VOL 9 No. 30
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FORT BEND FAIR. BALANCED. INFORMATIVE. WEDNESDAY, JULY 27, 2016
P. O.BOX 623, SUGAR LAND, TX 77487-0623
Official newspaper of Fort Bend County, Missouri City & Sugar Land
FBISD to build $59 million Career and Technical Education facility in Telfair A 65-acre plot in the Telfair community has been selected as the site for a new state-ofthe-art, centralized Career and Technical Education (CTE) facility. During a regularly called meeting on July 18, the Fort Bend ISD Board of Trustees approved the recommended site selection, as well as the programming that is to be offered at the facility. Located at Chatham Avenue and University Boulevard, the site of the future FBISD facility will allow easy access to Highway 6, Highway 90 and Highway 59 so that students from all 11 comprehensive high school campuses can attend specialized courses at the facility. The new facility, planned to open in August of 2018, will be funded through the 2014 Bond Program, which included $59 million earmarked for CTE improvements. In addition to the site, the Board of Trustees also approved the educational specifications for the facility, outlining the types of programs that will be housed in the facility, such as Advanced Construction, Agriculture and Natural Resources, Manufacturing, STEM (sci-
ence, technology, engineering and math), Transportation, Arts and AV Communication, Information Technology, Cosmetology, Culinary Arts, Health Science, Education and Training, and Law and Public Safety. Plans also include five student-run enterprise businesses that will be open to the community, including a full-service restaurant and a credit union. The facility will service approximately 2,000 students daily through half-day programs. In May of 2016, the architectural firm, Stantec and District staff met with various stakeholders to gather information about the current and future CTE program requirements in Fort Bend ISD. Also, a meeting with area business partners was held in June, and feedback received was incorporated into the educational specifications approved Monday. “As the design process continues, we are envisioning a building that can serve as a three-dimensional textbook,” said Meredith Watassek, Director of Career and Technical Education. “This will allow even our elementary learners the oppor-
tunity to visually see how concepts learned in core content areas apply to everyday activities. The facility itself will become a District-wide destination location, where learning and exploration is possible for those as young as elementary through our community of adult learners.” During Monday’s meeting, Stantec informed Board members that although the 65-acre site was once considered to be within the 100 year flood plain, a levee system that was built between 2005 and 2009 has brought the Telfair area out of the flood plain. Following this week’s approval of the site and programming, Stantec will continue the design phase, and will present schematic designs in the early fall. At the June 18 meeting, the FBISD Board of Trustees also awarded bids for several renovation and upgrade projects included in the 2014 Bond Program to be completed at Mission West Elementary, Bowie Middle School, the FBISD Aquatic Practice Facility, Travis High School, the Central Warehouse, Natatorium, the Police Facilities Complex and Blue Ridge Elementary School.
Sugar Land City Manager submits $260 million budget for 2017 Sugar Land City Manager Allen Bogard recently submitted to City Council a proposed $260.4 million budget for fiscal year 2017. The focus of the proposed budget maintains existing service levels but adds no new services except for the completion of Brazos River Park and the Festival Site, projects approved by voters in 2013. Anticipating higher property values from the Fort Bend County Appraisal District, City Council raised the homestead exemption to 10 percent in June - a measure that provides targeted tax cuts to homeowners by lowering the amount of home value subjected to the City’s property tax rate. Final values are not available until the end of July, but the budget anticipates a 3 percent increase in the average residen-
tial tax bill; this equals about $28 per year. Without the increased homestead exemption, the average bill would have increased $51, so the exemption represents a $23 tax cut to residents. Water and wastewater rates remain unchanged for a sixth consecutive year, while residential solid waste and recycling costs will increase 77 cents per month to $18 based on the City’s contractual cost with Republic Services. The proposed budget funds a workforce of 722.5 full-time employees. Proposed positions address the growing demands for service in Parks and Recreation, Neighborhood and Environmental Services, Economic Development, Tourism and the Sugar Land Regional Airport. The focus of the budget is to
maintain the City’s high quality services. Recent flooding events have reaffirmed the focus on drainage efforts that helped to reduce or eliminate structural flooding in the City. Significant drainage projects are planned in Covington Woods, the Highlands and Sugar Creek in the coming year, while Williams Trace is slated for reconstruction from Austin Parkway to Highway 6. Residents will have an opportunity to provide feedback to City Council during a public hearing scheduled for Aug. 16. A series of budget workshops will be held throughout the month of August and are open to the public. The proposed budget will be available on the City’s website www.sugarlandtx.gov/budget.
