Leader July 3

Inside Today: HISD saw a decline in STAAR test scores • Page 5A

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Youth organizations spar over baseball field

By Adam Zuvanich azuvanich@theleadernews.com Recent rain left puddles of standing water on the baseball field at 1025 Judiway St., where grass and weeds have grown on parts of the infield dirt and bird nests have formed on the netting that keeps foul balls from encroaching on adjacent property as well as the road.

The dugouts and outfield

fence also show signs of age and prolonged use, as do the wooden bleachers and small announcer’s box behind home plate. They all could use some renovation or repair, and a property dotted with trash and other debris late Tuesday afternoon could have used some cleaning.

Despite the field’s dilapidated condition, it remains a valuable commodity, so much so that a pair of local youth or-

ganizations have been locked in a year-long court battle over the right to call it their own. The Heights Lions Club has asserted ownership of the property and wants to sell it to a developer, while the Oaks Dads’ Club (ODC), which leased the field for more than 20 years and claims to have used it for at least 40, also claims to be its rightful owner through adverse possession.

See Field, P. 5A

Photo byAdam Zuvanich The baseball field at 1025 Judiway St. is the subject of a legal dispute between the Heights Lions Club and Oak Dads’ Club, which both claim to be rightful owners of the property.

Not So Fast

Colorful mural brightens West End Church

By Betsy Denson betsy@theleadernews.com

Your neighborhood living room in The Heights Serving coffee, tea, wine, beer, savories and sweets 7 am to 9 pm daily.

1030 Heights Blvd, Houston,TX 77008

713-434-6923

INSIDE.

Tasting success. Young local residents are running lemonade stands to learn about business.

Page 4A

Cooperative companies. Some local businesses have banded together to help each other.

Photo by Adam Zuvanich Northside resident Celia Ybarra, who lives close to Interstate 45, said she’s glad the federal government has asked the Texas Department of Transportation to halt its freeway expansion project while the Federal Highway Administration investigates environmental and civil rights concerns. Her property could be impacted by the project.

Feds again ask TxDOT to halt I-45 project

Page 1B

By Adam Zuvanich azuvanich@theleadernews.com

Patio preferences. A special section this week focuses on outdoor dining options.

Page 2B

Aiming high. There are big plans for the upcoming Railway Heights food hall.

Mike Torres said he invested $150,000 to renovate the fitness gym he owns at 4114 North Fwy., where H.E.R.O. Performance has operated for the last four years.

So he does not want to move anytime soon, and he also does not want traffic to be redirected near his business. It’s on the northbound access road for Interstate 45, in the Northside neighborhood, and the Crosstimbers Street exit feeds conveniently into his entrance.

Torres has been concerned that the Texas Department of Transportation’s plan to expand the highway near and north of downtown will alter that setup or possibly force the property owner to sell as part of eminent domain. So he’s glad the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has asked TxDOT to halt the project, which calls for the displacement of at least

See I-45, P. 6A

See Mural, P. 6A

Photo by Betsy Denson Artists work on a mural on the West End Church building at 802 Shepherd Dr. It features a cherub with a mohawk and holding a cup of coffee.

Foster Family YMCA undergoing renovations

By Betsy Denson betsy@theleadernews.com

Page 8B

THE INDEX. Church....................................................... 5A Classifieds.............................................. 6A Coupons. ................................................. 6B Food/Drink............................................. 7B Opinion. ................................................... 3A Public Information......................... 8A Puzzles...................................................... 3A

1,000 residents and businesses in communities such as Acres Homes, Independence Heights and Northside.

“We definitely want everything to stay the same if possible,” Torres said. “At least it gives us some more time to continue to build the business and have a better understanding of what direction we’re actually taking if we need to move.”

After asking TxDOT to pause its North Houston Highway Improvement Project in March, while the FHWA investigates environmental and civil rights concerns, the federal agency recently reiterated the request amid allegations that TxDOT was continuing its land-acquisition efforts.

The FWHA also said in a June 21 letter to Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo, which she shared last week on Twitter, that it is reviewing TxDOT’s compliance with the National Environmental Protection Act and its Memorandum of Understanding with the

French artist Sebastien Boileau said someone stops about every 30 minutes as he and his team work on a new mural on the side of West End Church at 802 Shepherd Dr. The first panel of the mural is a cherub — with a mohawk, holding a cup of coffee. “(The work) brightens everyone’s day,” he said. “It makes you look.”

That’s the plan, according to campus lead pastor Abe Matos.

“The mural is all about creating buzz and showing that we are a welcoming church,” Matos said.

West End Church is part of the River Pointe Church group, which also has campuses in Richmond and Missouri City. In 2015, the church purchased the building on Shepherd and gave it a $6 million renovation.

Current construction is adding a coffee shop to serve as a community hub.

All proceeds from the shop will go toward local initiatives.

“The tagline is Coffee for Good,” Matos said. “We’re barking up the same tree as 2nd Cup (in the Heights).”

Studio RED Architects, which has been West End’s partner on the project, recommended Boileau and Eyeful Art Murals for the mural.

Boileau moved from Paris, France to Houston in the late 1990s and restarted Eyeful Art here in 2000. He and his team of six artists work with architects, designers, school principals, major companies and the sporting industry to create site-specific artwork, graphics and murals for indoor and outdoor spaces.

Contributed artist’s rendering A covered outdoor pavillion with artificial turf is a new feature coming to the Harriet and Joe Foster Family YMCA, located at 1234 W. 34th St.

Post-pandemic, people crave connection. And a new twophase renovation at the Harriet and Joe Foster Family YMCA, which began June 14 and will last through September, is part of the plan to bring the community together.

“We’re excited to provide the community with an updated, state-of-the-art facility which will provide the next generation with more opportunities for gathering, connectivity and

growth,” Stephen Ives, president and CEO of YMCA of Greater Houston, said in a news release.

“It is our core mission to be purposeful and foster meaningful relationships. We understand that many faced challenges during the pandemic and through the renovation we are aiming at restoring hope and closing the gap on isolation by creating more opportunities for the community to come together.”

Facility improvements at 1234 W. 34th St. include a modernized welcome center, an intergenerational room, expanded

wellness center, a youth makerspace, renovated group exercise studios and an all-new outdoor pavilion.

A project to heat the outdoor swimming pool is complete and it is now open for summer hours.

The heated pool will also enable adults and children to take part in aquatics programming yearround.

The wellness center is closed for the time being to add more square footage as well as the additional pieces of cardiovascular See YMCA, P. 6A

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Page 2A • Saturday, July 3, 2021 • The Leader

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THE TOPICS. The Leader • Saturday, July 3, 2021 • Page 3A

Swim safely amidst waves of crime

A

longtime Houston police officer I used to chat with at a local coffee shop once told me the area served by The Leader is akin to an island surrounded by sharks.

Neighborhoods such as the Heights, Garden Oaks and Oak Forest are filled with nice houses and cars, and those often contain nice things. That has made area residents and businesses a target for criminals, and anyone who has lived or worked in the area long enough knows that is not a new trend.

But there have been some awfully troubling crime trends during the last year, since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, both locally and across the Houston area. Former Heights resident Art Acevedo warned that the city could have 500 murders this year when he left his job as Houston Police Chief in March.

Just this week, Matt Slinkard, the Houston Police Department’s Executive Assistant Chief, told reporters the city has not seen a reduction in violent crime as it comes out of the pandemic. It’s

Adam Zuvanich Editor

been a period marked by economic downturn, grief over losses of life and high tensions in public places, which has proved to be a recipe for a disastrous surge in crimes of aggression, desperation and opportunity.

Criminals seem to have become bolder, too. According to HPD, a man entered an Oak Forest home late last Friday night and stole cash, a credit card and a kitchen broom – while the woman who lives there was asleep on her couch. She woke up to the sound of her dog growling, which spooked the thief and caused him to scat, and thankfully the woman was not harmed.

The crime problem has been further compounded by snags in

the Harris County court system.

Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo told reporters Monday that there is a backlog of about 100,000 cases, with about 20,000 of those having been on hold for more than a year.

As Acevedo and others have complained about, there have been far too many instances in which repeat offenders – or those who have at least been charged with multiple crimes – are allowed to leave jail on bonds they have no problems paying.

And because the courts have such a backlog of cases, partly because of a series of natural disasters starting with Hurricane Harvey in 2017, suspected criminals can remain free for months and even more than a year before facing a trial and potential consequences. As a result, we’re seeing some of the same people arrested again and again for crimes such as burglaries, thefts and assaults.

The Harris County Commissioners Court took up the issue Tuesday, voting to spend millions of dollars on a series of public safety initiatives. The county plans to improve policing technology

to help expedite the evidencegathering and prosecution process while expanding its jury operations at NRG Stadium. The plan also calls for bringing in six associate judges that can assist the 22 criminal district courts in addition to funding visiting judges who also can help move cases through the justice system.

Help cannot come soon enough, because law-abiding local residents are on edge and worried the problem will get worse before it gets better. I had the privilege of speaking last week to the Heights Rotary Club, and some of the most pressing questions asked by Rotarians regarded the uptick in violent crime and break-ins throughout the area.

They wanted to know why suspected criminals are being released from jail so easily and quickly, which gives them the opportunity to cause more havoc in the community, and some were not sure where to place the blame. Are the jails too crowded? Are the cops overlooking minor offenses? Are the judges too lenient?

There likely is plenty of blame

Hurry before the hurricane

THE READER.

THE FRONT PORCH – Bang, bang, bang. Nail, nail, nail. As you can see, I am putting up plywood to cover my windows, and so should you, because we are about to receive a destructive and unwanted visitor. No, I’m not referring to the Astros’ bullpen or the Texas Legislature, but the next hurricane.

We all know it’s not if, but when, because by now Houstonians are whiplashed and knee-deep in ennui (French for ennui) after a parade of disasters. We have seen, in recent times, Hurricane Harvey, Winter Storm Uri, ERCOT’s warning to conserve energy because it might get hot in Texas in the summer. Can we stand much more? Of course we can because, as usual, I will tell you how to get ahead of the curve.

