Fort Bend Independent 112917

VOL 10 No. 48

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FORT BEND FAIR. BALANCED. INFORMATIVE. P. O.BOX 623, SUGAR LAND, TX 77487-0623

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2017

Official newspaper of Fort Bend County & Missouri City

Sugar Land hires known audit firm on a 4-3 split vote

NATIONAL ADOPTION DAY. Child Advocates of Fort Bend CASA Program Development Coordinator Krystal Vann shares stickers with one of the children during Fort Bend’s National Adoption Day celebration. Twenty-five adoptions were finalized in a single day during the celebration, including 7 children from the foster care system. More on Page 8.

Councilwoman Mitchell calls for ‘respect’ Sugar Land Councilwoman Amy Mitchell read out a prepared statement at the Nov. 21 city council meeting, in defense of fellow councilmember Mary Joyce, who took issue with the city’s financial projections in connection with the annexation of Greatwood and New Territory.

“Thank you, Mary Joyce. I am proud of you. In my opinion, you are doing what the citizens of Sugar Land elected you to do.

“I have been serving on City Council since 2011. I have always been proud of what we do. Proud that we have been recognized as a Community of Respect.

“Last Tuesday, I went to the Fulshear City Council Meeting. I was truly impressed with the respect each of the councilmembers gave each other and

Mitchell the citizens of Fulshear.

“This was done, even after several residents caustically attacked the council members for a recent appointment. I also noted that the acting city manager was respectful to all of the council members.

“Now, I am aware that the Council members there do not

always get along but they truly take pride in putting their differences aside and treating each other respectfully.

“I truly wish we had the same respect for each other and that our City Manager exhibited the requisite respect that elected officials/council members deserve.

“I want to applaud Mary Joyce. She has exhibited true grace and courage under fire.

She was personally attacked.

She did not respond negatively.

She was respectful and informative.

“We on City council are limited. We are not permitted to discuss potential issues with the City with each other to avoid some kind of walking quorum.

If we discover a potential issue, we cannot advise other council members. I believe we have a See RESPECT, Page 5

By BARBARA FULENWIDER After a great deal of back and forth regarding the accuracy of numbers on the upcoming annexation of New Territory and Greatwood, Sugar Land City Council hired an auditor from Whitley Penn LLP to sort it all out for council and citizens.

The firm currently conducts external audit of the city’s books under an annual contract.

For the new job of reviewing the annexation finances, the city will pay $7,500 to the firm.

Councilmembers Amy Mitchell and Carol McCutcheon voted against hiring the firm as they wanted an “outsider” with no connection to the city or city council members to review the numbers.

Councilmember Mary Joyce recused herself from voting on the issue because she is an interested party in the dispute.

The presentation on Nov. 7 by Joyce who researched extensively the annexation finances became contentious and spilled into council’s Nov. 21 meeting.

After reviewing the information presented by Joyce in the Nov. 7 meeting, the city staff remained “fully confident in the integrity of the City’s financial analysis as previously presented.”

Since the financial analysis was reviewed with City Council in 2016, there have been changes in conditions that affected the assumptions used to develop the forecast, according to Finance Director Jennifer Brown.

“This is the case for any financial forecast - however, even with the changes, the annexation is still financially neutral to existing Sugar Land residents,” Brown told city council..

Assistant City Manager Jim Calloway assured the city

council that “annexation is still financially neutral to existing Sugar Land residents and that staff will meet all service levels and contractual obligations to current and newly annexed residents on day one of the annexation.”

Brown’s presentation explained the differences between the city’s numbers and Joyce’s numbers.

Brown, for the time, revealed in public that the city had inadvertently omitted the projected transfers from utility funds for two years which would partly help pay the debt

See INSIDE TRACK Page 3 attributed to the annexed areas.

Brown said the city corrected that in the debt service fund forecast.

Brown faulted Joyce for continuing to omit these corrections made by staff in her calculations.

The city did not receive updated financial data from the MUDs in New Territory and Greatwood by the deadline of Oct. 24, 2016. Later, the city received the numbers which showed a drop of $2 million in revenue.

The city staff amended the data and sent the information in a memo to city council in the information packet.

From Brown’s point of view, the staff had properly “presented” to the city council the modified debt payment projection.

From Joyce’s point of view that is not a “presentation to city council” but information given to council members in a memo, with hundreds of pages of other information.

Joyce said, “It was “unfortunate that Council Member (Carol) McCutcheon”

and I “were denied the opportunity to sit down together with you (Jennifer Brown, director of finance). We could have gone over the data and compared apples to apples.

“Without open flow of communication and free exchange of information, we are never going to deliver an opinion of consensus to the constituents and that seems like a disservice to them,” she said.

Joyce said, “Our data doesn’t match because you started at a different starting point.

The numbers you used are MODIFIED debt payments that were sent via a memo 2 days after the presentation made to Council and the public in 2016. I clearly stated that my presentation was made, using the last numbers the public saw.

It doesn’t make my presentation ‘inaccurate’ or in ‘error’ because the outcomes of your analysis are based on different data.

With that said, the updated information is still troubling to me.

“One item I would like to clear up is that you stated in your response letters on 11/13 and 11/14 that you don’t know where I got the $6.11 million in property tax revenue for FY18 that was used in my presentation on November 7th, therefore you didn’t use it for your analysis.

This is another example of a detail we could have discussed if we would have been allowed to meet. It comes directly from a city budget schedule handed out on 9/26/17 to all council members.

“Regarding this presentation, the executive summary Council and the public received stated quote ‘There have been changes in conditions that affected the assumptions used to develop the forecast’ and that the annexation is ‘still financially neutral to See AUDIT, Page 3

Challenger drama Angry Men to begin filming in Texas in January

Thirty-one years ago, the space shuttle Challenger exploded shortly after lift-off, killing all seven crew members, including the first planned “teacher-in-space.” A new, independent film, Angry Men, being produced in Houston, explores the story of one engineer who attempted to stop the launch because he was convinced the inevitable would happen.

Angry Men will take a look at the eve of the Challenger explosion — January 1986 — as one hotheaded engineer, who was convinced the O-ring seals would fail and endanger everyone on board, goes to the extreme to stop the launch. His desperate race against the clock to call off the billion dollar, multidelayed Challenger launch hasn’t been explored in film until now.

While several TV movies and documentaries have been made about the Challenger explosion, this is the first dramatized version that takes us into the life of the engineer who headed up the attempt to stop it from happening at all.

Nathan Vonminden, who has a degree in Aerospace Engineering, researched the story for eight years. His screenplay is based primarily on information found in public records, in the Report of the PRESIDENTIAL COMMISSION on the Space Shuttle Challenger Accident.

Linear, fast-paced, and filled with insults, Angry Men is a behind-the-scenes story of a defining American moment that marks time for anyone who lived through it. All characters in Angry Men have been fictionalized, including names, in order to protect the innocent… and not so innocent. The audition process begins soon, with filming starting in early January. Casting will be open to all ethnicities.

“We look forward to hiring the best actors in Texas to fill the many exciting roles in this dynamic story,” said Vonminden. “Angry Men champions the value of human life, that eludes our culture today, and holds the whistle blowers in esteem as people who did the right thing when no one else would.”

A private script reading of Angry Men was held in Rosenberg, Texas on Nov. 27 for potential investors. For more information about this screening and to find out about investment opportunities, please visit angrymenmovie.com. Angry Men is Vonminden’s second film. His first film, Uganda Man (2011), was made for less than $5,000 and earned over $200,000 for producer Attack Poverty. Over his 14-year career, Vonminden has also directed hundreds of short films of all genres and types.

Page 2 • INDEPENDENT • NOVEMBER 29, 2017

NEWS DeWalt Heritage Center Holiday The Sugar Land Heritage Foundation unveils First Colony - Celebrating 40 Wassail/CASA Home tour Years as the 2017 Ornament

Kyle Fuhrmann worked on his Eagle Scout project to install rose trellises and brick flower bed borders at the Historic Dew House. He is

joined by his parents Kathleen & Alex as well as siblings Heather and Dylan.

This turn of the century home, located at the back of

Kitty Hollow Park,( just past the Sienna HEB Entrance, on the left side of Highway 6) will truly shine for this year’s free-to-the public December 3rd Holiday Wassail & December 10th Full Decor Tour ( both 1-4 p.m.) It is also going to be the first ever Historic Home featured on the Child Advocates Holiday Home Tour December 8th & 9th. Mayor & Mrs. Allen Owen, Certainty Home Mortgage, HEB Sienna Market, Fort Bend Dental Associates, Feather & Nest Interiors, Leonetti Graphics, the Woman’s Club of Missouri City as well as the Dacus & Engleman families sponsored the Dew House Docents’ efforts led by Becky Gay & Miriam Watson.

