VOL 11 No. 1
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FORT BEND FAIR. BALANCED. INFORMATIVE. P. O.BOX 623, SUGAR LAND, TX 77487-0623
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 3, 2018
Official newspaper of Fort Bend County & Missouri City
Mail ballots now available for Riverstone hosts “Bite Night Friday” March primary elections
Eligible voters may now submit their Ballot by Mail requests for the March 6, 2018 Primary Election Voters may begin submitting their applications to receive a ballot by mail on January 1, 2018. However, changes made by the Texas Legislature in their most recent Special Session will make it more challenging for voters to apply for that ballot. In past elections, applicants could submit their signed appli-
cations by mail, fax, or email. Those options are still available, but beginning with the March 6, 2018 Primary Election, voters who use fax or email, must also submit their application by mail. The mailed application must be received with four business days of the electronic submission. Voters who are 65 years of age or those who are disabled may submit an annual application which will entitle them to receive a ballot for all elections for which they are eligible dur-
ing this calendar year. Annual applications expire at the end of the year. Voters who expect to be absent from the county on Election Day may apply for a ballot to be mailed to their temporary address outside of their county of residence. Applications for Ballot by Mail are available for download on the website of the Office of the Fort Bend County Elections Administration www.fortbendvotes.org .
Public meeting on Telfair-Tract 5 development set for Jan. 10 A public meeting to discuss a draft plan for 95 acres near University Boulevard and U.S. Highway 59 is scheduled for Jan. 10, at 6:30 p.m., at the University Branch Library, 14010 University Blvd. The masterplan will show draft land-use concepts on property owned by the city of Sugar Land and Newland Communities, Collectively known as Telfair-Tract 5. The public is encouraged to attend the meeting and provide input. City staff and Newland Communities have been working since 2015 to develop a cohesive plan between the two parcels that encourages walkability, shared parking and the development of plazas for the community to enjoy and takes into consideration public input received on previous proposals. The draft plan, which will be made available publicly at the meeting, seeks to provide an office-and entertainment-centric development that protects the city’s investment in the Smart Financial Centre at Sugar Land
by surrounding the property with a mixed-use destination activity center that is both compatible with the nearby singlefamily residential development and an economic generator. As such, the proposed masterplan contemplates significant development of Class A office, two hotels - including a hotel/ conference center - additional retail/entertainment uses and medical uses. The masterplan also includes a 250-unit senior independent living facility, which is not anticipated to have any impact on enrollments in local school districts. Consistent with the previous commitment by Newland Communities, no standard multifamily units are proposed on the site. The plan also allows the City to reserve property for the location of future economic development opportunities - including a community arts venue that was identified in the citizen-led 2007 Visioning Task Force. While the community arts venue will need more refine-
ment in future years, the masterplan includes three of the five destination venues identified by the Task Force - the performing arts center, a hotel-conference center and a community arts venue. A focus on tourism and commercial sources to reduce the property tax burden on homeowners has been a key to maintaining one of the state’s lowest property tax rates while funding the high level of services that residents expect. The goal of the meeting is to allow Newland Communities to receive feedback prior to moving forward with a formal Planned Development zoning application for the property in 2018. That application will also require multiple meetings from the Planning and Zoning Commission and the City Council that will include additional opportunities for public input. For more information about the upcoming public meeting, contact the Office of Economic Development at (281) 275-2229 or Sugar Land Planning Department at (281) 275-2218.
Keeping track of Telfair Tract 5 development By SESHADRI KUMAR The Jan. 10 public meeting on the development of Telfair Tract- 5 is very significant and public participation in this meeting is vital. The development does not impact merely the neighborhood. A controversy about apartment units first arose when the developer suggested a 900-unit apartment complex for this tract. The idea was nipped in the bud by the then mayor Jimmy Thompson. But the controversy continued. The backdrop for this development included a signature campaign launched by a group of citizens under the banner Sugar Land Votes. The citizens’ group sought an amendment to the city’s Development Code, involving a new category of “semi-urban development” and a cap on apartment units in any development.