First, don’t panic. Leave that till later. Check your provisions, then go to Home Depot and HE-B before your procrastinating neighbors get there. (Why is it that always before a storm we see TV shots of long lines of people buying plywood? What did they do with last year’s plywood?) Do you have enough food that is nonperishable? Those doughnuts and ham only have a shelf-life of maybe five months. You need a manually operated can opener, and your Hamilton Beach SureCut Stainless Steel Can Opener ($17.96) or your Black+Decker Space Maker MultiPurpose Can Opener ($115.99) won’t work without electric power. (Same for your electric pencil sharpener. Sharpen all your pencils.) To stock up on food that will last for months, I suggest you join the Army. It has millions of MREs (Meals Ready to Eat). Most of them taste like cardboard, but will keep you marching. You need lots of Sterno, those little cans you light for a flame big enough to slightly warm half a can of Campbell’s Moose Gruel. If you run out of Sterno, use those copies of Scientific American you never read because there weren’t enough pictures. Of course, you need a match to light your fire and you haven’t had a match in the house since you gave up cigars. (For that reason and that reason only, I continue to smoke Cuban Grande Mulch.) To make room for all your emergency food supplies, throw out any food with packages marked “Best used before Y2K.” In other areas, at the first sign of a low pressure area just off the West Coast of Africa that has a 3 percent chance of developing into a 4 percent chance of becoming a breeze, raise your garage door.

Remember, that big, heavy door requires power to raise, not that you would be going anywhere. Your doorbell won’t work unless it’s on batteries, but be suspicious of anyone wading up to your door in a hurricane selling magazines or can

Dear Editor: Several years ago the politicians proposed a drain fee whereby the funds would be specifically earmarked for drainage repair, water etc. We were fooled to believe it would only be a few dollars every quarter and the voters approved it.

Well it turned out to be more than a few dollars and I noticed it was not mentioned in the rate increase.

What has happened to that money?

I have heard it somehow goes to the general fund.

Might make an interesting article.

The Hon. Georgia Akers (Retired) Attorney Board Certified in Estate Taxation and Probate

Lynn Ashby Columnist

openers. Drugs. If you do drugs, increase your stock, and don’t bother calling your doctor. They no longer make house calls. As for your mail, forget that “Neither snow nor rain nor biting dogs etc.” (Last year Houston once again led the nation is postal carriers bitten by dogs.)

My postal deliverer sits out a heavy dew.

Insurance is important, but don’t try to sign up for flood insurance when Hurricane Harvey II is headed up the Houston Ship Channel.

There is a waiting period for your flood insurance to kick into effect.

I think it’s two years. Check your house and car insurance policies.

If they are written in Bengali, get a translator. Actually, even if your policy is written in English, still get a translator. Look for small print on your policy that reads “exceptions to coverage.” My policy covers everything except “damages.”

Learn the difference in “insure” and “ensure.”

Water: You need 1 gallon of water per person per day for at least seven days, so fill up your bathtub.

This makes bathing impossible, so your house may become a bit smelly. Stock up on deodorant. Tie down your outdoor furniture, bird feeder and pets. Bring in that giant umbrella on your patio or watch it sail to Conroe. Do you have D batteries for your flashlight? Sure you do, but what about the AAZ batteries for your heart pacemaker and the AAX type for that little portable radio which you can’t find? You need a radio to learn when your roof will blow across the street.

Now, some people don’t need batteries because they have a generator. These are the same people who have a bomb shelter. Generators can be expensive, costing upwards of $10,000 plus $25 a month maintenance. To install a generator you will need a plumber and an electrician. I suggest that rather spend all that money on a generator, when the power fails, just look around your neighborhood to see which house still has the lights on and thus has a generator. Run an extension cord over there. Or just hook your fuse box to a gerbil on a treadmill.

As you are waiting for the big storm, you may wonder what it’s called and why. Hurricane season officially begins on June 1 and ends on November 30 each year.

The lists of hurricane names for

each season are chosen by the World Meteorological Organization, and are re-run every six years since 1953. For the 2021 hurricane season, the list of names from 2015 is being used again. The 2020 Atlantic hurricane season was worst on record -- we ran through the entire alphabet. (This happened once before, in 2005.) In the past, after going through the entire alphabet, the newest storms were named after the Greek alphabet (Alpha, Beta, Gamma, etc.). Not anymore.

Starting in 2021, we’ll just use new alphabetical names. However, the names of especially destructive hurricanes are usually retired and not used again. So we won’t see another Katrina, Ike or Harvey anytime soon. Incidentally, there is no Stormy Daniels.

Finally, to totally avoid the inconvenience of the impending tragedy, just join Ted Cruz in Cancun.

Hurricane Lynn is at ashby2@comcast.net

to go around, including the byproducts of the pandemic. At the same time, the cops and the courts and the correctional facilities are charged with looking out for the innocent citizens, and I’d like to believe that most of them are doing their jobs as best they can.

Keeping ourselves and our families safe also requires some responsibility on our parts. HPD said the Oak Forest woman who was victimized last week, for example, had left the door to her home unlocked.

So please be mindful of your surroundings and look out for yourselves, your property and your friends, neighbors and co-workers.

There is strength in numbers, and it’s always wise to keep lights on, doors locked and valuable possessions out of plain sight.

Because sharks are swirling, just like they always have, even if you cannot see them. And they might be hungrier than ever, so don’t give them any extra incentive to attack.

Email azuvanich@theleadernews.com

Email us your letters: news@theleadernews.com

Query RE Water rate increase

There is no real profitability left in local newspapers like The Leader

Dear Editor: Regarding “Thank you for supporting local news” (June 26), Jonathan McElvy’s declaration, “There is no real profitability left in local newspapers like The Leader,” prompts three questions. The internet explosion slammed into newspapers, all the

big ones immediately launching free online platforms in a dot-com frenzy: Jump in now, we’ll figure out later how to profit. But people love free stuff, and free online newspapers instantly became an entitlement.

Desperate pop-up ads soon appeared, readers quickly determining how to block them. Online paid subscriptions ensued, but a number of the majors continue their print editions, even as advertising and subscription revenues steadily and substantially dwindle.

Question: How are they staying solvent? America’s mainstream-media big papers... New York, Los Angeles, Boston etc and, yes, Houston... are solidly left-wing in their editorial and “news” coverage. Question: Are they by any chance receiving silent free funding from any particular progressive billionaire organizations, keeping them afloat to push the US Democratic Party agenda? (Anyone? Anyone? Beuller?) Finally: If these press outlets were openly acknowledged, lucratively paid public relations agencies for the Democrats, exactly WHAT, pray tell, would they do differently?

(Anyone? Anyone? Beuller?) (Frye?)

J. Reynolds

the leader Puzzlers.

Answers found in this week’s Classified section

SUDOKU

aCrOss 1. Exclamation that denotes disgust 4. Climbed over 10. Has 50 states 11. Able to move 12. Prime Minister (abbr.)

14. Cotangent (abbr.)

15. Particle 16. Fastened 18. Wonders 22. Surpassing all others 23. Provides basement access 24. Daily 26. North Dakota 27. Related to gulls 28. Provoke 30. Lake __, one of the Great 31. Police department 33. Throat illness 35. South Dakota 36. Contains iron (Brit.)

38. Sees what the future holds 39. The extended location of something

40. Cobalt 41. Dwells 47. Reprimand 49. Agree to a demand 50. Talented in or devoted to music 51. Gospels 52. European defense organization (abbr.)

53. Edge of a cloth 54. Equally 55. Experience again 57. Female sheep 58. Made vanish 59. Unit of force (abbr.)

dOwn 1. ___ up 2. Rear of (nautical) 3. Purses 4. Samarium 5. A way to take forcibly 6. On or into 7. Metric capacity unit (Brit.)

8. Assign to a higher position 9. Delaware 12. Post-traumatic stress disorder

13. Island 17. Central processing unit 19. Pitchers 20. Long-winged member of the gull family 21. Auld lang __, good old days 25. Term of affection 29. They __ 31. Polynesian wrapped skirt 32. Far down areas in the sea 34. Delivered a sermon 36. Any physical damage 37. A Seattle ballplayer 40. Raccoonlike animals 42. Odd 43. Delivery boys 44. Billy __ Williams 45. Icelandic poems 46. A Scottish tax 48. Central Florida city 55. Rhenium 56. -__, denotes past

WORD SCRAMBLE

Page 4A • Saturday, July 3, 2021 • The Leader

Young entrepreneurial spirits ignited by lemonade stands

By Zarah Parker zarah@theleadernews.com

For Travis Elementary students Ruth and Clark Moshenberg, their entrepreneurial spirit is tied to their love for helping the environment.

When they found out about Lemonade Day—Houston, a program that teaches youth how to become business leaders through operating lemonade stands and spotlights them on “Lemonade Day” on July 17, they were excited to participate. Having already committed to plastic-free July with their family, they had to figure out a way to do both.

“The plan is we are going to make a lemonade stand that does not have any single-use plastic,” said Ruth, age 5.

Clark, who is 6, said he and his sister won’t have a traditional lemonade stand. Instead of selling juice, they will make and sell lemon popsicles and lemon bars.

“The stick in the popsicle is compostable,” Clark said.

Even when purchasing supplies, the kids plan to be mindful of what products they buy.

For example, Clark said they won’t buy lemons that are bagged together in plastic.

Ruth and Clark have a goal to make $20 on Lemonade Day. They hope to be able to donate half to Trees for Houston and split the other half between themselves. Their stand will also be cautious because of the pandemic.

Since 2007, Lemonade Day has served more than 1 million children in more than 100 cities throughout the United States, Canada, Bermuda and Puerto Rico.

“The mission of Lemonade Day is to help today’s youth

become the business leaders, social advocates, community volunteers and forwardthinking citizens of tomorrow ... one lemonade stand at a time,” said Bailey Kinney, executive director for Lemonade Day—Houston. “The program is proven to ignite an entrepreneurial spark inside young children, which continues with them the rest of their lives, therefore changing the trajectory of our country.”

While July 17 spotlights these young entrepreneurs, Lemonade Day—Houston as a program can be joined any time of the year through www. lemonadeday.org.

Registered children receive free materials that teach them the lessons of Lemonade Day, like creating budgets, setting profit-making goals, serving customers, repaying investors and giving back to the community.

“Along the way, they acquire skills in goal-setting, problem-solving and gain the self-esteem critical for future success,” Kinney said. “They keep all the money they make and are encouraged to spend some, save some and share some. Supplies such as lemons, cups and stand materials are provided through an investor, donations or created by the child.”

Another local kid has broken into business through running a lemonade stand with his friends. Although he is currently not participating in Lemonade Day, Ashton Chladek, 9, has learned a lot about entrepreneurism, specifically how to make a profit.