Come One, Come All.....Happy Holidays Ya’ll!

Each year, the Sugar Land Heritage Foundation features a treasured historic building or site in Sugar Land on its Christmas ornament.

This year the foundation presents FIRST COLONY as the 2017 Ornament.

The FIRST COLONY community celebrates 40 years as a notable development in America’s real estate history. Sugar Land and Fort Bend County benefited from an entrepreneurial plan that looked to the future, speculated on growth and opportunity, demanded new heights to ideals that has resulted in a premier master planned community and business concept that remains in place today.

These high-quality brass ornaments come individually packaged in a beautiful gift box which includes a printed information card about the ornament.

Ornaments will be on sale at the Sugar Land Heritage Foundation office at 198 Kempner Street in Sugar Land on Saturday December 2, December 9, and December 16 from 10 a.m to noon. Ornaments will also be on sale at the Fort Bend Chamber Holiday Luncheon on December 15th at Sweetwater Country Club.

Ornaments are $25 each and all proceeds benefit the Sugar Land Heritage Foundation.

You can contact us by email and we will make arrangements to get the ornaments to you. Contact us at slheritage@ slheritage.org if you need to place an order.

First Colony’s roots originate with the first 300 settlers brought to Texas in the 1820’s

by Stephen F. Austin, the “Father of Texas.”

Later, business partners Issac H. Kempner, Sr. and W. T. Eldridge, Sr. acquired the land in 1908. It remained under the same stewardship for more than six decades.

In 1973, a joint venture of Gerald D. Hines Interests of Houston, and Cousins Properties Incorporated of Atlanta, resulted in the purchase of the property, nearly 7,500 acres, sale considered one of the largest in the State of Texas.

A second parcel of land consisting of 1,800 acres was purchased and added to the First Colony’s plan from the notable Frost Ranch, an internationally known property recognized for its registered cattle and horses.

Gerald Hines’ company, Sugarland Properties, Inc. was the master planned developer of the community, upon which his vision was to not only

live, but also to work. Live, Work, Shop and Play became the cornerstone on which the community was built.

Sugarland Properties, Inc. also developed Sugar Land Town Square. It has a great mix of office space, high rise residential condominiums, a hotel and conference center, retail stores for shopping, and restaurants, and Sugar Land City Hall.

Standing in front of city hall is a 1.4 acre pedestrian plaza with a historic centerpiece, a fountain around a bronze sculpture created by local resident, Bob Pack. It shows Stephen F. Austin crossing the Brazos River with his pack horse. The structure also includes a historical narrative that tells of the discovery of Texas, its earliest settlers and the perils they faced.

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INDEPENDENT • NOVEMBER 29, 2017 • Page 3

Sugar Land City Council is in disarray Sugar Land City Council is a hopelessly and deeply divided house.

Differences of opinion among city council members are nothing unusual, but the council functions in two groups, one for and the other against an issue, and the differences do not seem to be based merely on merits of an issue.

The unseemly controversy and shadow-boxing over the annexation of New Territory and Greatwood and the earlier fight over the tax rate and budget exemplify the divide.

The city staff is no longer neutral and they side with one group, or that group sides with the administration.

The mayor and his three cohorts, who form a majority, co-opted the administration to their side, leaving the three other women council members to fend for themselves.

The deplorable features of this feud include the tacit approval or covert support from the mayor for the city manager and staff to take on Councilmember Mary Joyce, Amy Mitchell and Carol McCuthcheon and treat them as adversaries or “enemies of the state.”

It is “us” versus “them.”

The mayor and city manager may say that Joyce threw the first stone by questioning the integrity of the staff.

Too bad.

To challenge the administration on facts and figures is the prerogative of an elected councilmember.

Even if the councilmember is wrong, the staff has an obligation to explain the matter, instead of taking offense to her queries.

The leadership clearly paved the way for the current imbroglio.

When Joyce wanted to meet with the staff to sort out her differences with reference to the annexation finances, the mayor refused to allow the meeting.

The reason: Transparency.

He did not want the issue to be discussed behind closed doors.

Further, Joyce was perceived to be an accuser and the city staff, the accused.

Inside Track By Seshadri Kumar

So in the best interest of justice,the mayor did not permit the meeting.

Had that meeting taken place, the issue could have been resolved amicably.

Then the appointment of an “outside” auditor to study Joyce’s “allegations” turned out to be farcical.

The mayor unilaterally announced his intention to hire WhitleyPenn to study the dispute.

That is the “outside” audit firm currently hired by the city to conduct annual audits. Here “outside” means external, not associated with the city.

It is distinctly different from “internal auditor,” an auditor, who is an employee of the city.

The mayor and his supporters on council argue that WhitleyPenn has integrity and is external and hence, will be unbiased.

WhitleyPenn’s integrity or professionalism is not in question here.

WhitleyPenn can do its job purely within the ethical bounds and professional standards and confirm the city’s claim that the annexation is net neutral and does not cost anything to the current city tax payers.

No doubt, the city has complied with the letter of the law regarding annexation and level of services, as defined in the agreement.

Even Mary Joyce is not questioning the legality of the annexation and level of services provided.

What may be verified by studying the annexation issue in a new perspective is taking into account the financial statements of the municipal utility districts in the annexed areas and if there were scope or other avenues to ensure that the debt service funds

NEWS Audit From Page 1

received from the MUDs are more than what they were, after fixing the tax rate for 2018.

When the revenue dropped by $2 million, the city smartly adjusted the future interest rate by reducing it slightly, and came out with the same net positive fund balance of $6 million as before.

There is nothing illegal in these calculations.

Comparing Mary Joyce’s numbers is no longer relevant because the city has now filled the gap, long after Joyce asked for them.

The scope of work to be done by the audit firm itself is set by the city staff and council and not Mary Joyce.

The term “independent” in this context means, someone who has no stakes on either side of dispute.

According to audit professionals, the Texas State Board of Accountancy has some restrictions on an external auditor performing “internal audit.”

The city deems the issue not to be in the scope for “internal audit.”

That is a fact issue which will be adjudicated if anyone takes up the matter with the state board.

As one who has been observing the city politics for over two decades, the genesis of the group fight is over the city administration’s demand that the council increase the tax rate to a certain level or else kiss goodbye to future capital projects.

If the majority of the council wanted, they could have found a way to reinstate the capital projects without a tax increase this year, by fine tuning the numbers as the city did in the annexation finances.

But, the majority believes in the administration’s position wholeheartedly and endorses the view that a tax increase is the only way to pay for the projects.

Meanwhile, as the democracy works, the fourmember majority represents the whole city and voters who support the threemember minority may feel disenfranchised, at least until the election in May next year.

existing Sugar Land residents.’

“My point all along has been that these changes in financial conditions were not accurately reported to council or the public in a timely or transparent manner. The appearance to me is that information has been delivered in a very selective manner,” Joyce said.

Regarding level of service for New Territory and Greatwood, Joyce said, she made a statement last week that “the city is now redefining the term level of service and I stand by that. State statute allows for a wide berth during annexation in financial matters and terminology such as level of service.

“While you are accurate,” Joyce said, “in reporting that quote, ‘Sugar Land will meet all service level obligations’ it will not in fact be at the same level that was originally presented to council and the public. That became apparent when we voted for annexation with the understanding that the new dispatch/ EOC and animal services facilities were needs to maintain service levels and they would be constructed in 2018/19. Those projects have now been pushed beyond 5 years.

“Are we meeting the state statute? Yes. Is that in alignment with what was presented to council and to citizens? NO. This is another case of being very selective about the information. This is coming down to semantics,” she said.

Joyce continued by saying she stands by her statement that taxes will still go up and doesn’t “see a way around it.” She also said she believes council has some processes that need to be evaluated and improved “to avoid this problem compounding and communication breakdown on future important city matters. I still maintain that I do not believe council was adequately informed.”

She concluded by saying “even the best cities have chal-

lenges in budget, process, staff, etc. We need to think long and hard about this culture. How are we going to empower our leaders, cultivate new ones and maintain public trust.

“We need to have the most up to date information to serve this city well and be able to ask questions of staff and fellow council members without concern for repercussions. Maybe it’s time we look at the culture and ask ourselves if it has compromised transparency in this city,” Joyce said.