Stafford bears the brunt of slump in oil industry By BARBARA FULENWIDER Stafford Mayor Leonard Scarcella first brought the issue to focus in his state of the city address he delivered in January concerning Stafford’s perilous situation if some of its major companies left the city. Stafford has zero property tax so relies heavily on sales taxes to pay its expenses. The oil field valve manufacturers that have clustered in Stafford are currently on hard times because oil prices have dropped significantly. What brought this to a head was Stafford’s finance officer, Karen Austin, recently received notice from the Texas Workforce Commission that Sandvik, a worldwide Swedish engineering group, plans to cut 77 jobs from Aug. 9 to April 19, 2017, and intends to close their Stafford location. Austin also told council at their July 20 meeting that she had received the same notification from the workforce com-
mission regarding three other Stafford companies that also plan to cut jobs. She also said she recently attended a seminar regarding job growth or lack thereof in the Houston area. “Depending on what model is used, job growth isn’t expected to grow until 2017 or well into 2018.” That means somewhere between 7,000 to 13,500 people will lose their jobs. “Hopefully we will see an increase but the likelihood of that may or may not occur,” Austin said. After Austin’s presentation, Scarcella said 75 jobs in Stafford will be lost and that many of them are high paying jobs. “Stafford has a little over 18,000 people living here but have some 27,000 jobs. We are realizing that many of these companies, especially oilfield valve manufacturing companies, are having a most difficult time.” One clear indicator of how oil companies are being hit is
that gas prices have declined 15 cents a gallon in the past three weeks, the mayor said. He went on to say the notices of companies in Stafford that plan to cut employees came to the city three or four weeks ago. “We have 30 of these companies at least in this shape and many of them are truly in a very difficult situation. Stafford is in the epicenter of the oil patch.” The mayor said Stafford is even more reliant on oil field valve companies than Houston was back in 1996 when the lights went out thanks to plunging oil prices. He said it is good to diversify and thinks it is important but “now our strongest companies in this city that provide a great majority of our high paying jobs are the oilfield valve manufactures.” He also noted that all hopefuls who aspired to be the next U.S. president, have said the country needs to bring more See Stafford, Page 3
FBS CEO Manuela Arroyos, left, Dr. William H. Reading, Teresa Cox Reading, FBS Board Chair Ray Aguilar, and FBS Director of Development Lori Dunaway. Photo courtesy UpClose Magazine.
Fort Bend Seniors Meals on Wheels holds annual Mad Hatter Adventure Fort Bend Seniors Meals on Wheels (FBS) has announced that Dr. William H. and Teresa Cox Reading have graciously agreed to be Honorary Chairs for their 9th Annual Mad Hatter Adventure. Their first order of business is to ask everyone to save the date for this year’s Mad Hatter Adventure on Friday, October 28, 2016, at Safari Texas Ranch, from 6:30 p.m. – 10 p.m. The Mad Hatter Adventure is Fort Bend Seniors’ only major fundraising event of the year. Dollars raised support FBS’s commitment to help seniors remain independent by enhancing their quality of life through services and resources. FBS provides daily, hot, nutritious
meals to seniors ages 60 and older in Fort Bend and Waller counties. Approximately 1,000 meals per day are delivered to the door of homebound seniors and another 300 meals per day are served at 11 senior center locations throughout Fort Bend and Waller counties. For some seniors, this is the only hot meal they will receive for the day. In 2015, the Alice in Wonderland Mad Hatter Adventure won the “Best Fundraising Event with Crazy Headwear,” awarded by Fort Bend Lifestyles & Home. This year, the Mad Hatter Adventure takes on a steampunk theme, chosen by the Readings.
Come indulge your imagination in the steampunk style of Victorian-industrial whimsy. The evening promises a little magic, a little music, and so much more; including prizes for Best Costume and, as always, the Best Mad Hat. Each ticket includes heavy hors d’oeuvres, open bar, dancing with a great live band and more. Multiple raffles, along with silent and live auction opportunities complete the evening. For information about sponsorships, ticket purchases, donating auction items, or volunteering for the event, please visit www.fortbendseniors. org or contact Sara Adams at 281.633.7023 or sara@fortbendseniors.org.
FBJSL Sustainer Membership Coffee Committee
Fort Bend ladies who are of the prime age of fifty and older are invited to attend Fort Bend Junior Service League’s (FBJSL) Sustainer New Member Coffee hosted by FBJSL’s Sustainers, Fedrick, Harris Estate Homes by Newmark and The Johnson Development Corporation. Ladies interested in Sustaining membership in the League are invited to come “Be A Star” with us; learn how meaningful it is to be a significant part of the League and how we continue to support and enrich the Fort Bend community through our involvement, service and leadership. FBJSL’s Sustainer New Member Coffee is scheduled for Thursday, August 11th from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at the Fedrick, Harris Estate model home in The Enclave section of Riverstone, located at 58 Enclave Manor Drive, Sugar Land. Please contact Cindy Dempster, Sustainer President, at sustainerpresident@fbjsl.com for more information. FBJSL is an organization of women committed to promoting volunteerism, to developing the potential of women and to improving the Fort Bend County community through the
Come “Be A Star” With FBJSL Sustainers! Front Row (Left to Right): Membership Coffee Committee Chair Rita Brown and FBJSL Sustainer President Cindy Dempster. Second Row (Left to Right): FBJSL Sustainer Secretary and Membership Coffee Liaison Wanda Sdao, Membership Coffee Committee Chair Patsy Jones. Third Row: Membership Coffee Committee Chair June Joseph-Steele. Back Row (Left to Right): Membership Coffee Committee Chairs Linda Woods-Wilson and June Stanley. Photo by MARY FAVRE. effective action and leadership of trained volunteers. Its purpose is exclusively educational and charitable as well as providing an atmosphere of
friendliness, goodwill and camaraderie for all members. For additional information about FBJSL, visit www.fbjsl. org.