“Just from an academic standpoint it’s been nice because the boys have had to go buy their supplies, decide

Photos contributed by Bailey Kinney Children operate their own lemonade stands during a prior Lemonade Day celebration in Houston. This year’s event is July 17.

budget, figure out prices,” said Melissa Chladek, Ashton’s mom. “It was cool to see them understand they have to spend money to make money and figure out the economics behind that.”

Having ran a handful of stands, and making $108 at one, Ashton and his friends navigated running their own business by testing different lemonades to see which would sell more, dropping prices and using the app Venmo for customers who don’t carry cash.

“I also learned that using social media helped increase the number we sold,” Ashton said.

While the summer heat could keep Ashton from having a lemonade stand all summer, he might host a few more.

“The best part is making my own money,” Ashton said.

Contributed by Melissa Chladek Ashton Chladek, holding the sign, runs a lemonade stand with friends Caleb Clark, background left, and Lane Murphy.

Scuba-themed license plates about to hit road

By Zarah Parker zarah@theleadernews.com

Texas has a plethora of scuba diving spots that are largely unknown by nondivers.

There’s the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary that is 100 nautical miles off Galveston Island, which is home to the northernmost coral reefs in the United States; Hill Country springs; rivers like the San Marcos and Comal; and even an old missile silo.

“People don’t think there’s good places to dive in Texas,” Heights resident Roger Veteto said. “So we want to make people aware of the diving opportunities.”

Veteto is the co-founder of City of Houston Underwater Mariners (CHUM)Houston’s SCUBA Club — a nonprofit scuba diving club that sponsored the development of a specialty scuba diver license plate so that it could create awareness and appreciation for the diving community.

The plate will feature the image of a scuba diver, along with words “scuba diver” below the license plate number, making it the only plate in the world featuring those words, according to Veteto.

“I’ve been diving 20 years and people have been talking about having a scuba diving plate before I even

Photo by MyPlates.com Pictured is a template of the scuba diver plate that was sponsored

by CHUM—Houston’s SCUBA Club, which are expected be out on the road by mid-July.

started,” Veteto said.

When the pandemic hit, Veteto said the timing worked out where the scuba club had the means to spearhead the project.

The Texas Department

of Motor Vehicles (TxDMV) has three ways to get a specialty plate approved by the state. Anyone eligible can either go through My Plates, a TxDMV contracted business, through the TxDMV

itself or through the state legislature.

The scuba club submitted its request for a specialty plate with My Plates, which required a deposit of $6,000 once approved and at least 200 commitments to buy the plate.

“After the board gives its contingent approval of a vendor plate, My Plates offers the plate online for pre-paid orders,” said Adam Shaivitz, the public information officer for the TxDMV. “If 200 pre-paid orders are achieved within six months then the plate orders move into production, and the prepaid orders are fulfilled.”

The entire process has taken 13 months, but Veteto

said the plate is expected to be on bumpers by mid-July.

Find the plate at MyPlates. com under the sport and outdoors section. A small portion of the proceeds of the plate will go toward the scuba club.

“Diving has really changed my life. It has taken me to parts of the world I would have never thought I’d see.”

Veteto said. “I’ve met the best people in the world on dive boats. It’s about sharing the adventure.”

Part of that adventure is finding unexpected items in the water. Veteto said he found a mastodon tooth in the Cooper River in South Carolina.

The Leader • Saturday, July 3, 2021 • Page 5A

HISD’s lower test scores follow statewide trend

By Adam Zuvanich azuvanich@theleadernews.com

Houston ISD students’ performance on the STAAR test this spring declined at all grade levels in both math and reading compared to 2019, the last time the standardized test was administered.

The drop was especially stark in math, with at least 41 percent of HISD students failing to meet state standards in each of the grade levels tested - 3-8 - while more than half of the district’s students in fourth, seventh and eighth grades failed to meet the math standards.

The performance by HISD, which includes more than 20 schools in the Heights, Garden Oaks and Oak Forest areas, followed a statewide trend. STAAR results were released Monday by the Texas Education Agency, and Texas Eduation Commissioner Mike Morath told reporters that remote learning associated with the COVID-19 pandemic was a significant factor.

Many school districts across the state, including HISD, kept their campuses closed and relied exclusively on virtual learning at the end of the 2019-20 school year as well as the beginning of the 2020-21 school year.

“HISD is aware and concerned about the learning loss that has resulted statewide from educational challenges caused by the pandemic,” the district said in a statemen. “The recent STAAR test results provide us an opportunity to address student academic needs and utilize resources to regain learning. HISD is adding 15 additional days of instruction and returning to 100 percent in-person instruction in the fall.

We expect this will produce better student out-

Photo from Facebook The Air National Guard Band of the Southwest, pictured during a performance in July 2019, was scheduled to perform at Waltrip High School on Thursday night.

Air National Guard Band performing at Waltrip

comes. Additionally, we are formulating plans that will mitigate students’ lost time and improve educational performance.”

The number of HISD students who failed to meet state math standards fell by at least 19 percentage points in each of the six grade levels. In 2019, no more than 31 percent of HISD students in any grade level failed to meet the standard.

The decline was not as significant in reading, with more than half of HISD students in each grade level meeting the state standard. Still, the percentage of HISD students who met the standard fell by at least 5 percentage points in every grade level. In 2019, roughly 70 percent of HISD students met the reading standard in five of the six grade levels.

For more detailed STAAR results, visit texasassessment.gov.

By Adam Zuvanich azuvanich@theleadernews.com

Waltrip High School is hosting a patriotic musical performance ahead of the Fourth of July holiday.

The Air National Guard Band of the Southwest was scheduled for perform a free concert during an event at 7 p.m. Thursday in the Waltrip auditorium, located at 1900 W. 34th St. The traveling, military-affiliated band will follow an opening performance by the Waltrip Big Horns.

Field from P. 1A “It’s super sad,” Heights Lions Club president David Hite said, “that one is trying to defraud the other.”

The dispute started in June 2020, when Hite wrote a letter to ODC saying its annual lease would not be renewed at the end of the year and the youth sports organization needed to vacate the property and remove its possessions before the start of 2021. The Heights Lions Club had received offers to buy the 2.7-acre tract of land, Hite said, and discovered it was technically owned by an entity called Oak Forest Lions Club Youth Stadium Inc., which was affiliated with the former Oak Forest Lions Club, which merged with the Heights organization in 2014.

But the corporation that owned the field had dissolved and lost its charter with the state of Texas in the 1980s, Hite said. So in an attempt to clear up the title of the property so it could be sold, Hite said the Heights Lions Club hired an attorney and filed a lawsuit against Oak Forest Lions Club Youth Stadium Inc. in state district court in January 2020.

That legal proceeding and subsequent letter from Hite prompted ODC to intervene in the lawsuit last July, according to Sean Jez, a former ODC board president who serves as the organization’s attorney. Jez claims the Heights Lions Club leased the field to ODC under false pretenses and that ODC should assume ownership of the property as a nonprofit that has historically used and maintained the field and has an intention to keep it operating as an amenity for local youth.

“The Heights Lions Club is trying to say that they own that property, but they don’t,” Jez said. “…

When Oaks Dads’ Club was quote unquote leasing the property, we were under the impression it was

According to its website, the Air National Guard Band of the Southwest, also known as the 531st Air Force Band, makes tours in Texas as well as Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Louisiana, New Mexico and Oklahoma. It is comprised of musicians who serve parttime in the Air National Guard while maintaining full-time civilian careers.

They rehearse and perform one weekend per month while also performing an annual concert tour. “(The band) has over a 40-

year history of sustaining the traditions and heritage that has become the hallmark of military bands,” reads a description online at music. af.mil. “This 40-member unit maintains a high degree of musical performance flexibility in order to accommodate a wide variety of tasks in support of official military functions and community relations programs.”

For more information on the event at Waltrip, visit waltripramband.org.

owned by Oak Forest Lions Club, when it in fact was owned by some other entity that was dissolved by the state of Texas.”

ODC sought a temporary injunction last December to keep it from being evicted until the ownership question could be settled by the court, and also filed motions for default and summary judgments in its favor. All three motions have been denied by Judge Latosha Lewis Payne, according to Harris County court records.

Court records also show that Payne is in the process of appointing an ad-litem attorney to represent the interests of Oak Forest Lions Club Youth Stadium Inc., since a representative of the corporation has not been identified. Hite and Jez both said the case is at a standstill until the ad-litem attorney is appointed and fulfills his or her role.

Fair or foul?

Hite, who described the denial of the injunction as “huge” for the case of the Heights Lions Club, said it ended up evicting ODC at the end of 2020 and has since leased the property to the Houston Sports and Social Club, which operates recreational leagues for adults, at a rental rate of $4,000 per month.

ODC had been paying the Heights Lions Club $4,000 per year to lease the facility, according to court records, and Jez said ODC had been subleasing the field to the Houston Sports and Social Club.

Hite said the subleasing arrangement violated the terms of the most recent lease between the Heights Lions Club and ODC, which he said was drafted by Jez in 2019. From 1996 until 2019, Hite said ODC paid annual rent of $2,500.

“You cannot sublease the property, which they did, and they were making a bunch of money on it,” Hite said.

Jez has argued that since the

Photo by Adam Zuvanich The Oaks Dads’ Club, a longtime user of the baseball field at 1025 Judiway St., was evicted at the end of last year by the Heights Lions Club. The two organizations had a lease agreement but are now engaged in a court battle over field ownership.

field was owned by a nonprofit for the benefit of the community, Texas law requires ownership to be transferred to another nonprofit and the property’s use to remain the same. He said the Heights Lions Club’s stated intention to sell the property to a developer would go against the spirit of that precedent if it were determined to be the rightful owner.

The field has dimensions suited for the Pony League level, which is for players of middle school age.

“It’s a big loss to not have that field,” Jez said. “The older boys, they need a big field to practice on and to play on. They can’t just go anywhere for a field that size.”

According to Hite, though, there is no longer a public need for the field in a community that has grown exponentially during the last several decades. He said the Heights Lions Club discovered there are 30

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fields of comparable size within a 3-mile radius of the field on Judiway. This spring, Jez said ODC’s Pony League teams used the organization’s sports complex near the northeast corner of Rena Street and Bingle Road.