Background information to council said city staff did not receive Joyce’s information prior to the workshop so had no way to know what was going to be said at the Nov. 7 meeting. The executive summary at the Nov. 21 council meeting said, “Allegations were made at the meeting calling into question the integrity of the numbers used and the neutrality of the annexation of the city’s finances.”

After Mitchell made her pitch, Mayor Joe Zimmerman said, “After the presentation was made and because of the way the serious questions were raised, I as mayor, suggested we get an outside auditor. On the agenda tonight is a recommendation to hire an auditor. I suggested it be an outside auditor who is absolutely independent.”

He continued by saying, “Everything done to date and in the future will be done transparently and everyone who needs to be involved will be. Going forward, we’ll have the same caliber of people who will continue to service our staff and council.”

Mitchell urged council to have a forensic account of all the numbers, compare them and get the real numbers. “I think we have an obligation to find out what happened in prior annexations,” she said. “We need forensic accounting and think it should be clean hands coming in neutral and then they inform us. I think that’s our obligation to the citizens.” Finance Direc-

tor Brown, said, “You can’t do forensic accounting on a financial forecast because nothing has occurred. They can only trace on the calculations. There is nothing to audit, so it’s not actually an audit.”

With that said, At-Large Councilman No. 1 Himesh Gandhi said this was council’s “longest budget cycle we’ve ever gone through. It started in May. We need to bring closure to this. The biggest things are financial integrity on this annexation we’re about to annex in a few weeks and there are policy issues among staff and council.

“You can always improve systems,” Gandhi said. “We can do that over a course of time. We’ve got to move on on these issues. The only way that will happen is by moving forward on the annexation. We can move on and decide what kind of changes we want to make and use our energies in a different way.”

Zimmerman concurred that council needs to move on so they went to item 6 on the agenda to hire an auditor. The auditor with Whitley Penn LLP is tasked with acquiring calculations used to develop the debt service fund impact of the annexation; trace and agree calculations support documentation and assumptions; identify and document changes made to the calculations over the time period described.

Also, agree changes to presentations to city council; recalculate the numbers to determine if the annexation has a net neutral impact on Sugar Land’s debt service fund; trace and agree the amounts included in the calculations to the amounts in the fiscal year 2018 budget; recalculate impact of changes of tax rate allocation for fiscal year 2018 debt service budget, and obtain annexation analysis packet prepared by Joyce and compare those calculations to those prepared by city management. With all that said and done, council took a break.

NOTICE OF DETERMINATION NOT TO UPDATE LAND USE ASSUMPTIONS, CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS PLAN, OR IMPACT FEES The City Council of the City of Missouri City has determined that no change to the land use

assumptions, capital improvements plan, or impact fee is necessary for the Northeast Oyster Creek Subwatershed service area.

The Northeast Oyster Creek Subwatershed service area is generally described as approximately 952 acres along F.M. 1092 Road (Murphy Road), north of El Dorado Boulevard and south of the city limits line of the City of Missouri City, Texas, and is more particularly depicted as follows:

Missouri City’s Trash Screening Enforcement Sweep resumes Dec. 1

In the months after Hurricane Harvey, Missouri City suspended enforcement of trash screening and fence and debris violations to assure homeowners in all communities had an opportunity to focus on rebuilding and recovering from the storm.

The deferment will continue through the end of November.

Then, starting on Friday, Dec. 1, 2017, Code Enforcement Officers will resume issuing warnings and citations for trash screening offenses. And, on Thursday, Feb. 1, 2018, staff will resume enforcing fence and debris regulations.

“We implemented the grace period to assist our citizens during an unprecedented public emergency,” said City Manager Anthony J. Snipes. “And, as part of our commitment to superior customer service, especially following a crisis such as Harvey, staff wanted to provide residents adequate notification of the December first plan of action.”

Code initiatives are integral in keeping the City landscape clean and green and a collaborative effort by citizens and staff in this area is reflective of the Show Me City’s designation as a Platinum Scenic City. The distinction reflects the area’s

utilization of strict ordinances and regulations, resulting in increased economic development and property values. Missouri City is the only municipality in the region to hold a Platinum-level Scenic City designation.

To assure strategic enforcement of codes and consistency overall, City Manager Snipes convened a Nuisance Abatement Committee in August, 2016 to develop the philosophy, processes, communications and means to measure the outcomes and reporting out on Code Enforcement initiatives.

“The task force is making strides and includes employees in my office, Code Enforcement, Police, Fire & Rescue Services, Development Services, Legal and Communications,” he said.

“Based on recommendations the committee made to City Council last year, Members unanimously approved an ordinance that establishes graduated minimum penalties for certain violations, including solid waste and recycling receptacle screening.”

Council approved the fines below for violation of the Solid Waste Receptacle Placement ordinance: A minimum fine of $50 for a first conviction; $250 for the

second conviction; $500 for three or more convictions “There are a high number of trash screening violations citywide and the December sweep will serve as a reminder to homeowners that any device used for trash collection or storage must be screened from public view,” said Code Enforcement Supervisor Cynthia Rex. “Code of Ordinance also prohibits trash and trash containers being placed at the curb prior to 6 p.m. the evening before scheduled collection and after midnight of the scheduled collection day.”

Residents who wish to report Code Enforcement violations may do so through https:// seeclickfix.com/missouricity or by downloading the Missouri City iReport app, which is available for free in the app store for iPhone and Android phones.

Citizens can download the application by searching “Missouri City iReport”.

Once a resident has reported an issue, iReport will contact a corresponding Code Enforcement Officer via email for further review.

The application also allows residents to track the status of their complaint, receive progress reports and comment on other complaints.

If, on or before January 30, 2018, a person makes a written request to the City Secretary of the City of Missouri City, Texas, requesting that the land use assumptions, capital improvements plan, or impact fee be updated, the City Council must comply with the request by following the requirements of Sections 395.052 through 395.057 of the Texas Local Government Code.

Any such request for an update should be delivered to Maria Jackson, City Secretary, at 1522 Texas Parkway, Missouri City, Texas 77489.

Page 4 • INDEPENDENT • NOVEMBER 29 , 2017

OPINION

MIKE’s MONOLOGUE

Slashing Claws, Flashing Teeth

By MICHAEL GRANTO In a life before this life, I worked at the University of Miami in Miami, Florida.

The people who work there, and attend school there, call it simply, “The U”.

I was the afternoon Shift Commander for over twenty years.

We had the responsibilities you’d normally expect a security department to have: making sure the people and the property are safe and secure, and patrolling the buildings frequently was one of the ways we did it. Every building, every floor (except the special ones) every day.

Rosenstiel Medical Science Building is one of the older buildings on campus. It is actually two buildings, though that isn’t readily apparent to the casual observer. The building is colloquially known by its initials, and called, “R-MS-B.” Part of the research done at Rosenstiel was done on animals. This was not widely publicized, though, because we really didn’t want to deal with the crowds of protesters that might swarm if it were widely known.

Getting to the animal hous-

ing part of Rosenstiel was not a straightforward process.

First, you had to know the right floor to go to; although animals were housed on several floors, you can only get into the animal area from one floor, and you had to know which corridors to go through to do it. Pretty nifty design, for guys who put rest rooms on opposite ends of the building.

As you might guess, making sure the animal rooms were secure was an important part of our lockdown procedures.

Keeping in mind that even getting to this area was something to be planned ahead of time, and keeping in mind that because of the building’s age, it was not uncommon to run into minor, or maybe not-sominor, mechanical problems.

Today, people seem to call them “issues,” but if something either doesn’t work properly, or if it breaks, that’s a “problem,” not an “issue.”

How do I tell the difference?

An example may suffice: if I go into a men’s room and there’s no soap, that might be an issue; if I go into a men’s room and there’s no toilet tissue, that’s a bona fide problem.

Granto When we ran into such things, we wrote a Security Report, documenting the specific item and location, and specifying the problem. Later, that report would be forwarded to the Physical Plant department.

There were several kinds of animals that were kept in the RMSB, because there were many kinds of research being conducted. One kind of animal kept on the third floor for a time, was a species of baboon. I got a look at those baboons several times. They are larger by half or more than the usual monkeys in the animal area. They also had huge canine teeth; their canine teeth were two inches long; and these baboons were very, very smart.

I had seen a movie once called “Sands of the Kalahari,” which involved a plane crash in the Kalahari desert,

with people waiting for rescue. They are harassed by a troop of baboons, who got continually more and more aggressive.

The white hunter of the group is a dastardly character, who returns to the wreck to get supplies, including a hunting rifle, and who later drives off one of the other survivors into the desert at gunpoint, presumably to die. Obviously, there’s a woman involved.

