VOL 10 No. 34
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FORT BEND FAIR. BALANCED. INFORMATIVE. P. O.BOX 623, SUGAR LAND, TX 77487-0623
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 23, 2017
Official newspaper of Fort Bend County & Missouri City
Kempner High School senior headed to Japan Kempner High School student Layaa Amirthalingam is headed to the 4th Center for Chemical Process Safety (CCPS) Global Summit on Process Safety in Japan next month to present her research paper, “Safety of Hydrogen Vehicle at Home.” Layaa’s work has come a long way. She started working on this research when she was in 7th grade. She even entered her work into the 3M Young Scientist Challenge and won the state merit award for the state of Texas. “I created a video explaining a solution to the problem of hydrogen safety when it comes to hydrogen cars, since it’s a flammable gas, but very hard to detect,” Layaa explained. She also made this her seventh grade science fair project at Sartartia Middle School, and entered this in a national contest as well. “I basically continued the
Mobility Bond Election
On Aug. 9, Fort Bend County Commissioners Court voted unanimously to hold a $218.5 million mobility bond election in November of this year. For the last several months, Fort Bend County commissioners have worked with local jurisdictions to establish a list of 63 projects from all four precincts identified as critical for providing thoroughfare capacity for the rapidly growing population. Partnerships established for many of the projects include city, state, federal and private dollars. These partnerships allow the $218.58 million bond to provide $388.89 million in total projects without requiring an increase in the county tax rate. Visit www. fortbendcountytx.gov/engineering to review the list of projects., Fort Bend County Judge Robert Hebert said, “Our commissioners have done an excellent job in paring down a $500 million wish list to the $218.5 million in projects being submitted to the voters. These projects are essential for maintaining an acceptable level of mobility in our fast-growing county.”
Layaa (Raja) Amirthalingam project that I started then, to where it is now with this paper.” But she didn’t stop there. Layaa decided to take her research paper one step further. “I was looking online as to where I could publicize my paper so that it may be useful to hydrogen car manufacturers and anyone else who wishes to use it,” Layaa said. “I came across the CCPS
Global Summit, which my dad actually told me about, and I was quick to apply just to see if I would be picked to present there.” Layaa’s research paper was chosen and now she’s headed to Japan to present on September 12th and 13th. In addition to the presentation, she will also be taking part in the competition’s Rapid Fire Session. This session is where presenters get one minute to present at least two slides summarizing the research they are working on. Layaa a senior at Kempner High School this year, after graduation, wants to go to college and major in chemical engineering or mathematics and minor in business. AIChE is a professional society of 50,000 chemical engineers in 100 countries. CCPS is a not-for-profit corporate membership organization within AIChE. More information about CCPS is available at www.aiche.org/ccps
Sugar Land braces for 1.4 cent tax rate increase By BARBARA FULENWIDER Sugar Land City Council voted 6-1 to consider a maximum proposed tax rate of 33.007 cents per $100 valuation for 2017-18 at its Aug. 15 meeting. Councilmember Amy Mitchell cast the no vote. This vote was to determine the maximum proposed 2017 tax rate to be placed on the Sept. 19 agenda for consideration and adoption. City Council may direct staff in the future to prepare the ordinance with a lower tax rate but may not exceed the published amount of $0.33007. Current tax rate is 31.595 cents per $100 valuation. The tax rate needed to fund the city’s 2018 budget is 32.233 cents per $100 valuation. That is the effective tax rate plus 3 percent consistent with the City’s Financial Management Policy Statements. However, the city included
a third option of adding the 3.1 cents voters approved tax rate during a 2013 bond referendum of $31.5 million to fund two park projects. With the reduced sales tax revenue, the city administration says it cannot absorb the additional debt service tax or subsidize it. Sugar Land’s budget last year was $280 million. It is $240 million this year, mostly due to fewer sales tax receipts. City revenues were down by 7.6 percent in 2016 and are projected to be lower in 2017. The approximate amount lost in sales tax revenue during FY 2017 is $864,000. Sales taxes are expected to remain flat in 2018. Finance Director Jennifer Brown explained that the first tax option of no tax increase would not maintain the city’s service levels so reductions See TAX, Page 8
HCC opens new Missouri City campus on Texas Parkway