Hite also said the sale of the Judiway property, which has a market value of nearly $2.4 million, according to the Harris County Appraisal District, would be a boon to the Heights Lions Club’s mission. Hite said the organization’s main charitable initiative is to fund eye doctor visits and eyeglass purchases for Heights-area kids who need them, and the Lions Club also sponsors local children with disabilities so they can attend Texas Lions Camp in the summertime.

Hite said the Lions Club has a $3.1 million offer for the property from a developer. He also said the organization has spent more than

$100,000 on the legal dispute with ODC. “If we’re going to get this sale done, we can provide over 1,000 pair of glasses per year for students in the Heights,” Hite said.

First, though, Payne must agree with the Heights Lions Club’s assertion that it is the legal owner of the field. And even though she has denied the motions filed so far by ODC, Jez said, “There’s really been nothing decided on the merits as far as who is the rightful owner of the property or who will wind up with the property at this point.”

Hite said he thinks the dispute is more about money than about serving youth in the Heights, Garden Oaks and Oak Forest areas.

“What it boils down to is it’s a $3 million piece of property,” Hite said. “They’re just trying to steal it.”

Follow Adam Zuvanich on Twitter @AZuvanich

GET Resolving conflict OVER IT!

t goes without saying, but I’ll say it anyway: “we have all made mistakes.” As Alexander Pope so aptly put it: “To err is human, to forgive, divine.” We should remember this the next time we make a mistake. Most certainly, we must learn from our mistakes, and hopefully not continue to repeat them, but we should also forgive ourselves. While it can be hard enough to forgive others for their mistakes, it can sometimes feel almost impossible to forgive ourselves.

We sometimes cannot bring ourselves to forgive something we’ve done, and we may punish and harangue ourselves for years, or even decades, over youthful indiscretions. In addition, some of us may not be able to forget the sins of our past. And although that may prevent us from repeating them, we must be charitable and forgive ourselves, just as we should forgive others. So, we should make a real effort in the coming days and weeks to forgive the offenses of others as well as our own. Sometimes, it helps to just forget about them; that is, to try to put them out of our mind and stop repeatedly mulling over them. One of the reasons we use the phrase “forgive and forget” is because sometimes that is the only way to forgive, i.e., by forgetting. But far better, and more divine, is to be able to forgive even while remembering the offense. So, we should let go of those unforgiving, vindictive, shameful feelings about the past, and get over it! Corrie ten Boom, who survived incarceration in a Nazi prison camp said, “Forgiveness is to set a prisoner free, and to realize that the prisoner was you.”

By Pastor Will Cover

Arise Baptist Church 803 Curtin St. Houston TX 77018 713-659-9697 • www.arisebaptistchurch.org

I

n life you will inevitably have conflict. Several years ago, I received a letter in the mail stating that there was a warrant out for my arrest. I had been given a ticket for something that I truly thought was a misunderstanding by the police officer and I planned to fight the ticket in court. I waited and waited to receive my court date in the mail and was never notified of the court date until I received Judge not, and you will sometime not be judged; later condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, a letter stating that I had missed my and you will be forgiven... court date and that there was a warrant R.S.V. Luke 6:37 out for me. I immediately went down to the court house to try and resolve this issue. To make a long story short they had mailed the court summons to the wrong address and so I had never received it. In fact, it was sitting in a file folder at the court house with the wrong address and the return to sender label still on the envelope. When I asked about getting a new court date I was told that the case was already closed and to reopen the case I would have to post bail and hire an attorney to petition the judge to reopen the case. Rather than go through all of

that, I decided to just plead guilty (to something I didn’t believe I was guilty of) and pay the $80 ticket and take the points on my license. Needless to say, I am still frustrated about this situation to this day.

Conflict happens, even when you think you are doing the right thing. In Acts 11, Peter is dealing with conflict between other believers who didn’t like the fact that he had broken the Jewish dietary laws about eating unclean animals and eating with Gentiles.

Peter told the story of how God had appeared to him in a vision and given him direction to go and minister to Cornelius, a Roman centurion.

Peter obeyed the Lord but was still unsure of what he was doing until he remembered the words of Jesus Christ.

Peter was confident that he was doing right because of the Word of God. He encouraged those who disagreed with him by sharing the same truth with them. When they understood God’s Word, they too rejoiced in the work of God. If you are facing conflict, look to find resolution by applying God’s truth to the situation. Take the focus off of yourself and getting your way and make sure that you are following Christ.

When Jesus is the focus, conflict can and will be resolved.

Page 6A • Saturday, July 3, 2021 • The Leader

Mural from P. 1A

I-45 from P. 1A

Boileau said they just finished an indoor and outdoor art project at Velvet Taco in Rice Village.

For the current mural on Shepherd, Boileau said the church did not dictate the artwork.

“They wanted something positive,” he said.

Matos echoes River Pointe Church founder Patrick Kelley when he says the church is unapologetic about its goal to appeal to people who don’t like church.

“We don’t take ourselves too seriously,” he said.

“We’re very others focused.”

When Boileau got a history lesson about the church and learned the kind of people West End hoped to reach, he came up with the idea of cherubs.

“It is a playful approach to the classic cherub,” he said. “It’s eye-catching and it sends a message.”

The coffee-drinking cherub is just the first to be finished. Now they are at work on the second. All the cherubs will be different. Boileau said he wants to leave a lot of the interpretation of the figures up to the viewer.

“You see what you want to see,” he said.

The recent rain has thrown a wrench in the timeline, but Boileau said they are on track to finish in September, which is also when the coffee shop is scheduled to open.

“We never would have come up with this mural on our own,” Matos said. “But it fits our vision, our values and our mission.”

For more on West End Church and the new coffee shop, visit https://www.rpc.me/westendchurch/.

FHWA regarding the project, which is expected to cost more than $7 billion.

“We share the concerns raised by your recent letter suggesting that TxDOT is not engaging in the pause and may be proceeding with other aspects of the I-45 Project, including right-of-way acquisitions needed to move the project forward, before the conclusion of our Title VI investigation,” FHWA Division Administrator Achille Alonzi wrote to Hidalgo.

In a June 14 letter to TxDOT Executive Director Marc Williams, which Hidalgo received a copy of and also shared on Twitter, Alonzi wrote that the requested pause applies to “right-of-way acquisition, including solicitations, negotiations and eminent domain, and final design activities. FHWA will similarly pause any of its activities and approvals.”

“There are numerous environmental and civil rights issues involved and FHWA believes that no further actions be taken on this project that might impact our Title VI investigation and any proposed remedies should the agency find that a violation has occurred,” Alonzi added.

The FHWA directive drew praise from Hidalgo, Harris County Precinct 1 Commissioner Rodney Ellis, who represents residents of the impacted area, and Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee.

In March, Menefee filed a lawsuit against TxDOT in federal district court, on behalf of the county, asking the court to require TxDOT to give greater consideration to concerns raised by the county and its citizens.

“Our region needs investment in transportation that provides equitable access,

YMCA from P. 1A and strength equipment. A new, brightly colored open concept entryway to the wellness center is also part of the design.

The technology-equipped “makerspace” for youth is described as an “area specified to provide youth the opportunity to design, create, explore, learn, collaborate, discover and invent.”

Content in the youth makerspace will rotate seasonally with new activity options while all age groups will have a place in the intergenerational room.

The outdoor turf pavilion will be new for the facility. An open, adaptable, multi-purpose court is intended for outdoor group exercise, basketball, pickleball and other sports.

Lesley Goodman has been a member of the Foster YMCA for years and said she is going to some fitness classes there, held temporarily in the gym.

“In the meantime, everybody’s membership has been converted to a citywide membership so that they have options,” she said. “I think they are doing a great job to accommodate all the members.”

Photo by Adam Zuvanich H.E.R.O. Performance, which operates an exercise gym at 4114 North Fwy., figures to be impacted by the I-45 expansion project proposed by the Texas Department of Transportation.

safe multimodal transportation choices, and creates opportunities for everyone. Unfortunately, the proposed I-45 expansion project did not fit our community’s needs,” Ellis said in a statement released last week. “The project would have negatively impacted lowincome and minority neighborhoods by destroying hundreds of homes, businesses and displacing entire communities by forcing thousands of people to relocate. It also would have set back our critical efforts on flood mitigation by destroying much-needed green space.

Even more concerning, TxDOT was unwilling to work with Harris County to address the concerns raised by our residents throughout this process.”

Among other changes to the existing freeway, which was built more than 50 years ago,

TxDOT’s plan calls for expanded express-lane capacity on I-45 between downtown and Beltway 8 along with re-routing the freeway near downtown, including making it parallel with I-10 on the north side.

TxDOT has said the purpose of the project is to improve traffic flow, hurricane evacuation routes and stormwater drainage, along with accommodating high-occupancy, electric and self-driving vehicles.

“It’s unfortunate there is an expanded delay on this project, but TxDOT remains fully committed working with FHWA and local officials on an appropriate path forward,” TxDOT spokesperson Bob Kaufman said in a statement. “We know that many in the community are anxious to see this project advance. This FHWA action indefinitely suspends key steps

for this project.”

Longtime Northside resident Celia Ybarra said she and her husband are glad the project is on hold. They own a home on Oddo Street, just a couple hundred yards east of the I-45 access road, and are likely to be impacted by the project if it proceeds as planned.

Ybarra said their home, which was passed down from her husband’s parents, could become a corner lot next to the highway or be bought and razed as part of eminent domain. She also said displacement would be a devastating blow to working families trying to recover from the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It’s going to throw more traffic here. It’s going to put us in more of a flood (zone),” Ybarra said. “I don’t see where it’s going to benefit us at all.”

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Notice

The Forum at Memorial Woods has taken all appropriate steps to notify residents, families and staff of the closure and, guided by state and federal guidelines, is working closely with residents and family members to ensure the transition of each resident to an appropriate alternative care location between June 17 - July 17, 2021. The safety and security of residents is our foremost priority.

The skilled nursing unit will remain open until all residents are transferred, and it is no longer accepting new residents.

Residents may obtain copies of their records from The Forum at Memorial Woods by contacting Jane Atobajeun at 777 North Post Oak or 713-956-0870.

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The Leader • Saturday, July 3, 2021 • Page 8A

City launches new 311 system

By Landan Kuhlmann landan@theleadernews.com

The City of Houston has launched a new version of 311, its resident service system, which officials say is an effort to improve communication between the city and its citizens.