That group member later returns unexpectedly with a rescue party and a helicopter. All the group gets on the helicopter except for the white hunter, who knows he’ll be prosecuted, so he remains behind. He still has the rifle, and kills baboons when they get too close, or when he’s having a bad day.

To demonstrate that he’s the new sheriff in town, he picks a fight with the alpha male of the troop, and kills the alpha male. He chokes it to death.

In addition to being seriously psychotic, this guy is seriously macho, because, as I said, the canine teeth on these baboons are two inches long.

He continues foraging for food in the baboons’ territory.

They continue to resent it.

Then, one day he runs out of ammunition.

The last scene in the movie is a far shot of the white hunter near the edge of a promontory.

He’s foraging for food. He doesn’t notice in time, but the

NOTICE OF SALE STATE OF TEXAS

BY VIRTUE OF AN ORDER OF SALE

§ § §

FORT BEND COUNTY

and issued pursuant to judgment decree(s) of the District Court of Fort Bend County, Texas, by the Clerk of said Court on said date, in the hereinafter numbered and styled suit(s) and to me directed and delivered as Sheriff or Constable of said County, I have on October 26, 2017, seized, levied upon, and will, on the first Tuesday in December, 2017, the same being the 5th day of said month, at 301 Jackson Street, William Travis Building, 1st Floor Meeting Room in the City of Richmond, Texas 77469, between the hours of 10 o'clock a.m. and 4 o'clock p.m. on said day, beginning at 10:00 AM, proceed to sell for cash to the highest bidder all the right, title, and interest of the defendants in such suit(s) in and to the following described real estate levied upon as the property of said defendants, the same lying and being situated in the County of Fort Bend and the State of Texas, to-wit: Sale #

Cause # Judgment Date

Acct # Order Issue Date

Style of Case

Legal Description

Adjudged Value

Estimated Minimum Bid

1

10-DCV180900 05/24/17

003900000032190 1 OCTOBER 20, 2017

FORT BEND COUNTY VS. MANDELL & WRIGHT PC FKA MANDELL & WRIGHT, ATTORNEY'S AT LAW, ET AL

1.7548 ACRES, MORE OR LESS, HENRY JONES SURV, ABST 39, CLERK'S FILE NO. 20025130703*

$56,580.00

$20,000.00

2

16-DCV229355 11/16/16

646012001008090 1 OCTOBER 20, 2017 301002015007590 1 OCTOBER 20, 2017

LOT 8, BLK 1, RIVERPARK, SEC FORT BEND COUNTY VS. AGHAEGBUNA ODELUGO, AKA 12, REC'D IN SLIDE NO. 2208/A* AGHAEGBUNA CHIBUIKE ODELUGO, ET AL

$223,590.00

$16,800.00

4

16-DCV232578 05/31/17

5

16-DCV233291 05/23/17

FORT BEND COUNTY VS. ALFRED BRADLEY, ET AL

085000043306090 FORT BEND COUNTY VS. 6 NELLIE RAY WILLIAMS OCTOBER 20, 2017

LOT 7, BLK 15, DAVE FIELDS, 2ND ADDIN, VOL 234, PG 228 & VOL 478, PG 289*

$56,490.00

$21,000.00

CORRECTED PLAT OF BERNARD STERN S/D, 1.04 ACRES, MORE OR LESS, OUT OF LOT 43, VOL 53, PG 235 & VOL 766, PG 184*

$57,630.00

$13,400.00

(any volume and page references, unless otherwise indicated, being to the Deed Records, Fort Bend County, Texas, to which instruments reference may be made for a more complete description of each respective tract.) or, upon the written request of said defendants or their attorney, a sufficient portion of the property described above shall be sold to satisfy said judgment(s), interest, penalties, and cost; and any property sold shall be subject to the right of redemption of the defendants or any person having an interest therein, to redeem the said property, or their interest therein, within the time and in the manner provided by law, and shall be subject to any other and further rights to which the defendants or anyone interested therein may be entitled, under the provisions of law. Said sale to be made by me to satisfy the judgment(s) rendered in the above styled and numbered cause(s), together with interest, penalties, and costs of suit, and the proceeds of said sales to be applied to the satisfaction thereof, and the remainder, if any, to be applied as the law directs.

RECENT CHANGES IN THE PROPERTY TAX CODE NOW REQUIRE PURCHASERS OF TAX SALE PROPERTY TO HAVE A STATEMENT FROM THE FORT BEND COUNTY TAX ASSESSOR-COLLECTOR CERTIFYING THAT THE PERSON/FIRM/COMPANY PURCHASING PROPERTY AT A TAX SALE OWES NO DELINQUENT PROPERTY TAXES TO ANY TAXING ENTITY WITHIN THE COUNTY. YOU WILL NOT RECEIVE A TAX SALE DEED TO ANY PROPERTY YOU PURCHASE WITHOUT THIS CERTIFICATE. TO OBTAIN A CERTIFICATE, PLEASE CONTACT YOUR FORT BEND COUNTY TAX ASSESSOR-COLLECTOR AT LEAST TWO WEEKS PRIOR TO THE SALE.

Dated at Richmond, Texas, October 26, 2017

baboon troop has been stalking him. He’s on a narrow finger of land; behind him is an un-survivable drop-off; ahead of him is the baboon troop, spread out so that they’ve got his escape cut off. They are steadily closing in on him.

He has no chance of surviving the next ten minutes; those minutes will be filled with the slashing claws, and flashing teeth of three dozen baboons who will leave behind a pile of dismembered, bloody bones when they go to their evening resting place.

One evening I had the Rosenstiel patrol, and naturally had to check the animal rooms. The door to the baboon’s room had a problem with the closer. It either didn’t engage, or it would engage precipitously, with great force. It did the great force thing as I pushed it open, and the force of it swinging back knocked my flashlight out of my hand. At the time, my flashlight was turned off.

Then came the power failure.

I grabbed for the door as it closed, so that I at least had the dim light from the weak emergency lights in the hall coming in the room. Then, holding the door, I bent over to see if I could feel my flashlight. As you may believe, this was a matter of some importance now. I was bent over, with my hindquarters pointed in the direction of the baboons’ cages, and now I really hoped they were actually in those cages. I was groping blindly in a room with no light for the only thing that could even remotely qualify as a weapon: My flashlight.

Then, while I am groping blindly, hindquarters pointed toward baboons, I heard a very loud, threatening, menacing growl/roar/shriek. All I could think of was white hunter, baboons closing in, flashing canine teeth, grasping claws, and the pile of dismembered, bloody bones.

By bending and stretching my paunchy, fifty-plus-year old frame far past its normal limit, my fingers touched my flashlight. With victory in my heart, I grasped it, turned it on, straightened up, and pointed it at the baboons.

I saw the largest one grasping the bars of his cage, and there, grinding his canine teeth together, which I had been told is a sign he is seriously upset, was what had to be the alpha male of this group. He was the Arnold Schwarzenegger of baboons, with some serious Joe Pesce attitude.

He growled, he howled, he shrieked, he roared, he spat, and he jumped up and down.

His growls were like a leopard’s growl, full of snarling and spitting; his howl was like the whistle of a freight train, getting louder and louder with each second; his shrieks were like a cougar’s shriek, right before he pounces; his roars were like a lion’s roar, carrying for miles.

He rattled his cage door, trying to tear it off the hinges.

He tried to throw poop at me!

I shook my flashlight at him, and shouted, “Not today, Bonzo!”

Then I “got out of Dodge.”

Quickly.

With his growls, and howls, and shrieks, and roars ringing in my ears, and visions of slashing claws teeth, flashing teeth, and a dismembered, bloody pile of bones dancing in my head.

(Granto is a United States Marine Corps veteran of Vietnam, awarded the Purple Heart. For over 24 years, he worked for the University of Miami Medical Campus Security Department, and retired in 2014. He moved to Missouri City, with his wife to be closer to her daughter.

He can be reached at mikegranto@hotmail.com.)

Texas Bar Foundation awards $10,000 to local Autism Advocates The Texas Bar Foundation recently awarded the local nonprofit and autism advocacy group, Hope For Three, a $10,000 grant. The award will allow the organization to continue training law enforcement, from the Greater Houston and surrounding areas, on the characteristics of autism spectrum disorder.

Hope For Three serves as the exclusive autism educator for the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Department, Crisis Intervention Training (CIT) program. The CIT program educates first responders on engagement strategies and intervention techniques to diffuse crisis situations for individuals with autism and or those affected by mental illness. “Police are trained to respond to a crisis with a certain protocol, but this protocol may not always be the best way to interact with individuals with autism,” said Lieutenant Scott Soland, CIT Program Coordinator.

