar charlotte@theleadernews.com
Come Join Us!
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Mon-Fri • 4-8PM ALL DAY - SAT
The first one made us so hungry, we had to do it again. Inside today’s edition of The Leader, we publish a section on some of the best Tex-Mex restaurants around, including a little history about the food we love, and spots to find food trucks and breakfast tacos.
M-F 11am-9pm Sat 11am-5pm
3401 W. T.C. Jester 713-957-1100
What
Can U O YFind Inside
GARAGE SALE: Saturday, May 4, 8 a.m.-2 p.m., 4700 Norhill. Three families. Lots of stuff. FAIR PRICES ON CARPET/FLOORING SALES, INSTALLATION AND REPAIR: Thirty-five years experience. Carpet, hardwoods, vinyl, ceramic tile. Carpet shampoo and restretch carpet. Dry cleaning now available. 713-582-5500. EUGENE HAULS TRASH: Cleans garages, trims trees. 832-890-5453; 713-631-5348. FOUR BROOKSIDE CEMETERY PLOTS FOR SALE: Spaces 3, 4, 5 and 6, Lot 196, Section 9. Call 281-6101973 for information.
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PAGE 4B
THE INDEX.
Public Safety Hipstrict Topics Obituaries Coupons Puzzles Sports Classifieds
2A 3A 4A 5A 6A 4A 7B 4B
Crime
Citizen’s Patrol, Cohen town hall meeting, even a free gun program all taking aim at the bad guys
10570 NW Frwy • 713-680-2350
BUCKET � OF BEER
Beating
“Waltrip will not be an Apollo school and so will also not be called or labeled an Apollo school.” – HISD
No Apollo for Waltrip, but help is on its way by Charlotte Aguilar charlotte@theleadernews.com Houston ISD’s high school chief told the Waltrip High community in a letter Monday what it thought it might have to battle long and hard to achieve: that the district had decided against designating Waltrip as an Apollo 20 turnaround school. But the letter did say HISD would introduce several elements of the Apollo program that offer extra help to floundering students, as well as increasing programs for collegebound students. According to Orlando Riddick, that includes extensive tutoring focusing on ninth- and 10th-graders, extending the school day by an hour, and adding more options in career and technology and “linked learning” education, dual credit courses that count toward college, and Advanced Placement classes. What won’t happen, Riddick said: The principal selection process won’t be slowed; electives and extracurriculars and the magnet program won’t be altered, administrators and teachers won’t be replaced (outside normal attrition), and teachers won’t be made to work Saturdays. Saying the school is “at a tipping point,” Riddick acknowledged many of the positive points about the school, its history and community involvement that parents and educators had made the previous week in a emotional reaction to the announcement from Supt. Terry Grier that he was adding Waltrip to the next phase of Apollo. “I see the administration, at this point, demonstrating a process responding to the community,” said HISD Board President Anna Eastman, whose trustee district includes Waltrip, on hearing the news Monday. “It’s obvious Waltrip has some pretty big needs, but it’s also obvious after last week that the
HISD to host budget meeting at Reagan High School Houston ISD will host a community meeting at 6 p.m. May 15 at Reagan to discuss the district’s budget and budgeting process. It’s one of a series of nine community meetings covering key aspects of HISD’s budgeting process, such as where the money comes from, how much is designated to each of the 276 campuses, who decides how the money is spent at each campus and who monitors the budget, among other topics. The HISD administration has indicated its budget may require a tax increase between 3-5 cents to make up for a projected revenue shortfall from the state, and an additional penny on the tax rate will be required to fund the $1.9 billion bond election passed by voters in 2011 for a massive school and technology reconstruction program. HISD’s General Manager of Budget and Financial Planning Sharon Eaves will be leading the budget presentations at the community meetings.
There was news: burglaries of motor vehicles in the Heights are up 44 percent in one year, while it’s aggravated assaults that have climbed in that same period along the Washington Avenue corridor, up 40 percent. There were eye-openers: only one officer is available for daytime traffic enforcement in the Heights. (He’s good at it, writing 200 tickets in one week along Yale Street alone.) And there was compassion: Councilmember Ellen Cohen empathized that although Mayor An- Capt. Daryn Edwards, offered some nise Parker had pointed out a de- surprises Monday night at the crime cline in crime overall in Houston town hall in the Heights. just the week before, it didn’t mean much if “your house was broken Ever wonder what into that night or somebody held you up at gunpoint during the day. those police storefronts Then it becomes very personal.” are for? Find out. That was the broad sweep of PAGE 2A Monday night’s Town Hall on crime, hosted by Cohen at the request of the HPD to get their crime prevention messages out and to hear
see Town Hall • Page 8A
Citizen’s Patrol at front line of crime by Michael Sudhalter michael@theleadernews.com It’s an ordinary Monday afternoon in Shepherd Park Plaza, and a Citizen’s Patrol organizer is driving about 10 miles per hour, waving at friendly residents and occasionally stopping to say hello. “It shows our neighborhood that somebody is here,” said the organizer, a retired law enforcement professional who wished to remain anonymous. “We just ride and make people feel a little bit safer. Everybody knows us and knows we’re here to do the right thing.” There are about 20-22 Shepherd Park Plaza residents who volunteer as Citizen’s Patrol members. The program, which is coordinated through the Houston Police Department, serves as the eyes and A Shepherd Park Plaza Citizen’s Patrol member cruises the neighborears for law enforcement. All members must go through hood looking for suspicious activity. a training session with HPD Sgt. Frank Escobedo that are conducted the second Tuesday of every month at the HPD’s North Division station, 9455 W. Montgomery Road. Those
see Patrol • Page 8A
Project selects 77018 for free guns by Michael Sudhalter michael@theleadernews.com
solutions should include an involved community.” Waltrip PTA President Elizabeth Villarreal, who is also on the principal selection committee, was relieved. “I know that we are behind where we should be, yet when Apollo was brought into the equation, I knew I had not seen any data that suggests the Apollo program is performing as it was intended when it was implemented,” she said. “Knowing we are about
A new Houston-based non-profit is taking an active approach to the rising crime problem in Oak Forest, Garden Oaks and Shepherd Park Plaza. Armed Citizen Project started in January in response to a break-in at the nearby home of 93-year-old Elbert Woods, a World War II hero. “People helped renovate it for him,” said Armed Citizen Project president Justin Dupuy. “We decided to put our money where our mouth is on the gun issue, so here we are.” Dupuy, of Katy, met ACP founder Kyle Coplen, of Houston, while both were volunteering for Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign last fall. The Woods incident sparked their interest in starting an organization that would help Houston residents to defend themselves.
see Waltrip • Page 8A
see Armed • Page 6A