Launched last Saturday,

June 26, a news release from the city’s Administration & Regulatory Affairs department said the new Customer Request and Information System (CRIS) – coined 311 CRIS – will “fundamentally improve” the city’s interaction with and response to resident concerns.

The city said the new sys-

tem includes a customer selfservice portal with a virtual agent and a way for city employees to reclassify a case instead of closing it, as well as a standardized service request number for all website, app or call center requests and a reduction in duplicate service requests based on location.

Houston’s 311 call center will remain operational, the city said, but the 311 website and SeeClickFix app are no longer available. The city said a new 311 app is available for download in iTunes and Google Play stores.

To ask questions about the new system, residents can email 311@houstontx.gov.

Man killed in Inwood Resident hospitalized after apartment shooting Heights apartment fire

By Landan Kuhlmann landan@theleadernews.com

Houston police say they are looking into a shooting incident that left a man dead inside a Greater Inwood apartment complex last week.

The victim has been identified as 46-year-old Samuel Camero by the Harris County medical examiner.

The Houston Police Department said officers were conducting a follow-up investigation regarding a previous incident at the Oak Wood

Gardens Apartments at 5625 Antoine Dr. around 10 a.m.

June 25, when they found the back-porch sliding door broken and smelled a strong odor coming from inside one of the apartments. According to police, they found Camero dead inside the apartment with gunshot wounds to his chest.

Anyone with information about the shooting is encouraged to contact the HPD Homicide Division at 713-3083600 or Crime Stoppers at 713-222-8477.

By Landan Kuhlmann landan@theleadernews.com

Houston arson investigators are attempting to determine the cause of a fire that damaged a Heights-area apartment and hospitalized one person earlier this week.

The victim was taken to an area hospital, according to the Houston Fire Department.

HFD said crews responded to an apartment in the 400

block of Heights Boulevard just after 8 a.m. Monday to find smoke and flames coming from a one-story, garagestyle apartment. The victim was found after extinguishing the fire, according to HFD. HFD said in a news release that it had not determined the cause of the fire, which resulted in an estimated $6,000 worth of damage, according to HFD. Follow us on social media @ FromTheLeader

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Burglary 10 PM 500 BLOCK E 33RD Theft 6 PM 100 BLOCK 31ST Burglary 4 PM 300 BLOCK E 33RD Theft 7 PM 600 BLOCK YALE

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JUNE 27

Theft 12 AM 1000 BLOCK KERN Burglary 3 PM 900 BLOCK E 32ND Robbery 7 AM 7000 BLOCK N SHEPHERD Other 2 PM 4800 BLOCK YALE Vandalism 6 AM 100 BLOCK E CROSSTIMBERS Theft 8 AM 3900 BLOCK GIBSON Theft 9 AM 900 BLOCK STUDEMONT Theft 2 PM 500 BLOCK REID Burglary 1 AM 700 BLOCK REINERMAN Theft 12 PM 1200 BLOCK BIRDSALL Assault 6 AM 4900 BLOCK AIRLINE Arrest 1 AM 200 BLOCK E 45TH Theft 12 AM 1100 BLOCK THOMPSON Reports are provided by SpotCrime.com based on data from the Houston Police Department.

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The Leader • Saturday, July 3, 2021 • Page 1B

Local businesses lifting each other up

By Betsy Denson betsy@theleadernews.com

Carissa Barcus, co-founder of Move Yoga, said the studio had one of its best months ever at the start of 2020.

Then COVID-19 happened.

“We shut it down from our first (yoga) retreat in Big Bend and started live streaming,” she said.

When the studio was finally able to reopen, the traffic was not that of pre-pandemic times. So Barcus started brainstorming.

First, she invited Morgan Shields with RISE Fitness to share space with them at 1355 Judiway St. and lease month-to-month.

“I had been to one of her classes at the (YMCA) and also taken a class at her house,” Barcus said. “She is so great.”

Shields, who was looking to move RISE Fitness out of her house and into a rental, was on board with the space share.

“My business simply could not exist without the gift of a sublet, or the ability to have ‘roomies’ like the amazing Carissa Barcus and Mynette Randall,” Shields said. “We need each other in a post-pandemic economy.”

But Barcus and Randall weren’t done.

When they looked at space to rent at the Stomping Grounds development on West 34th Street, they met Revive’s Monica Danna. And even though the rental didn’t work out, the relationship did. Danna took classes at the studio and trained to be a teacher with Move.

“We always talked about them doing yoga here,” Danna said. “We had a whole year of calendar events that had to be canceled because of COVID.” Stomping Grounds had a big yard. And Barcus and Randall were looking for an outdoor space to offer classes in a socially distant setting. So now, every Tuesday night they offer a free flow class for students and a free yoga class for kids aged 5-10.

These classes have helped raise the visibility of Move Yoga and put eyes on the current tenants at Stomping Grounds, including Fat Cat Creamery, Her & Reese, Threadfare, Becca Cakes and Flowe Hair Salon.

“It is really great exposure for those stores that people might not know are there,” Danna said.

Another partnership for the yoga studio has been with William Price Distilling Company, 970 Wakefield Dr., where they also offer a flow class every Thursday evening, giving 10 percent of the class proceeds to the foun-

Contributed photo MOVE Yoga co-founder Mynette Randall, in background, leads a yoga class with children at the Stomping Grounds development on West 34th Street.

dation that William Price has set up to help area businesses.

“Mynette bought hand sanitizer from them,” Barcus said. “Then we asked them if we could do yoga.”

William Price president Bryan Clary said they have raised more than $25,000 in large part from their hand sanitizer project.

“Last year we also donated $5 for every bottle of our first rye release to the foundation,” Clary said.

They have donated the money to local bars, including Big Star Bar on West 19th Street and Johnny’s Gold Brick on Yale Street.

“We are continuing to look for other op-

tions on how to raise money and donate it to other bars and restaurants to help them through this tough time,” Clary said.

Another local business that donated money to help others in need was Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Premier Properties owned by brothers Stacy and Tracy Mathews.

Stacy and Tracy made contributions totaling $5,000 to Kids’ Meals, the American Legion and to Houston residents Jorge and Cecille Mackee, who were displaced when their condo complex burned during the recent freeze.

“While home for many may mean the roof and walls around them, we also view our communities as our home,” Stacy Mathews

Don’t forget your fur friends For The Leader When considering how you want to protect your loved ones, it’s important not to forget your non-human family members as well.

Texas law allows for people to leave a plan to care for their pets through pet trusts and other estate planning tools. Through a Will or revocable living trust, you can establish provisions for a pet trust to provide for your fur babies until they pass away.

You can also establish a pet trust while you are living or include provisions for the care of your pets in a durable power of attorney if you become incapacitated and can no longer care for them yourself.

Below are a few important considerations when implementing these types of arrangements: 1. Animal’s life expectancy. You must ensure that you leave enough resources to provide support for the remainder of the animal’s life expectancy. Although cats and dogs have a shorter life span than most humans,

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other pets, like cockatoos or macaws can live more than 100 years.

2. Designate a human enforcer. Because animals are unable to enforce the terms of the trust, it’s important to name someone as a Trust “Enforcer,” who has the responsibility to monitor the animal’s care and the proper use of funds.

3. Provide care details.

In the trust, you can be as

general or as specific as you like. If your pet likes a particular brand of food and is accustomed to daily park visits, you can state such requirements. You can also provide guidance on the frequency of veterinary or grooming visits as well as your feelings about euthanasia, and the final disposition of your pets (burial or cremation).

4. Designate a remainder beneficiary. Finally, should any funds remain when your pet passes, you should designate who or what entity should receive any remaining funds.

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said. “So, giving back to these neighborhoods that we live in and work with has always been a priority for Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Premier Properties. Many people and critical organizations like Kids’ Meals experienced loss during the winter storm, and it’s a privilege to help support the organizations and people who are doing great work in our communities.”

Barcus said that while they have a way to go to reach optimum levels, their attendance has increased by 20 percent.

“We can all help each other come back,” she said.

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Page 2B • Saturday, July 3, 2021 • The Leader

Danna helps clean out clutter by home editing

By Zarah Parker zarah@theladernews.com

Lifelong Oak Forest resident Monica Danna has had a front-row seat to the evolution of the neighborhood over the last few decades.

A great number of residences have been torn down to make room for bigger houses. But Danna said a bigger house isn’t always the answer for needing more space.

“People will say, ‘We need more space,’ and really you just need less stuff,” Danna said. “Growing up in this neighborhood, watching the growth, and these big houses going up, I know there’s another way to be in a community that has original homes. They may be on the smaller side, but there are ways to make that work.”

To help families figure out what

they need less of, Danna, who is vice president of leasing and marketing at Revive Development, recently launched Make Space Home Editing as a side gig to help others reduce stress by eliminating mess.

“My mom was a ‘thrower awayer,’ ” Danna said, “so I’m naturally a minimalist.”

When the pandemic hit, Danna began to go through her own home using organizing consultant and author Marie Kondo’s philosophy of living among the things that bring you joy. If something that sparks joy for you is mixed in with other clutter, it’s lost to the eye.

From there, Danna said she began to help family, friends and other families in the community edit their spaces so they are living among things that bring them peace and comfort.

Photo from makespacetolive.com Lifelong Oak Forest resident Monica Danna recently launched Make Space Home Editing to help the community live among things that spark joy.

“It’s different than home organizing,” Danna said. “We go through it with the intention of editing, or having a conversation about if some of these items are really being used. It’s about helping them live with less.”

With Make Space Home Editing, homeowners participate in the editing process, and Danna becomes an objective party in the conversation that asks questions like: Is this useful? Does it bring you joy?

“I’ve worked with families who have used home organizers without editing,” Danna said. “In six months it looks like it did before. I teach (clients) how to maintain the system.”

Danna said organizers typically come in and just organize a space.

When she edits a space, it’s about getting rid of what isn’t needed and

teaching how to maintain that editing lifestyle. For example, Danna had a client who said that when she bought a new pair of jeans, she didn’t just add it to her closet, but edited out a pair of jeans that she no longer needed.

Make Space Home Editing provides home editing at a rate of $75 per hour as well as options to tackle projects by space or category.

Other packages include weekend warrior, which is two full days of deep-dive home editing, and helping to pack and unpack during a home move.

“People think these services are expensive and that’s why I did the hourly rate,” Danna said. “I can work with people of all size projects, with small or large houses.”