Since 2014, nearly 1,100 officers in Fort Bend, Harris and surrounding counties have received training through CIT. “We’re honored to partner with the Texas Bar Foundation and the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office,” said Darla Farmer, Hope For Three Executive Director. “This funding will provide opportunities to expand our program and attend, as a guest speaker, the 2018 CIT State Conference in Fort Worth, next May.” Since its inception in 1965, the Texas Bar Foundation has awarded more than $18 million in grants to law-related programs. Supported by members of the State Bar of Texas, the Texas Bar Foundation is the nation’s largest charitably-funded bar foundation.

If you would like to schedule a CIT presentation in your area, contact Darla Farmer, 281-245-0640. For information on resources, or how you can be the difference through volunteering or philanthropic support, visit www.hopeforthree.org .

Constable Mike Beard Fort Bend County, Texas FORT BEND

By

FAIR. BALANCED. INFORMATIVE.

Deputy Notes: The Minimum Bid is the lesser of the amount awarded in the judgment plus interest and costs or the adjudged value.

However, the Minimum Bid for a person owning an interest in the property or for a person who is a party to the suit (other than a taxing unit), is the aggregate amount of the judgments against the property plus all costs of suit and sale. ALL SALES SUBJECT TO CANCELLATION WITHOUT PRIOR NOTICE. THERE MAY BE ADDITIONAL TAXES DUE ON THE PROPERTY WHICH HAVE BEEN ASSESSED SINCE THE DATE OF THE JUDGMENT. For more information, contact your attorney or LINEBARGER GOGGAN BLAIR & SAMPSON, LLP., attorney for plaintiffs, at (713) 844-3576

12551 Emily Court, Sugar Land, TX 77478 Mailing Address: P.O. Box 623, Sugar Land, TX 77478 Seshadri Kumar Publisher & Editor

www.fbindependent.com 281-980-6745

Fort Bend Independent, (USPS 025-572) is published every Wednesday (for a subscription rate of $20 per year) by Fort Bend Independent, LLC., 12551, Emily Court, Texas 77478.

Periodicals Postage Paid at Stafford, Texas.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Fort Bend Independent, P.O. Box 623, Sugar Land, Tx 77487.

INDEPENDENT • NOVEMBER 29, 2017 • Page 5

NEWS Amy Mitchell seeks Republican Party nomination for County Court-at-Law # 4 Judge On Veteran’s Day, November 11, Richmond attorney Amy Mitchell filed to run for Fort Bend County Court at Law #4 on the Republican ticket.

As a small business owner, experienced attorney and community servant, the Sugar Land City Councilwoman is ready to transition to Judge and serve all of the residents of Fort Bend with 32 years of legal experience in her career.

“I have been committed to upholding the highest standards of law throughout my legal career and I have worked hard and practiced in all areas of law that this court handles,” said Mitchell.

“Our county deserves to have an experienced Judge who is knowledgeable, fair, impartial and yet compassionate. I have always believed in public service and have extensive current and past community involvement that I believe will help our County as it continues to grow.

If elected Judge of County Court at Law No. 4, I will be a jurist who prioritizes the integrity and strengths of our legal system for all Fort Bend residents.”

Amy Mitchell is a founding partner of the law firm of Mitchell & Duff, LLC, a female owned law firm.

During her tenure as an attorney, Mitchell has handled over 2000 litigation cases of varying complexity from inception to conclusion. Her caseload has included a large number of complex litigation matters, including class actions, multi-party death cases and appeals.

Her experience includes try-

Respect From Page 1 fiduciary duty to our citizens to bring forth and address potential issues that arise.

“We need to address them, investigate them and assess whether they present a problem or a risk to our citizens.

“Mary Joyce spent hours investigating an issue related to the Greatwood/New Territory annexation.

“After her investigation, she came to the conclusion that there were some very real issues with the information given, and that we relied upon in moving forward with the annexation.

“In my opinion, she did the appropriate thing: she brought her concerns to City Council. I am not saying she is correct in her analysis. I am not saying she is incorrect in her analysis. I am not saying the City is correct or incorrect in the manner in which they presented their perspective.

“Mary Joyce has indicated that she has a source document for each thing she presented.

“I can only believe that she did not make the decision lightly to present this. She had to think long and hard before making this presentation. We needed to know what she found so we assess the information she discovered. We then need to investigate if what she found has merit.

“In response to her presentation, Mary Joyce was personally attacked and vilified. This is simply unacceptable.

“She is a City Council Member who is doing her job. She should have made us all proud.

To me, she did her job. She certainly made me proud. She complied with her fiduciary duty.

“Instead of our respecting Councilmember Joyce for the many hours she spent investigating this issue and making it our priority to objectively investigate the situation, attempts to silence her and discredit Ms. Joyce have taken place.

“Furthermore, she has been inexplicably excluded from contributing to the investigation and setting up the scope of the investigation.

“I am certainly curious why Carol and Mary were not allowed to meet with City staff to

ing over 70 cases to conclusion, handling 500+ mediations, and about 20 arbitrations. Mitchell’s 32-year legal career has given her the unparalleled experience that makes her perfect for this bench, as county courts at law handle civil, probate, guardianship, juvenile, criminal misdemeanor and eminent domain cases.

She has extensive experience in all aspects of civil, personal injury and commercial litigation and has been honored by others in the legal community with an “A.V.” rating by the MartindaleHubbell Peer Review ratings.

Mitchell has been a very active community leader in Sugar Land for many years. Her community involvement includes Sugar Land City Council, District 3 from 2011 to the present, President, Sugar Land Exchange Club, Sugar Land 101, Citizens Police Academy, CAST, and Citizens Fire Academy.

Mitchell passionately supports the Fort Bend Women’s Center, Child Advocates, Asians Against Domestic Abuse, American Red Cross, Fort Bend Literacy Council, Fort Bend Seniors, Santa’s Exchange, ARC and has chaired fundraisers for several of these organizations.

Mitchell volunteers for FBISD serving as a guest speaker, awards presenter and dedicating many hours to keeping Colony Bend Elementary School open.

Mitchell has earned the highest rating by judges and lawyers for her ethical and legal work and has served on the State Bar Grievance Committee overseesort out the details as agreed at the last city council meeting?

“I am also curious why this issue is not being submitted to the Finance Committee to review the issue and to determine who should perform the audit and what the parameters of the audit should be.

“I am mortified that the City Manager would intimidate Mary Joyce, play down her concerns, discredit her information on a very personal level. This to me is inexplicable.

“I would hope that the Mayor and City Council would support the City council members when they raise an issue. Especially when we are dealing with millions of dollars, significant cuts and likely tax increases to our citizens.

“I do agree we should have an outside firm audit the accounts.

It should be neutral and comprehensive.

“We should ensure that the audit firm compares this annexation to prior annexations. “ Determine whether in the past we had a requirement that for one year prior to the annexation, funds were fixed – there would be no transfer of funds.

“Determine whether in this instance we had the same protections in place as in prior annexations, and if we didn’t, why not.

“Finally, I believe Ms. Joyce should provide the underlying documentation to the auditors to ensure that all information is included in the auditor’s analysis.

She should feel free to discuss her concerns with the auditors directly so they can be addressed.

“Only after a full comprehensive review and analysis can we truly appreciate the impact, if any, of what Mary Joyce discovered. We need to do this to allay any council concerns but also concerns of the public.

“In the end, this issue from my perspective is two fold: 1. Are the concerns of Ms. Joyce valid, and if so, what do we do? 2. How can a council member feel comfortable presenting an issue without fear of reprisals and personal attacks?

“We need to live up to the title we were given years ago — A community of respect. This starts with us. Now is the time to embrace this.”

ing Fort Bend lawyer’s conduct.

Mitchell earned her law degree from the Case Western Reserve University and a Bachelor’s degree in Literature from S.U.N.Y.-Oneonta.

Mitchell is a New York native, but has been blessed to live as a Texas resident since 1985. She and her husband, Gordon Berkstresser,

are proud to reside in Fort Bend County.

Mitchell concluded, “I was proud to file my candidacy on Veteran’s Day as a tribute to my father, who served as a Captain in the Air Force, and to my husband Gordon, a 22-year veteran of the U.S. Army. My candidacy for this important Court is

meaningful to our family, both personally and professionally.

In my opinion, serving as Judge is the pinnacle of public service that an attorney can provide. As a small business owner, experienced attorney and community servant, I am uniquely qualified to transition from City Council to Judge and serve all of the

residents of this county. It is my goal to bring a servant’s attitude, the best experience possible, and the fullest measure of integrity to this court and I humbly ask for your support and vote in the March 2018 Republican Primary.”

