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VOL 6 No. 40
FAIR. BALANCED. INFORMATIVE. WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2013
P. O.BOX 623, SUGAR LAND, TX 77487-0623
Official newspaper of Fort Bend County, Missouri City & Sugar Land
GIVE A KID A FLAG TO WAVE
Miles Menendez had fun helping give out American flags at the Fort Bend County Fair Parade. His dad Daniel Menendez is a member of The Exchange Club of Sugar Land. Photo by Larry Pullen. The Exchange Clubs of Sugar Land, Fort Bend and Rosenberg handed out over 15,000 flags to excited children at the Fort Bend County Fair Parade. Students from Kempner High School and Cookie Joe’s Dance Studio also assisted in passing out the flags. Exchange Clubs across the Nation sponsor activities to promote the Prevention of Child Abuse, Development of Youth, Americanism and Community Service. For more information, visit www.ecsl.org.
Memorial Hermann announces $93 million expansion in Sugar Land Memorial Hermann Health System has announced a $93 million expansion and upgrade of its Memorial Hermann Sugar Land hospital into the area’s most advanced facility. The expansion to Memorial Hermann Sugar Land hospital is designed to significantly enhance the patient experience and meet the healthcare needs in the rapidly growing Fort Bend County region. Through this expansion, Memorial Hermann will continue to provide high quality, safe and nationally recognized patient care to families in the Sugar Land community as it has done for nearly a decade. When complete, the expansion will include a new six-story, 120,000-square-foot patient tower that will increase the hospital’s total bed count to 141, as well as an additional professional building, new equipment and related facilities. “One of our highest priorities is to prepare for the growing market in Fort Bend County,” said Dan Wolterman, President and CEO of Memorial Hermann Health System. “As the Houston region’s only full service health system, Memorial Hermann is focused
Expansion details at a glance: •$93 million project in 3 phases •100,000 square foot professional office building •120,000 square foot patient tower •Emergency Center expanding capacity to 26 beds •New MRI and upgraded CT scanner •ICU beds to increase to 14 on providing outstanding care to people throughout Southeast Texas as we have done for more than 100 years. “With the expansion of our Sugar Land hospital, along with major nearby facilities in our Southwest, Katy and Texas Medical Center hospitals, we will be well-prepared to fully serve all of the residents of Fort Bend County,” said Wolterman. Phase one of the project will see eight new beds added to the Emergency Center, increasing the total to 26, and the building of a new surgical suite with full digital integration affording surgeons access to patients’ records and imaging studies within the operating
room. Shell space will also be added to accommodate future surgical suites. A new MRI and an advanced CT scanner will technologically upgrade the hospital’s imaging capabilities. Phase one is expected to begin later this year and be completed by mid- 2014. “Sugar Land and the surrounding area continue to grow and it is our responsibility to respond to that growth not only with upgraded and expanded facilities, but also with new technology and a higher level of services,” said Greg Haralson, CEO of Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Hospital. Phase two of the project, expected to break ground in November 2014, will add a second professional office building. The new structure will provide 100,000 square feet of combined physician offices, expanded sports medicine and rehabilitation services, along with outpatient imaging. Construction on the patient tower will begin in fall 2014, marking phase three of the expansion. When completed, the intensive care unit bed count will increase to 14, and 16 new beds will be added to the intermediate care unit. Including
shell and expansion capability, the tower will ultimately house 210 beds. “We continue to invest in our future to meet the growing needs of our community,” Haralson continued. “We are well on our way to accomplishing our vision to bring a medical center level of care to the communities we serve.” This is the first major development project undertaken at Memorial Hermann Sugar Land since its opening in 2006. In addition to facility expansion projects, Memorial Hermann continues to expand its services and medical specialties on campus and beyond. The expansion plans for Memorial Hermann Sugar Land hospital come on the heels of major growth initiatives at Memorial Hermann The Woodlands, Memorial Hermann Katy, Memorial Hermann Northwest hospitals, and development of a medical campus in Pearland that will feature a Convenient Care Center, a 64-bed hospital and medical office buildings. For more information on Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Hospital, call 281-7255000 or visit www.memorialhermann.org.