More information can be found at www.makespacetolive.com.

Asch Building makes ethical shopping easy

By Zarah Parker zarah@theleadernews.com

Making ethical and sustainable shopping attainable is the objective of Asch Building, a business with three divisions, including Market, Atelier and Home that opened in April at 825 Studewood St. The “Market” portion is a coffee bar and cafe, while the “Atelier” is a clothing store and “Home” offers cleaning products and home goods. Owner Des Ellis said all the products are ethically sourced, meaning they are manufactured by small businesses or artisans and do not cause damage to workers, animals or the environment.

“The foundational element between all three is that every single brand no matter if you’re buying soy sauce or baking soda, or a dress or a candle, every single brand or product has to have some aspect of social good, diverse ownership, economic empowerment, environmental consciousness or is locally produced,” Ellis said.

Ellis said she created Asch Building to make shopping with intention easy and affordable. Plus, Asch tags feature a system of 1-7 that shows which

categories the item checks.

The building itself is purposefully designed for each store to flow into the next, divided by inside doors.

The “Market” is a full coffee bar that serves tacos and pastries, which are both free on rainy days, as well as a micro grocery store.

“People think that a boutique specialty store is going to be expensive. It’s not,” Ellis said. “It falls in between WalMart and H-E-B price-wise.”

For example, the micro grocery sells a 32-ounce bottle of Bragg Extra Virgin Olive Oil for $13. Online, Wal-Mart has the same brand and size product marked at $18.98.

To attempt to be as zerowaste as possible, the Market also dehydrates fruit to package and sell using the Texas Food Cottage Law. Most of the other waste is composted.

The clothing store “Atelier” is female-led, from the staff to the designers of the clothing that is sourced from South Africa. Ellis said she visited the designers and seamstresses herself to ensure the clothing was manufactured ethically.

As a boot and jacket collector, Ellis thought it would be fun to include vintage boots in the shop as well, and they sold

out. Soon, more boots will be on the floor, but Ellis will also add another vintage item this fall.

“I have a storage room full of vintage jackets so come fall, we’ll put all those out on the floor,” Ellis said. “We’ll also start to manufacture our own clothes.”

“Home” is where customers can find all-natural cleaning products, toilet paper, skin care products, pillows, rugs, blankets and anything home goods.

“We’re super communitybased. The community has been incredible,” Ellis said. “I do customer requests and review them every Monday, and if it’s a responsible thing and not some weird niche thing, I order it. So now I also carry a full line of diapers.”

Even the name of the building is purposeful in that it’s supposed to start a conversation about doing better, Ellis said.

The original Asch Building, now called the Brown Building, is in New York City and was the site of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in 1911, when 146 women and girls died. Ellis said that disaster sparked some of the worker reforms we have today.

An example of that is the doors at the Heights version of

the Asch Building, which divide the three shops, feature push bars to open the doors.

“The reason I wanted to name it Asch Building is that it still happens — it’s happening all the time,” Ellis said. “Workers complain, cite building issues and no one does anything.”

On the last Sunday of June, Asch Building also host a curated market of 10 invite-only vendors.

More to come Previously used as storage space, Ellis is also working on transforming the back of Asch Building into a bottle shop and patio bar called Afuera, which means “outside” in Spanish.

“But I can’t just have a bottle shop without a reason,” Ellis said. “The mission of Afuera is to highlight the indigenous people of colonized countries.

The way I will highlight them is through education, discovery and charity.”

Education will be done through QR codes on the tables, which Ellis said will link to a website page of the history of colonization in that country to now, along with fun facts.

Ellis said Afuera will have a full drink menu of European

Contributed photo Since opening in April, Asch Building has provided the community with an ethical and sustainable shopping option.

and craft beer, wine and cider, along with a small quarterly menu dictated by the country being featured. The profits made from the quarterly menu will go to an in-country charity that’s been vetted, Ellis said.

“If you go into those colonized countries there’s relics that are still in existence,” Ellis

said. “Colonial mansions and town halls are all being lived in like apartments, so they’ve reclaimed them. It’s not wanting to show what the culture was, it’s what the culture did with it.”

When Afuera opens, which Ellis projects will be mid-July, the first country featured will be Nigeria.

The Leader • Saturday, July 3, 2021 • Page 3B

Restaurant patios become popular pick in area

By Landan Kuhlmann landan@theleadernews.com

As the Texas summer heats up, a common response is usually to stay inside, crank up the air conditioner and take refuge in cool air.

However, many area residents are taking the opposite approach thanks to a plentiful array of open-air and patio dining establishments that have cropped up around local neighborhoods over the last several years, such as McIntyre’s in the Heights, Millie’s Kitchen & Cocktails in Oak Forest and Live Oak Grill just west of U.S. 290.

You’re likely to see plenty of dinner goers taking advantage of such spaces. To help beat the heat – or embrace it depending on preference – local residents have taken to the many outdoor spaces in Garden Oaks, Oak Forest, the Heights and other spots in northwest Houston.

“Any patio is a good patio to me,” said Candlelight Plaza resident Jennifer Garcia, who sat on the back patio at Millie’s Tuesday evening along with her friend, Kelly Gerszewski.

Just a quick afternoon drive will reveal a plethora of such spaces. And even in places where there may not be a formal patio, plenty of options abound for the community to indulge their desire for a relaxing, open-air meal.

One such place in the Heights is The Barking Pig Bar and Grill. The Barking Pig serves traditional bar food and beer, and also wine. And along with it all comes an open-air patio just outside for those patrons who wish to enjoy a day in the sun with a cold drink. Among seating options include traditional booth tables in a covered area of the patio, and picnic-style tables complete with umbrellas that can be opened and large fans if the patio becomes too hot.

Another popular spot is Harold’s Restaurant, Bar & Rooftop Terrace in the Heights, which has long become a staple for area residents looking for a relaxed atmosphere and its rooftop patio.

The Heights area also is home to Cedar Creek Bar & Grill, 1034 W. 20th St., and Onion Creek Coffeehouse, Bar & Lounge, 3106 White Oak Dr. Both have spacious patios and are part of the Creek Group, as is Canyon Creek at 6603 Westscott St. In Oak Forest, Plonk! Beer and Wine Bistro at 1243 W. 43rd St. also offers an outdoor patio for restaurant goers where they can take in the sights and sounds of the area while drinking one of Plonk’s 50 wine and beer selections.

Just down the road, Union Kitchen at 3452 Ella Blvd. has an outdoor dining area with the added bonus of allowing residents to bring their dogs on

Photo by Adam Zuvanich Candlelight Plaza resident Jennifer Garcia, left, and her friend Kelly Gerszewski enjoyed the back patio during a recent visit to Millie’s Kitchen & Cocktails, 3542 Oak Forest Dr.

the patio if they want to make any outing a family night complete with their pooch. According to one Google Review, the staff will even bring a water bowl for your dog to drink out of.

Another appealing option for open-air dining is Live Oak Grill at 10444 Hempstead Rd. Live Oak features a large patio with plenty of seating. Even

better, it’s covered by large oak trees – hence the name – to help diners enjoy their outing even in the scorching summer heat. The patio is also dogfriendly and has a playground area for young children before and after the meal is finished.

Cottonwood at 3422 N. Shepherd Dr. is one of many Garden Oaks spots with outdoor din-

ing. Residents can bring their dogs to the patio, of which the restaurant has both a covered indoor and outdoor patio area with televisions.

So whether it is one of the places mentioned above or somewhere else, the residents of northwest Houston have a bountiful pick of places at which to enjoy a relaxing summer meal on a patio.

Outdoor spaces at Millie’s designed to serve families

By Adam Zuvanich azuvanich@theleadernews.com

Millie’s Kitchen & Cocktails opened in April 2020, after the local onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and outdoor spaces have since become a preference for many Houston diners.

But the neighborhood eatery did not necessarily have those patrons in mind when it launched at 3542 Oak Forest Dr., where there is just as much seating outside as there is inside.

Millie’s event coordinator Laura Hanet, the wife of coowner Chris Jones, said their 6-year-old child provided the inspiration for the artificial turf play area on the restaurant’s back patio. Many of their customers also have kids, with the Garden Oaks and Oak Forest areas having seen an influx of young families in recent years.

“Our back patio is really family friendly, and we really love that about this place, because we built the green space specifically for that,” Hanet said. “That’s what we wanted to do for the neighborhood.

That was a really important factor for us.”

Millie’s boasts seven large picnic tables on its back patio, which is fenced in and decorated with bistro lights, and there is even more space and seating on the front patio.

The latter area features a TV

screen and is covered with a yellow-and-white canopy, which caught the attention of recent customer Cindy Martinez, who works near the restaurant.

Martinez dined with a friend and said they opted to sit outside because the weather was nice. She also liked Millie’s Spicy Chicken Sandwich.

“The batter’s really wellmade and flavorful,” Martinez said.

Millie’s specializes in seafood and features an array of cocktails, wine and craft beer.

The restaurant also utilizes an

app called Roovy, which customers must download to access a menu, place an order and pay their tabs.

Another feature well-liked by neighborhood residents are the patios. Oak Forest resident Shan Patel sat on the front patio Tuesday evening along with his wife and one of their friends, having walked to Millie’s from their home.

“I think it’s definitely convenient for this neighborhood to have a patio restaurant,” Patel said. “I think that definitely adds to the curb appeal of coming here.”

Thanks to our customers for making

Millie’s Kitchen & Cocktails

your Reader’s Choice for Best Seafood

Photo by Adam Zuvanich Three local residents sip on drinks while sitting on the front patio at Millie’s Kitchen & Cocktails, 3542 Oak Forest Dr.

Nestled in the beautiful Houston neighborhood of Oak Forest, Millie’s was created and designed to offer the best Coastal and Local flavors alike. We offer simple yet stellar dishes, designed to inspire a more relaxed and comfortable experience that begins the second you walk through our doors. Hang out in our warmly designed dining room, or relax with one of our signature libations on one of our two outdoor patios.

Some of our delicious seafood creations include Millie’s Crab Cakes, Fresh Gulf Oysters, Seafood Chowder, Lobster Roll and more. Other offerings include New York Strip, Millie’s Cheese Burger, Chicken Salad, and Gulf Shrimp Po-Boy.

Enjoy our Happy Hour from 11am – 7pm, Tuesday through Friday with Select Cocktails, Beer & Wine.