Fo more information, visit amymitchellforjudge.com.

NOTICE OF TAX RESALE ( Properties previously struck off to ALL) (See note below) Constable Mike Beard Pursuant to a resolution of its governing body under Section 34.05(c), Property Tax Code, ALL has requested a public resale by my office of certain properties previously foreclosed and bid off to the taxing units in the suits described below.

Therefore, I will on December 5, 2017, at 301 Jackson Street, William Travis Building, 1st Floor Meeting Room in the City of Richmond, Texas 77469, between the hours of 10:00 A.M. and 4:00 P.M. on said day, beginning at 10:00 A.M., proceed to sell for cash to the highest bidder, and in the manner provided by Section 34.05(d), Property Tax Code, all of the right, title and interest of the taxing units, acquired through each of the suits listed below, in and to the following described real estate being situated in Fort Bend County, Texas, to wit: Note: ALL is the taxing unit to which the property was struck off to in trust.

Constable Mike Beard, By: __________________________ Date _____________ Cause # Judgment Date Struck-Off On

Sale #

Account Number

Style of Case

Legal Description

Adjudged Value (See note below)

Estimated Minimum Bid (See note below)

1

05-DCV-146419 11/16/16 03/07/17

0057020400000908

FORT BEND COUNTY, ET AL VS. UDI 19.58%, MORE OR LESS, VIOLA B. ALLEN, ET AL IN & TO LT 2, BRAGG SUBD, LT 26 , JOS. MCCORMICK LEAGUE (PRAIRIE), VOL 69, PG 272*

$30,560.00

$6,500.00

2

11-DCV-190822 06/24/16 11/01/16

0058014300000908

FORT BEND COUNTY, ET AL VS. 0.701 ACRE, MORE OR LESS, ETHELL A. HENRY, SR., ET AL ISAAC MCGARY SURV, ABST 58, CLERK'S FILE# 8828683*

$11,290.00

$4,400.00

3

14-DCV-215001 12/15/15 05/03/16

0057003700000908

FORT BEND COUNTY VS. AUGUSTINE DELGADO, AKA AUGUSTINE JOE DELGADO, ET AL

UNDIVIDED0.50 OF AN ACRE INTEREST IN & TO 2.432 ACRES, MORE OR LESS, JOHN MCCORMICK SURV, ABST 57, VOL 763, PG 45*

$56,230.00

$3,000.00

4

14-DCV-215005 09/15/16 02/07/17

4600006104000907

FORT BEND COUNTY VS. ZECHARIA GIBBS, AKA ZECHARIAH CHARLESTON GIBBS, ET AL

MAGNOLIA PLACE, BLK 610, .25 ACRE, MORE OR LESS, VOL 2, PG 6 & VOL 235, PG 96*

$7,110.00

$4,200.00

5

14-DCV-215807 03/26/15 07/07/15

4600003063070907

FORT BEND COUNTY VS. WILLIAM A. HOLMAN

MAGNOLIA PLACE, LTS 7 & 8, BLK 306, VOL 2, PG 6 & VOL 213, PG 48*

$5,480.00

$2,500.00

6

14-DCV-216396 04/28/15 09/01/15

2350000040700907

FORT BEND COUNTY VS. KENNETH F. SNYDER, ET AL

LOT 7 & 8, BLK 4, SEC C (N), BLK 264-273, MAGNOLIA PLACE, CLERK'S FILE NO. 1943213014*

$320.00

$320.00

7

14-DCV-216464 10/01/15 02/02/16

0066190030805903

FORT BEND COUNTY VS. JOSEF ROBATA

FRANCIS SMITH SUBD, ACRES 2.40, MORE OR LESS, LT 21, VOL X, PG 194 & VOL 67, PG 88*

$1,250.00

$1,250.00

8

14-DCV-216506 08/24/15 03/01/16

4600003230030907

FORT BEND COUNTY VS. LOU ILA NEWBURN

MAGNOLIA PLACE, BLK 323, VOL 2, PG 6 & VOL 228, PG 183*

$1,070.00

$1,070.00

9

14-DCV-217726 10/07/15 02/02/16

0065150006200903

FORT BEND COUNTY VS. MORGAN LEE JACKSON

ANDREW NORTHINGTON LEAGUE, ACRES 4, MORE OR LESS, ABST 65, VOL 123, PG 518*

$4,240.00

$2,500.00

10

15-DCV-225042 11/10/15 03/01/16

0058027510010908

FORT BEND COUNTY VS. RICHARD EDWARD BATTLE , AS CO-TRUSTEE OF THE RICHARD AND BELINDA BATTLE REVOCABLE TRUST, ET AL

KENDLETON, LT 1, BLK 5, VOL 69, PG 175*

$9,570.00

$1,500.00

Notes: All sales are without warranty, expressed or implied. Specifically, there is no warranty as to title or physical condition (including the condition or existence of any improvements). The sales are subject to any rights of redemption as provided by law.

All volume and page references in the legal description refer to the records of the County Clerk of Fort Bend County. All prospective bidders should make their own investigation of the title held by the taxing entities and the value of the property.

Prospective bidders are encouraged to consult their attorney. Prospective bidders should not rely on the "Adjudged Value" as representing the actual value of the property or any information regarding the property contained in the records of the Fort Bend County Appraisal District .

Payment must be made in cash or by cashiers check. All sales are final.

All Sales subject to cancellation without prior notice.

THE PROPERTY MAY BE SUBJECT TO CLAIMS BY THE TAXING ENTITIES FOR POST-JUDGMENT TAXES. TAX SALE PURCHASERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO CHECK WITH THE TAXING ENTITIES FOR OTHER TAXES THAT MAY BE DUE ON PROPERTY.

RECENT CHANGES IN THE PROPERTY TAX CODE NOW REQUIRE PURCHASERS OF TAX SALE PROPERTY TO HAVE A STATEMENT FROM THE FORT BEND COUNTY TAX ASSESSOR-COLLECTOR CERTIFYING THAT THE PERSON/FIRM/COMPANY PURCHASING PROPERTY AT A TAX SALE OWES NO DELINQUENT PROPERTY TAXES TO ANY TAXING ENTITY WITHIN THE COUNTY. YOU WILL NOT RECEIVE A TAX SALE DEED TO ANY PROPERTY YOU PURCHASE WITHOUT THIS CERTIFICATE. TO OBTAIN A CERTIFICATE, PLEASE CONTACT YOUR FORT BEND COUNTY TAX ASSESSOR-COLLECTOR AT LEAST TWO WEEKS PRIOR TO THE SALE.

Page 6 • INDEPENDENT • NOVEMBER 29, 2017

Sugar Land man gets seven years’ jail for possession of child pornography

LETTER

Lack of voter participation detrimental to community

To the Editor: Fort Bend County residents who haven’t voted recently would be wise to consider the signiďŹ cant detrimental eects of not participating in the process.

We live in an era when citizen participation in local government decision making is not just important but absolutely essential for eective government.

We each need to vote but in addition, let our representatives know our opinions about upcoming government ďŹ nancial decisions.

Too often we see neighborhoods, commercial interests, campaign contributors and other inuential stakeholders exerting considerable inuence on our elected oďŹƒcials and the result is a skewed and ďŹ nancially unsustainable display of spending which then strains local government budgets.

Moreover, lack of participation in the decision making process by residents seems to be the stimulus for politicians to spend our tax monies carteblanche. They understandably

think that their constituents don’t care.

Take for instance, the enormous amounts of money spent

by FBISD on its new school buildings.

Do any residents really believe that a palatial school site actually improves education for our children or makes the School District more eďŹƒcient?

Of course not, especially as the area’s student population decreases in the future and school sites are left vacant.

But yes, the School District spends huge for these structures resulting in increased taxes for all of us.

So, who actually supports elaborate school sites leading to higher taxes?

Another example is extravagant spending by some cities in our area.

This is a trait which has made Missouri City government famous, if not notorious.

Over the past ďŹ fteen years, the City has spent over $30 million on a Golf Course and associated amenities.

Why, in fact, should all of the City’s taxpayers pay the tab

for a City-owned golf complex and a City ďŹ nanced restaurant/ meeting center when these expenditures and facilities beneďŹ t just a few individuals? Do you support this type of extravagant spending by government?

Apparently you do if you don’t vote.

I anticipate a response to this letter is that a “majority� of residents sustain this outrageous spending.

Well, quite often that “majorityâ€? includes a large segment of non-voters who mistakenly think they will be well represented by their elected oďŹƒcials and voters in general.