Ben Nguyen receives Missouri City to vote on tax rate Oct. 7 bravery award Ben Nguyen, a Kempner High School sophomore and member of Boy Scout Troop 911-Sugar Land, was honored with an Award of Bravery from the Sam Houston Area Council in recognition of his immediate response to assisting his grandmother during an emergency. Nguyen treated his grandmother for shock after she lost consciousness at a family dinner. Nguyen was prepared for the emergency by having earned his First Aid, Emergency Preparedness and Lifesaving merit badges. His Boy Scout Troop 911 (ironically named) handles all First Aid training for his district. Nguyen had also taken SHAC’s National Youth Leadership Training course and is the Order of the Arrow. His response to his grandmother’s emergency and his prompt delivery of acquired Boy Scout skills dem-
Nguyen onstrate the epitome of the Boy Scout motto, “Be Prepared.” His heroic act also earned Nguyen recognition from his Troop Scout Master and The First Aid Merit Badge Counselor during a recent awards ceremony at St. Theresa Church Family Center.
Visit fbindependent.com and participate in Today’s poll. You can vote only once, but your identity will remain anonymous. Results of last poll ( as of Sept. 30,2013)
Do you support the $85 million concert venue to be built by the city of Sugar Land? 53% 42% 5%
56 Votes 45 Votes 5 Votes Total Votes : 106
Yes No No opinion
By SESHADRI KUMAR Missouri City City Council will consider a proposed tax increase at its Oct. 7 meeting to fund the city’s 2014 budget, which was approved unanimously by the city Council in June. Missouri City’s current tax rate is 54.48 cents per $100 valuation. The proposed tax rate is 57.375 cents per $100 valuation. City Manager Ed Broussard presented the budget with a proposed tax rate of 58.35 cents per $100 valuation in June. However, by implementing additional cost saving measures, the proposed tax increase has been reduced by nearly one cent. The largest increase in the city budget this year is in salary to city employees, including the police officers and firefighters, Broussard said in his budget message. The increase in tax rate is necessitated by the approval of the pay plan Adjustment in April 2013, new motorcycle unit that includes five officers
Riverstone Heart and Sole Hundreds of competitors and supporters showed up Saturday for this year’s Heart and Sole 5k in Riverstone, enjoying a run through the community and plenty of post-race activities. The race was not only good for the heart, but also the soul, as event-goers were asked to donate gently used and new running shoes for clients of the Fort Bend Women’s Center. More on Page 7
and one firefighter to replace a firefighter position, according to Broussard. The City had contracted with Waters Consulting last year to carry out this study. The study was completed in the first quarter of Calendar Year 2013 and the recommendations from the results of the study were implemented in May. City officials said the tax rate increase has no connection to the Quail Valley Golf Course or the new City Centre. The interest payment for the bonds are paid out of the debt service tax rate. While some critics allege that the golf course and city centre incurred a loss of $500,000, the city centre’s 2014 budget approved by the city council projects no loss in 2013-2014. According to the budget approved by the city council in August, “As a whole, the operation of the City Centre and the Golf Courses at Quail Valley are expected to improve during the coming fiscal year. Though there
have been hurdles to get over during the inaugural year, we will continue to seek to identify new sources of revenues, find ways to maintain our competitive pricing and continue to seek ways in lowering expenses and being more efficient in how we operate. For FY 2014, the revenues for the facility are budgeted for a $3,742,670 and expenses are budgeted for $3,742,578. This is an increase in net assets of $92.” When city council adopted the budget on June 17, no one spoke during the public hearing, opposing the expenditures, predicated upon the proposed tax increase. Councilman Robin Elackatt asked the city manager when the motorcycles would be acquired. Broussard said the purchase would be done in October after city council adopts the new tax rate. The city council held two public hearings on Sept. 19 and Sept. 23. About 40 people attended the second public hearing. (Last week, it was inadver-
tently reported in this paper that about a dozen people attended and spoke. It should have read about a dozen people spoke.) Of the 14 people who spoke against the proposed tax increase, nine were from Knanaya Homeowners Association and all of them opposed the tax increase as they are retirees, with fixed income. Among others who spoke were Noel Pinnock, Jenny Bailey and Kris Allfrey, known critics of Mayor Allen Owen and a majority of the city council. They campaign through Missouri City Concerns FaceBook page, with a stated goal of unseating Owen and Councilman Jerry Wyatt. To avoid a tax rate increase the options are either to cut some of the city services included in the budget or take money out of the fund balance of about $8 million, (21 percent of the city’s operating budget.) The city has historically maintained this fund balance to meet expenditures during unforeseen circumstances.