HCC Trustee Dave Wilson, left, Trustee Dr. Carolyn Evans-Shabazz, HCC Southwest College President Dr. Madeline Burillo, HCCS Chair Eva L. Laredo, HCC chair, HCC Chancellor Dr. Cesar Maldonado, U.S. Rep. Al Green, Trustee Neeta Sane, Mayor Allen Owen, Trustee Robert Glaser, Missouri City Councilmen Don Smith and Jerry Wyatt at the ribbon cutting ceremony. With the snip of scissors held by Houston Community College dignitaries and area elected officials, on Aug. 15, HCC officially opened for business once again in the Missouri City community. The new campus, located across from the Missouri City City Hall at 1600 Texas Parkway, will bridge a gap to affordable higher education in the region. “This campus is the product of a cooperative partnership between HCC, governmental and business leaders,” said Dr. Cesar Maldonado, HCC Chancellor, during the ribbon cutting ceremony. “Together we will work to ensure that student success is achieved here at this campus. We will design our programs to meet the needs of industry and the students in their desire and hopes for their careers.” The new $21 million, 69,340 square-foot campus is also home to the HCC Center for Entrepreneurship, Technology & Health and was built to support economic growth within the surrounding area. Maldonado said this campus represents the best in education, workforce, innovation and progress for Missouri City, the city of Houston and
Left, FBISD Board Members and Superintendent joined elected officials and community members in showing their support of “Together We Stand” partnership on Aug. 18 between Marshal and Willowridge high schools. Marshall High School Principal Alfred Hollands presents a “key to the school” to Willowridge High School Principal Thomas Graham. Story on Page 6.
Houston Community College. “This is a win for the community,” said Neeta Sane, HCC Board of Trustees member representing District VII. “Residents needed an easily accessible campus and we got that. This community has supported HCC, and education in general, and they will continue to do so as long as the focus is to make sure we offer educational programs and classes consistent to the needs of the community.” Sane said HCC can help revitalize this community by training an educated workforce. She also made a point of recognizing the many community leaders and development organizations that came together to make the new facility a reality. Sane said she’s proud to show off what HCC has to offer the community. “We’ve come full circle,” shared Mayor Allen Owen with the packed house during the ceremony. “College education is important and not everyone will be going to a four-year college. My two boys went to HCC and then graduated from other colleges; I know how important this is financially as a parent trying to pay for my children’s college education. We are going to end up with a complex different from other campuses with a lot of features to make this campus exceptional. This is the economic push we think will help this corridor.” Missouri City leadership has plans to invest $2 million in the area around the new HCC campus. Projects include a skate park, green space for picnics, a veteran’s memorial and a theater for the arts. City Hall also plans to convert the existing community center into a visitor’s center. Fort Bend County will also contribute to the growth of the
city by building a three-story library adjacent to the new HCC Missouri City campus. Congressman Al Green of the 9th Congressional District spoke to how education unites communities. “My hope is that this campus provides great education for the people living in the area,” Green said. “I also have the hope it will become an anchor to the local businesses to develop around it.” Dr. Madeline Burillo, HCC Southwest College President, said the campus is ready to open its doors and train the Fort Bend workforce that will help the area economy thrive. “At Missouri City, Houston Community College will offer classes to start a new career, change careers, and for those who are currently working, it will provide the opportunity to upgrade skills which are needed due to changing technologies and the need to stay on – or ahead – of the trends, and they are moving fast,” Burillo said. As part of the ribbon cutting event guests toured the building, explored classrooms, state-of-the-art science labs, and administrative areas designed to support student success. In addition to academic core classes, students have access to programs in business administration, marketing, coding and pre-requisite courses for the more than 20 professional health careers offered at the HCC Coleman College for Health Sciences. Registration is underway at the new campus, and advisors are on site to assist students in the enrollment process. The hours of operation are: Monday - Friday — 7 a.m. 10 p.m. Saturday — 7 a.m. - 5 p.m. To learn more about the classes available at the HCC Missouri City campus, visit: http://hccs.edu/missouricity.