The above examples are just two in which a City Council and School District have approved financial expenditures which, if asked, residents would now overwhelmingly vote “NO� on.

We all need to stay well acquainted with the issues, the speciďŹ cs of where our tax monies are spent and vote accordingly.

Michael Joseph Hall plead guilty to the felony charges of Promotion of Child Pornography and possession of the same on November 20, 2017.

The 27 year-old Sugar Land man then accepted 7 years in prison in an agreement with prosecutors. Hall is required to register as a sex oender for the rest of his life.

According to Assistant District Attorney Michael Hartman, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) received a “Cyber-tip� from Skype and “Chatstep� that an individual was sharing known child pornography images with what appeared to be a minor in February 2017.

Sugar Land Police Sgt. Matt Levan, aďŹƒliated with The Houston Metro - Internet

Crimes Against Children Taskforce (ICAC) investigated the cyber-tip.

Levan executed a search warrant in March 2017 and found the defendant in possession of pornographic images of children.

Hall subsequently confessed to the promotion (distribution) of child pornography. “Studies have shown that a high percentage of oenders that collect and distribute child pornography also sexually abuse children,â€? said Hartman, “which is why it’s so important to investigate beyond the initial pornography we discover.â€?

Hartman continued, “This case illustrates the importance of pro-active investigations in identifying perpetrators who would otherwise not be held accountable for their crimes.

And without consequences, these perpetrators will not stop.�

Hall plead guilty in the 400th District Court before Presiding Judge Maggie Jaramillo.

Promotion of Child Pornography in this case is a second-degree felony, punishable by 2-20 years in prison and a ďŹ ne up to $10,000. Possession of Child Pornography is a third-degree felony punishable by 2-10 years in prison and a ďŹ ne up to $10,000. Hall was eligible to receive probation and had no prior felony convictions.

Assistant District Attorney Michael L. Hartman and Katie Peterson prosecuted the case. Attorneys Ken and Judy Mingledor represented the defendant.

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Fort Bend Optimist Club Sugar Land hosts annual fun run/walk fundraiser The Fort Bend Optimist Club Sugar Land held its 35th Annual Fun run / Walk on November 5, 2017. Over $14,000 was raised in Sponsor support and Runner / Walker Registrations. Over $5,000 in merchandise and services were donated by Sponsors and Supporters and were given away in a drawing at the end of the race.

Proceeds go to fund various youth related projects in Fort Bend County. The largest project is the College Scholarship Program in which we give to graduating seniors in the FBISD High Schools for the college they are planning on attending.

Over 70 people registered for the event this year. The overall male and female winning times were: Overall Female Winner: Lexi Harkrider 22:08.7 Age: 13 Overall Male Winner: Blak Smith, 22:08.1, Age: 13 Special congrats to Lexi Harkrider as this is the 3rd consecutive year she has come in 1st place for the women.

CONSTABLE’S NOTICE OF SALE Notice is hereby given, that by virtue of a certain Order of Sale issued by the clerk of the 434TH District Court of Fort Bend County, Texas on OCT 2, 2017 in cause numbered 16-DCV-231218 styled First Colony Community Services Association, Inc.. vs. CHARLES OSBORNE III AND TONI OSBORNE, in which a judgment was rendered on DECEMBER 14, 2016 in favor of First Colony Community Services Association, Inc. for the sum of Five Thousand Nine Hundred Seventy Four Dollars and Ninety Two Cents ($5974.92); plus fees for posting notice of sale, publishing, costs of suit rendered by the court, legal fees, and all costs of executing this Writ.

I have levied upon the below listed property on Oct 17, 2017 and will on Dec 5, 2017 Tuesday, between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. proceed to sell for cash to the highest bidder, all the Right, Title, and Interest of CHARLES OSBORNE III AND TONI OSBORNE to and in the following described Real Property LOT FIFTEEN(15), IN BLOCK FIVE(5) OF AMENDING PLAT OF LAKES OF EDGEWATER ,AN ADDITION IN FORT BEND COUNTY TEXAS,ACCORDING TO THE MAP OR PLAT THEREOF RECORDED IN SLIDE NOS. 1026/A AND B OF THE PLAT RECORDS OF FORT BEND COUNTY, TEXAS AND MORE COMMONLY KNOWN AS 3406 WATERSEDGE DR, SUGAR LAND, TX 77478 The above sale to be made by me to satisfy the above described judgment in favor of First Colony Community Services Association, Inc. Plaintiff, and the proceeds applied to the satisfaction thereof.

LOCATION: FORT BEND COUNTY TRAVIS BLDG 1ST FL, MEETING ROOM 301 JACKSON , RICHMOND, TX 77469 DATE: Dec. 5, 2017 TIME: APPROX. 11:00 am BY: Sgt. M. Kuatch TREVER J. NEHLS Constable Pct. 4 Fort Bend County, Texas

Blak Smith, left, and Lexi Harkrider

CONSTABLE SALE Under and by virtue of a Writ of Execution and/or Order of Sale issued on September 19,2017 by the COUNTY COURT AT LAW 4 ofFort Bend County, Texas in Cause# 14-CCV-053755 in favor of the plaintiff- QUAIL GLEN HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION, INC., Plaintiff, recovered judgment amount for the sum of$ 7,577.92 ++++ costs as taxed on said execution and/or order of sale and further the sum of executing the same.

I have levied on OCTOBER 2TH, 2017 and will offer for sale on the day of DECEMBER 5, 2017 at the County Court house steps of Fort Bend County, Texas in the city of Richmond, Texas between the hours ofTen O’clock A.M. and Four O’clock P.M., and all rights, title, interests, and claims which the said Defendant (s) - Latonia L. Gums had of in or to the following described Real Property situated in Fort Bend County, Texas; Legal Description: LOT TWENTY -SIX (26), IN BLOCK TWO (2) OF QUAIL GLEN, SECTION ONE (1), AN ADDITION IN FORT BEND COUNTY, TEXAS, ACCORDING TO THE MAP OR PLAT THEREOF RECORDED IN VOLUME 21, PAGE 16 OF THE PLAT RECORDS OF FORT BEND COUNTY, TEXAS; COMMONLY KNOWN AS 17022 QUAIL PARK DRIVE, MISSOURI CITY, TEXAS 77489 TERMS: CASH TIME:SALE TO BE HELD AT OR ABOUT I 0:00A.M. PLACE: 301 JACKSON ST., WILLIAM TRAVIS BUILDING, 1ST FLOOR MEETING ROOM, RICHMOND TEXAS 77469.

Gary Majors, Constable Fort Bend County Precinct Two By: Sergeant C. McRae 132 Deputy Constable

By BARBARA FULENWIDER 2018 InďŹ niti QX30 premium crossover provides a balance of coupe sportiness, crossover utility and 5-door versatility. Its dynamic responsive performance is suited to the urban environment thanks to a 208-horsepower 2.0-liter turbocharged engine available with AWD. The QX30 bridges the gap between premium compact rivals and larger crossover models. Its crossover-style versatility extends from unique design appeal and a wide range of comfort, convenience, safety and dynamic features, along with an elevated ride height and high-stability drivetrain designed to give drivers an added level of conďŹ dence.

City of Missouri City

LEGAL NOTICE THIS IS A MANDATED PUBLICATION OF THE LEGAL NOTICE ******* CLOSING DATE OF December 12, 2017 AT 2:00 pm******* Sealed proposals for the provision of Market Salary and Benefits Study to the City of Missouri City, RFP # 18-109 Market Salary and Benefits Study Responses must be sealed, marked on the outside of the delivery envelope with the RFP name and number as listed above, and the date of opening. Bids must be delivered to the attention of the Sealed Bid Box, City of Missouri City Purchasing Office, 1522 Texas Parkway, Missouri City, Texas 77489, prior to the acceptance deadline. Bids marked improperly and therefore misdirected may be disqualified. Bids are opened in public in the City Hall Council Chambers on December 12, 2017 at 2:00 pm.

Until final award of the Contract, the OWNER reserves the right to reject any or all Bids, to waive irregularities or technicalities, to re-advertise, or proceed to do the Work otherwise when in the best interests of the OWNER. No bid may be withdrawn during the 60 days following the bid opening date.