Millie’s is open for Brunch Saturday & Sunday 10am – 2pm

3542 Oak Forest Dr., Houston, TX 77018 Contact information:

Photo by Adam Zuvanich The front patio at Millie’s Kitchen & Cocktails is covered by a yellow-and-white canopy and bordered by flowers.

Hours

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Page 4B • Saturday, July 3, 2021 • The Leader

Hang out on McIntyre’s patio this summer

By Zarah Parker zarah@theleadernews.com

The laidback atmosphere of McIntyre’s is what makes it a popular bar in the Heights, located at 1230 W. 20th St. Add in an expansive patio, outside LED screens and misters, and McIntyre’s makes for the perfect spot to kick back and grab a cold beer this summer.

“First and foremost, we are a patio sports bar. We have around 5,000 square feet of patio, some covered, some uncovered,” said Kyle Berg, coowner of McIntyre’s.

The patio features different types of seating from picnic tables and chairs on turf, to swings, which are purely for adults. McIntyre’s is an age 23-and-up establishment.

“We’re trying to cater more to the residents in the area,” Berg said.

While you can’t bring kids, dogs are welcome to hang out at McIntyre’s with their owner.

McIntyre’s also prides itself on customer service. To ensure the customer can enjoy their time at the bar without searching out for one server, customers can order with any of McIntyre’s servers, as well as close out their tab with any of them.

The bar has a full beverage program that has something for the craft beer nerds, craft cocktail enthusiasts, wine connoisseurs, and whiskey lovers.

One of the bar’s most popular drinks is It’s Always Sunny n Houston, which is a watermelon sangria.

“We have 24 beers on draft,” Berg said, “including local beers from Eureka Heights Brew Co., Karbach Brewing Co., and Saint Arnold Brewing Company.”

The permanent food truck Guajillo Grill serves as McIntyre’s kitchen, serving up tacos, enchiladas, quesadillas and more.

McIntyre’s opened in the Heights in 2016 to fulfill a need in an underserved part of town, which was for residents to have a great space to be

able to grab a beer and watch a game without having to drive to Washington Avenue.

Since then, numerous other bars have opened up nearby.

Berg said the fact that McIntyre’s still is successful, as well as the other bars, just goes to show how underserved the area really was.

The success McIntyre’s has seen has also propelled its growth into a second location in Downtown Houston at 901 Commerce St., formerly Spaghetti Warehouse.

“We started this project almost three years ago,” Berg said. “We’ve had to overcome it being on the bayou, it having historic flooding, and a pandemic, which slowed everything down. But we’re really happy how it’s turned out.”

McIntyre’s downtown location opened Thursday.

“Whether you’re trying to catch a drink after work, play corn hole, pop a shot, or watch the game, there’s never a reason not to go to McIntyre’s,” Berg said.

Contributed photo The outdoor dining area at McIntyre’s, located at 1230 W. 20th St., features ample seating, artificial turf and a high canopy that creates shade.

I’m a big supporter of journalism. I subscribe to The NY Times and Washington Post for national news, The Guardian for international perspective, and The Chronicle for state and city news. I also subscribe to The Leader for news about my neighborhood, news I can’t get from any of those other sources. Notice I said subscribe, not just read.

That’s where the support comes in.

Terry Abel

The Leader • Saturday, July 3, 2021 • Page 5B

Business Briefs: NOW Massage coming to Heights later this year

GO DIGITAL TODAY!

By Betsy Denson betsy@theleadernews.com

The NOW Massage, a wellness brand offering therapeutic massage, had previously announced plans for its first Houston location in the former Retropolis space at 373 W. 19th St. The shop is expected to open this fall.

“We are excited to open our first Houston boutique and continue The NOW’s national expansion by bringing our unique aesthetic and elevated massage experience to the area,” said Gara Post, co-founder and chief creative officer of The NOW Massage, which is headquartered in Los Angeles.

The NOW bills itself as a luxurious neighborhood spa with massages and custom enhancements to offer relaxation and healing. Services are designed for stress relief, health improvement and relaxation.

Guests will choose between three signature massage styles and can pair their service with herbal heat therapy, deep tissue, fresh eyes, calm balm, hemp calm balm and Gua Sha, a traditional Chinese medicine technique.

For more information, visit thenowmassage.com.

Heights Veterinary Clinic opens new location Heights Veterinary Clinic, located at 1431 N. Shepherd Dr., will open an additional location Monday, July 5 at 4107 Sherwood Ln. A note on its Facebook page reads: “We know how frustrating it can be when we are unable to see your furbabies. We guarantee it is not from a lack of compassion or desire to do so.”

In addition to its new location, the clinic is also adding two new veterinarians, a 24/7 book-online option which shows availability at both locations and growing its technician and receptionist team.

Buff City Soap to open next to Heights H-E-B Signage for Buff City Soap

pa

P Contributed photo The NOW Massage, a national wellness brand based in Los Angeles, plans to open a Heights location on West 19th Street in the fall.

is up on the building next to the H-E-B on 2300 N. Shepherd Dr. The retailer is opening in a number of locations across the state, which are adjacent to H-E-B stores. The most recent is its first College Station location, next to the H-E-B in Jones Crossing, which opened June 24.

Founded in 2013, Buff City Soap marketed itself as a “high-quality alternative to commercial soap products full of harsh chemicals, detergents, animal fats and sulfates.” Customers can see the whole making process live in each soap makery at the store.

Representatives of Buff City Soap were unavailable for comment about the opening date for the Shepherd location.

Braun Enterprises launches Urban Office product line Two Braun Enterprises acquisitions – one at 629 W. 19th St. and one at 535 W. 20th St. – are part of a recently announced Urban Office prod-

uct line. The Harris County Appraisal District values the two properties, totaling 20,000 square feet, at $650,565 and $1.8 million, respectively.

“A lot of smaller companies may only have a handful of employees, but those employees want to be able to walk downstairs to a restaurant or to do some shopping without having to get into their car,” Braun told the Houston Business Journal. “That kind of convenience is something every employee wants. But you don’t really find that in a smalloffice setting.”

The idea, as Braun told HBJ, is to reserve the first floor of the centers for retail and restaurant space, while dividing the upper floors into modestly sized office spaces. The office spaces will range between 250 and 2,500 square feet, Braun said. The city’s small-business owners get the amenities of a downtown office at lower prices.

“Those buildings are in a great area that is surrounded by restaurants and other retail stores,” Braun said.

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Page 6B • Saturday, July 3, 2021 • The Leader

Are cooked bones OK to give to your dog?

Dear Tabby, My husband insists that it’s fine to give our dog the bones after we enjoy a meal of poultry or steak.

I feel like that’s dangerous. Can you settle our dispute?

Bone to Pick in Oak Forest Dear Bone to Pick, I’ll let you break the news to him, but in this case, your husband is wrong. We can award him points for knowing that bones can be ok for dogs to ingest sometimes, but ONLY raw bones--not bones that have been cooked. But, let’s dive a little deeper into this topic...

Raw bones are beneficial If you can imagine a time when dogs were wild and hunted and killed their prey, it makes sense that they would have eaten the raw bones of

their fresh kill. Because of this, dogs’ digestive systems are well-equipped to digest raw bones. In fact, bones provide many beneficial vitamins for dogs such as phosphorus and calcium. The minerals found in raw bones also stimulate the creation of enzymes in a dog’s saliva which helps to protect and clean a dog’s teeth and gums.

Just say no to cooked bones Cooked bones, however, are a different story. Once bones are cooked, they become dry, brittle and can splinter easily.

If a dog eats a cooked bone that splinters, this can cause some very serious medical problems. Splintered bones can cause choking and even perforate organs--both of which can prove to be fatal.

Sometimes, however, dogs get a hold of a cooked bone, either from nosing through the trash or from begging at the dinner table. If this happens, it’s important to watch him closely for several days to make sure that he isn’t experiencing any strange symptoms.

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So, to settle this dispute, cooked bones are not a good idea but raw bones are actually pretty great for dogs. Just make sure that you monitor your dog if you give him a raw bone. Watch for choking or any signs that the bone might be causing mouth abrasions and never leave your dog unattended while enjoying a bone.

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The Leader • Saturday, July 3, 2021 • Page 7B

Food Briefs: Tenfold Coffee to host night food market

By Stefan Modrich

terranean-style restaurant in 2019 in Sugar Land.

“I’m actively looking into the Heights,” Ranpuri said.

“I’m looking for a good tenant mix and a neighborhood where the traffic count is good.”

Ranpuri said population density and cultural diversity were other positive attributes of the Heights and among the main things he looks for in a new market.

“I see people in the Heights as foodies,” Ranpuri said. “They love food and they have adapted to the new concepts pretty well.

I’ve seen many concepts getting started in the Heights.”

smodrich@mcelvypartners.com

A local coffee shop is hosting the last of a series of seasonal night markets this Saturday.

Tenfold Coffee Company will be the venue for Night Market: Taco Edition, a collaboration of pop-up vendors Tatemó and Underground Creamery, among others.

The event runs from 6-9 p.m. at Tenfold, located at 101 Aurora St. Tenfold founder Jacob Ibarra wants to “make coffee accessible to the public,” according to the shop’s website, and sells coffee beans from Brazil, Colombia, Ethiopia and Guatemala.

Tatemó is a tortilleria in Montrose, and Underground Creamery makes smallbatch ice cream pints.

Visitors will be able to sip tequila and mezcal from Calle Onze, which is a restaurant less than 2 miles south of the event at 222 W. 11th St. Patrons can also order food and drinks from other vendors across the Houston area, including Belly of the Beast, Cochinita & Co., El Topo, JQ’s Tex Mex BBQ and Tacos Bomberos.

Miradela, a Sawyer Yards boutique offering clothing, drinkware, stationery and accessories, will also have a pop-up stand at the market.

Tatemó chef Emmanuel Chavez said in an Instagram post that having the market at Tenfold allowed him to invite more chefs and vendors and to provide more space between lines for social distancing.

“It’s been a huge privilege for us to have been able to host over 30 small businesses from around our city, during the span of five markets,” Chavez wrote.

Garden Oaks distillery hosting holiday event A local distillery is host-

Contributed photo A taco-themed night market will be held Saturday at Tenfold Coffee Company, 101 Aurora St.

ing a Fourth of July-themed concert on Saturday.