The city declared the petition drive for a referendum on amending the development invalid on technical grounds. The city council prior to the last mayoral election sought to neutralize the controversy by adopting a unanimous resolution recommending that the Development Code be amended and a cap of 200 apartment units be imposed. This recommendation went before the planning and zoning commission, which eventually returned a negative recommendation resulting in no changes to the Development Code and no cap on apartment units. Meanwhile, the city sent the issue for consideration by the Land Use Committee which also sought to place some cap on apartment units. That again was not favored by the planning and zoning commission. In a subsequent development plan submitted by the developer for Tract 5, the planning and
zoning commission expressed its concern that the plan did not include any provision for highend apartments for the millennials. The city also postponed a scheduled public meeting on the proposed Land Use Plan. The city council is yet to consider the plan and take action on it. In the last mayoral election Mayoral candidates Myatt Hancock and Harish Jajoo campaigned on the idea of a cap on apartment units, but Mayor Joe Zimmerman said he would allow any apartment units only after ensuring that it would have no impact on schools and after a traffic study. The city’s zoning laws do not permit stand alone apartments anywhere. Any units proposed would be part of a planned, mixed use development like the Sugar Land Town Square, Imperial Development and Riverstone.
A feast of food trucks is heading to Riverstone Jan. 12 for Bite Night Friday, a culinary event that will be held the second Friday of each month throughout the spring. The mobile eateries will be at The Club at Riverstone, 18353 University Boulevard, 6-9:30 p.m. Music and children’s activities will add to the event, which is open to the public. Leashed dogs are allowed. While most food trucks accept credit cards, some may be cash only. For more information, visit www.riverstone.com.
Missouri City celebrates a year of growth and distinction By BARBARA FULENWIDER The year 2017 marked many milestones for the Show Me City — retaining the city’s AA bond rating, maintaining its public safety status as one of the safest communities in Texas, implementing technology upgrades in all facilities and improving infrastructure citywide. “Transparency and publicprivate collaborations are paramount to our high performing organization, and this year, I continued to set the bar high for my team in conceptualizing and completing projects that are a part of day-to-day operations and those that are unprecedented and will enhance the community,” said City Manager Anthony J. Snipes. “These accomplishments and others were based on business plans developed by each depart-
ment and would not have been possible without strategic direction” from city council members, Snipes said. Major distinctions included bringing a $25 million investment -- Houston Community College’s Center for Entrepreneurship, Technology and Health -- to Texas Parkway, locating a FedEx local division and landing a landmark industrial business deal with Best Buy. The worldwide company, VWR, which researches laboratory products, opened in Trammell Crow’s Park 8Ninety, in a 125,000 square foot distribution center and gained national attention when a picture of it was featured on a marquee no less than in New York’s Time Square. Other companies that opened
in Missouri City last year are Texas Leaguer Brewing Co., Rexel Electric Supply and LT Foods Americas, a global producer, procurer, distributor and marketer of Basmati Rice. Other distinctions in 2017 included being ranked 71 out of 250 best towns to buy a home in, according to LendEDU, and being one of the safest cities in the U.S. According to SafeHome, Missouri City ranked No. 13. And having more than 136,000 guests at Quail Valley Golf Course was also a major distinction along with the City Centre and a record 60,180 rounds of golf played last year. Missouri City also earned awards by the Government Finance Officers Association of U.S. and Canada’s DistinSee City, Page 3
Four Republicans, five Democrats in the primary election for Congressional Dist.22 By SESHADRI KUMAR The 2018 U.S. House of Representatives elections in Texas will take place on November 6. Voters will elect 36 candidates to serve in the U.S. House. Texas utilizes an open primary system. Voters do not have to register with a party. At the primary, a voter may choose which party primary ballot to vote on. The voter must sign a pledge declaring that he or she will not vote in another party’s primary or convention that year. Texas’ 22nd Congressional District is located in the eastern portion of the state and includes part of Ford Bend, Harris, and Brazoria counties. Heading into the election, Ballotpedia rated this race as safely Republican.
Incumbent Pete Olson (R) defeated Mark Gibson (D) in the general election on November 8, 2016. Olson ran unopposed in the Republican primary on March 1, 2016, while Mark Gibson defeated A.R. Hassan for the Democratic nomination. Olson was first elected in 2008. Olson faces three opponents in the 2018 primary. They are James Green, Danny Nguyen and Eric Zmrhal. With a decade of oil and gas experience, Eric Zmrhal from Katy has held various engineering positions and acquired effective leadership and essential management skills. James Green of Sugar Land is a retired U.S. Navy Veteran
and a nuclear engineer. In the Democratic primary, five candidates have filed. They are Steve Brown, Mark Gibson, Margarita Ruiz Johnson, Sri Preston Kulkarni, Letitia Plummer. Steve Brown is a former Democratic Party Chair in Fort Bend County. Gibson is retired from the U.S. Army and a small business owner. Johnson from Pearland is a U.S. Army Veteran in finance and accounting Plummer is a health-care provider and small-business owner According to FEC filings, Stephanie Williams , from Orchard, is running for the seat as an independent candidate. (More on Page 3)