William Price Distilling Company, located at 970 Wakefield Dr., is kicking off the holiday weekend with its “Third of July Backyard BBQ Bash” featuring a live performance from country artist Ryan Adam Wells from noon-4 p.m.

Zack Cook of Feges BBQ will provide barbecue from noon until supplies run out.

From 5-10 p.m., Independence Heights-based Hook & Butcher will sell burgers, steaks and hot dogs.

The event is free to attend. Attendees can register online at https://www. eventbrite.com/e/williamprice-distilling-3rd-of-julyparty-tickets-160013130581.

Wokker Food Truck opening in Heights A popular Asian food truck is putting down brick-andmortar roots in the Heights.

Man Dao, co-creator of Wokker Food Truck, said he plans to open a Wokker restaurant at 1848 Airline Dr. Ste. A, the space formerly occupied by Bellissimo Ris-

torante.

Bellissimo, an Italian restaurant, moved to 902 E. 33rd St. in Independence Heights.

Wokker has a downtown outpost at the Underground Hall at 1010 Prairie St. According to Wokker’s website, the restaurant’s goal is to “hand craft flavors and ingredients from traditional Asian dishes and meld them with good old fashioned Southern Cooking, focusing primarily on Texas BBQ and comfort foods.”

Dao and his ownership group also manage Hoke Poke Heights, a Hawaiian restaurant located nearby at 1040 W. Cavalcade St. Sugar Land restaurateur scouting Heights A Sugar Land entrepreneur is considering expanding his fast-casual restaurant to the Heights.

Gyro Republic founder and CEO Rehan Ranpuri has had his sights set on growing his business across the Houston area over the last six months.

Ranpuri opened his Medi-

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The Leader • Saturday, July 3, 2021 • Page 8B

Art Valet: Summer art scene heating up Mitch Cohen Art Columnist

“It’s too hot,” they said.

“Why can’t we have an indoor show?”

Those are exaggerated examples of comments that surfaced in an online discussion with artists from First Saturday Arts Market. We were chatting about all the elements lined up against us for outdoor summer markets.

Sure, the market is at night and cooling off by the time we open. No problem there. Setup can be brutal, though, at 4 p.m. on a summer afternoon in Houston.

That’s when things melt on sidewalks.

Then there are summer

storms to contend with and sometimes overzealous weather forecasters (talk about job security) that scare everyone indoors, regardless. Well, everyone except me and the hardcore artists joining me Saturday night for the second installment of First Saturday Arts Market at Night.

Weather permitting (check the website and social media channels), we’ll be set up from 6-10 p.m. at 540 W. 19th St. Details are at 1stsatartmarket.com.

Speaking of indoors, there are many options for visual artists in Houston. A few years ago I introduced you to Art Machine Gallery, located at The Silos at Sawyer Yards, 1502 Sawyer St., Studio 215. The space is always hopping with patrons and artists.

Artist Jay T. Jax runs the space now and calls himself a contemporary minimalist

Contributed photo Guiteau Lanoue, left, looks on as Jay T. Jax installs Elaine Lanoue’s paintings at Art Machine Gallery.

sculptor. Jax may call his wooden sculptures “minimalist” but that’s only because he doesn’t use an entire tree for individual pieces.

Jax starts with whole pieces by removing the bark, cutting, chiseling and shaping the wood with hand tools.

His sculptures range from the human form to animals and conceptual work, with some humor in there, too.

I wanted to highlight Art Machine Gallery because they are open every Saturday from noon-5 p.m. and, for Second Saturdays Open Studios during summer, through 10 p.m. That coincides with the Market at Sawyer Yards right outside.

Of the 14 artists in the space, recent additions include Rodney Butler, Elaine Lanoue and Michelle L Huff.

This is not a traditional gallery, but a living, local artist gallery space where there are always artists available

to answer questions.

Yes, it’s indoors and airconditioned, if you like that kind of thing. (Who am I kidding, I’ll be jealous!)

To find Art Machine Gallery, head to The Silos at Sawyer Yards at 1502 Sawyer St. The gallery is located on the far side of the building from Sawyer Street, almost literally under the silos the space is named for.

There is parking behind the building, too. Look for location maps on the walls. Find them on Facebook as artmachinegallery.

The best thing about this space, you may see me in there taking an air-conditioning break on second Saturdays!

Cohen is an artist and founder of the First Saturday Arts Market and the Market at Sawyer Yards. Find him at ArtValet.com for additional highlights and artist’s stories.

Review: Mi Sombrero serves up nostalgia in Garden Oaks Stefan Modrich

Mi Sombrero in Garden Oaks must know something I don’t. Since 1978, according to its website, the restaurant has “focused on creating authentic Mexican and Tex-Mex dishes tempered to the American taste.”

Perhaps that explains why, despite having read so many rave reviews from customers about Mi Sombrero’s breakfast tacos, that I didn’t enjoy them as much as everyone else seemed to.

The servers were friendly, and the dining room was nearly full only an hour after Mi Sombrero had opened.

I considered the possibility that people will discover with time — or through learning from someone who didn’t grow

up in their neighborhood — that Mi Sombrero may be an institution that transcends the food it serves, much like I have come to realize about some of the panaderias and taquerias of my childhood.

A pretty reliable, basic barometer that I use with Mexican restaurants is the quality of the tortillas. In my experience, decent flour tortillas aren’t hard to replicate, but a good corn tortilla is a much more valuable commodity for the discerning customer.

The corn tortillas at Mi Sombrero were dry and bland, and the lack of flavor was something that no amount of the restaurant’s admittedly terrific house salsa could reconcile.

Now, I understand it’s absurd for me to lodge such a complaint against Machacado con Huevo ($4.65 for two tacos), which translates to “shredded with eggs” and is actually supposed to be dried beef. But unfortunately, I found that this

was the case with the eggs in all six of my tacos, including with the ham, or Jamón con Huevo ($4.17 for two tacos) and even with the potatoes in the Papas con Huevo ($3.77 for two tacos).

I was rescued by one of Mi Sombrero’s aguas frescas, the Tamarindo ($2.95). This refreshing beverage is made from pods from a Tamarind tree and has a flavor similar to an iced tea, with sweet and sour flavors. You can also go with the classic Horchata ($2.95), a ricebased drink with cinnamon and vanilla, or Jamaica ($2.95), which is derived from crushed leaves of the Hibiscus flower.

Mi Sombrero Address: 3401 N. Shepherd Dr. #4 Dining Options: Dine-in, takeout Hours: 7 a.m.-9 p.m., SundayThursday, 7 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday-Saturday Entrée prices: $5.79-$31.29

Photo by Stefan Modrich Pictured are the Machacado con Huevo tacos from Mi Sombrero in Garden Oaks, which has called the area home since 1978.

Kid-friendly: Yes Senior discount: No Alcohol: Yes Healthy options: None Star of the show: Tamarindo

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Railway Heights food hall focuses on sustainability, community engagement

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The latest development from Company of Nomads, the team that produced Bravery Chef Hall and Conservatory in Downtown Houston, is poised to open its latest concept next month at 8200 Washington Ave. Railway Heights and its team of Anh Mai, Eliana Rodriguez, Shephard Ross and Martin Weaver have been working since March of last year to open the 25,000 square foot food hall, which has 15,000 additional square feet of outdoor space.

Mai and Rodriguez emphasized that in building out their latest market and food hall, the Company of Nomads team wanted to connect with area residents and make Railway Heights a point of pride in the Timbergrove community and beyond.

“We want to create a space where the community feels like this is part of them,” Rodriguez said. “They can come and hang out all day, have a beer or do some shopping.”

Mai is a pioneer of the Houston food hall scene, and he’s learned from experience about how to best operate them. The COVID-19 pandemic delayed the opening of Railway Heights. While he doesn’t want to rush things along, he said rolling out a staggered, soft opening to phase in the vendors who are ready will help to ease things along with his new venture.

“The problem with a project of this size is there’s too many moving parts,” Mai said. “To get everyone ready, and to open once everyone’s ready would take forever. The vendors themselves will also need a soft opening. They can work through all the kinks

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www.LaHaciendaEscondida.com Photo by Stefan Modrich Railway Heights, a massive new food hall and market at 8200 Washington Ave., is expected to open next month.

themselves.”

On the first floor, a fishmonger, a baker and a butcher will make up a small grocery store with locally-sourced products as well as a coffee shop and gelato stand. Eleven different restaurants, many of which are owned by first-time entrepreneurs, are spread throughout the second floor of the venue. The large hall is airy and well-lit, with floor-toceiling windows on the west wall and a rustic, modern aesthetic.

A dog park, a family park and a bocce court greet visitors. The Story Church’s Timbergrove campus is also on site.

Retail vendors include The Pink Swan Shop, Pop Soap, EC Blooms & Co. and Ms. Moss Potter.

Mai said customers who will frequent food halls like Bravery — or soon Railway Heights — love the narrative of an independent chef or small business owner getting a shot to showcase their craft.

“If you go to any of our food halls, you’ll see that ev-

ery (vendor) is new,” Mai said.

“Everything is either so small that it’s a brand new concept or many times, a brand new business owner. People get to see that, and it allows them to go along with the journey.”

Mai said the food hall model can be a game-changer economically for chefs and cooks, eliminating the need for servers or “front of the house” staff.

At Bravery Chef Hall, Mai’s cooks went from earning $12$15 per hour to $20-$28 per hour including tips.

“We’ve basically removed the middleman,” Mai said.

“It’s good for them and it’s good for us.”

She said what separates Railway Heights from other vendors is a focus on sustainability. All of the food vendors are required to use compostable to-go containers and cutlery.

Railway Heights will also plant a tree for every beer sold in its 13,000 square foot beer garden, she said.

Another way Rodriguez said Railway Heights stands

out is the way it tries to involve more local merchants.

“Most markets lease out big spaces,” Rodriguez said. “Our idea is piling up (our space) with local merchandise and giving the vendors an opportunity to sell without having to lease out a big space.”

Rodriguez said this method allows small vendors to have easier access to a bigger consumer base without having to pay monthly rent. Instead, Railway Heights will collect a percentage of sales of each vendor to help cover operating expenses, she said.

The Company of Nomads team will provide educational programming on plants, cooking and sustainability.

But there’s also going to be a learning curve for the business owners who are getting their feet wet as chefs or restaurateurs.

“They’ve never had enough experience or knowledge of certain things, so we have to come in and help support them,” Mai said. “So that’s the challenge of trying to curate these kinds of businesses.”

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