NOTICE OF PUBLIC MEETING TO DISCUSS The State Financial Accountability Rating for Fort Bend Independent School District 6:00 P.M. on December 11, 2017 In the Board Room of the FBISD Administration Building -FYJOHUPO #MWE t 4VHBS -BOE The purpose of this meeting is to discuss Fort Bend ISD’s rating on the State’s Financial Accountability System Public Encouraged to Attend

The 2018 InďŹ niti QX30 is available in six trim levels: QX30, QX30 Luxury, QX30 Premium, QX30 Sport, QX30 Luxury AWD and QX30 Premium AWD. It’s mix of artistry in the owing lines and power in the elevated stance. The combination of a low-slung rooine, high stance and crossover appearance give the QX30 a go anywhere attitude.

Standard exterior features include signature LED daytime running lights and auto on/ off halogen headlights, with available LED headlights with active front lighting system and auto high/low beam function and LED fog lights. A panoramic moonroof with power sunshade and roof rails are also oered.

The test drive QX30 Premium AWD includes extended overfenders, black mold-in color side sills, roof rails, 18-inch machine ďŹ nished aluminum-alloy wheels and a 1.2-inch higher ride than the QX30 FWD. The QX30 Luxury and Premium grades feature 8-way power adjustable front seats with 4-way power-adjustable lumbar support. Heated front seats are standard on the two top of the line models. The rear seat folds at and is a 60/40 split-folding design. A rear seat pass-through is also available.

The QX30’s attention to interior quietness adds to cabin comfort. Closed sections of the high-rigidity body structure protect the QX30 from any negative noise and vibration generated by broken or inconsistent road surfaces. The result is a quiet and reďŹ ned platform.

As expected from any InďŹ niti vehicle there is genuine wood trim, aluminum pedal ďŹ nishers and auto entry/exit system with three-driver memory for both driver and passenger.

Standard on all models are a Bluetooth hands-free phone system, rearview monitor, cruise control, power windows

with front one-touch auto up/ down with auto reverse, power door locks with selective unlocking, paddle shifters, autodimming inside rearview mirror, dual overhead map lights and rear dome light, intelligent key, three 12-volt power outlets and dual zone automatic temperature control. Two USB ports allow phone charging while listening to music on a USB stick or drive.

Advanced audio, navigation and connectivity systems are also available, including a Bose 10-speaker audio system and standard HD radio, Sirius XM Satellite Radio with subscription. There’s also voice recognition for audio, Bluetooth audio streaming and vehicle information. InďŹ niti’s infotainment system provides finger touch and swipe control through a 7.0-inch touchscreen. Voice recognition interacts with the infotainment system to control audio and navigation commands.

The standard 2.0-liter fourcylinder turbocharged engine is rated at 208 horsepower at 5,500 rpm, with peak torque of 258 lb-ft available from 1,200 – 4,400 rpm. It includes an idle stop-start system in combination with the 2.0-liter engine. All 2018 QX30 models feature a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission system.

The front suspension is a MacPherson strut design with twin-tube shock absorbers, while the rear uses independent multi-link with rear monotube shocks. Stabilizer bars are used in both the front and rear. The 2018 QX30 oers a range of active safety and hazard avoidance technologies that enhance the driving experience.

The 2018 InďŹ niti QX30 Premium AWD retails for $37,700.

Options increased the price to $45,465. The QX30 is comfortable, good looking inside and out and provides a quick, fun start and drive. Did I like it, enjoy it? Oh yeah.

INDEPENDENT • NOVEMBER 29, 2017 • Page 7

COMMUNITY

It’s Fashion, It’s Glitz and It has a New Date!

By AMY SHARP In light of the Hurricane Harvey recovery and rebuilding efforts, the Couture for the Cause Chairs and the American Cancer Society decided to postpone last month’s “Garden Glitz” event.

Save the date! The premier Fort Bend County affair benefitting The American Cancer Society--a fashion-filled night of food, fun and philanthropy-is now set for April 14, 2018!

Emceed by Ryan Chase of 104.1 KRBE’s Roula and Ryan Show, this year’s theme is ‘Garden Glitz.’ The event will be held at the Farmhouse in Richmond’s Harvest Green--Houston’s first farmcentric community by Johnson Development.

As in years past, there’s a fashion show featuring couture models--many of whom are cancer patients or survivors--seizing their own op-

portunity to give back. In addition to the fashion show, you don’t want to miss the wine pull (make a donation, draw a cork, win a bottle of wine!), Big Board (unique auction items available for bid), “Baubles & Bubbles” raffle sponsored by Plaza Jewelers and fabulous food from local restaurants, including The Rouxpour, Pacific Coast Tacos, The Slanted Frog, Sammy’s Steakhouse, Hickory Barn BBQ and Veritas Steak & Seafood.

Sponsorship Chair Debbie Marcell says, “We have some new faces this year. We are happy to have them join our cause! We realize there are a lot of worthy causes in our community, and we’re especially thankful for the people and businesses that step forward on this one.”

Current sponsors include: Johnson Development (this

year’s presenting sponsor), Houston Methodist Cancer Center, HCSS Innovative Software, Classic Chevy Sugar Land, Fred and Mabel R. Parks Foundation, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Gary Greene, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Plaza Jewelers, UpClose Magazine, Mike & Toni Baches, Houston Dermatology & Plastic Surgery, Westin Homes, Money Management International, WJ Interests Wealth Advisors, West Law Firm, Balanced Body Image, Discount Hitch & Truck Accessories, Roberts Markel Weinberg Butler Hailey, Newmark Homes Houston, The Millis Group, American Textile Recycling Service, Griswold Home Care, Ashley and Jim VanHoozer, Maxx Builders/Miss Pakistan 2017 Hira Khan and Renew Laser & Skin.

The American Cancer Society Couture for the Cause

PLANTATION at Quail Valley Active Senior Living; Embracing the lives of Seniors 55 and Better

“Garden Glitz” April 14, 2018 Doors open at 7 p.m.

Show starts at 8 p.m.

The Farmhouse at Harvest Green, a Johnson Development Community, Richmond,.

Event tickets are $125.

100% of the proceeds benefit The American Cancer Society and their mission.

For more information on tickets or sponsorship opportunities contact Tiziana Triolo at (713) 706.5657 or Tiziana.

Triolo@cancer.org. www.houstoncoutureforthecause.org

2815 Cypress Point Dr, Missouri City, TX 77459 www. plantationqv.com

Phone: (281) 208-4470

access is

FILM REVIEW: Wonder

providing your family with great health care Because every child deserves it, we make quality health care affordable to all parents.

Medicaid, Chip and private a insurance is accepted.

A sliding fee scale is also available for those who qualify.

You’ve already seen the trailers on TV and quickly formed an opinion about a ten-year-old fifth grader who was born with a disorder called Treacher Collins Syndrome.

This disorder typically causes deformities of the ears, eyes, cheekbones and chin.

Our hero, August “Auggie” Pullman, played by experienced, Canadian child star Jason Tremblay, is set to start a new school because his mother (Julia Roberts) had home schooled him to protect him from the taunting and bullying that goes with being different and from naturally insensitive children. “…Kids are not as good at hiding their expressions like adults when they first see me….that’s why I look down all the time and wore an astronaut’s helmet with a darkened shield for two years.”

This movie is adapted from the Best Seller novel of the same name by R. J. Palacio who is a mother and long-term resident of Manhattan. Palacio

also participated as Executive Producer and she seems to have kept close reins on the script as it follows the book closely.

I read “Wonder” about two weeks ago in anticipation of the debut of the movie. Palacio openly admits that her target audience is elementary-age students with simple messages of kindness and acceptance.

She had me at “…if you have a choice of being right or being kind, choose kind.”

Is this film a tear-jerker? It sure jerked my tears and I knew what was coming. Director/ Co-Writer Stephen Chbosky, age 47, struck a flawless balance between allowing the audience to feel the pain and sadness of Auggie without overplaying Auggie’s facial deformities that elicited kids to call him a “freak” and hollered “don’t touch him or you’ll get the plague.”

Palacio’s novel and the movie both tell Auggie’s story through the perspective of Auggie, his sister, and his friends. It was genius on the

written page and Chbosky had the wisdom to “follow the script” when writing his script. You will love Auggie and understand his challenges to merely walk into his new school with his head down much less make friends with immature children.

Everyone in this movie is a winner and the cast is outstanding: Mandy “Homeland” Patinkin as the school principal Mr. Tushman, Daveed “Hamilton” Diggs as the cool teacher Mr. Browne, Isabela Vidovic as Auggie’s loving and compassionate sister, and Owen Wilson and Roberts as Auggie’s parents.

Is the movie as good as the book? Yes, thankfully. I had high hopes for this film and was not disappointed and I give credit to Chbosky’s guiding hand by creating a movie that is one part humor for each part sadness. Rock ‘n Roll.

Grade 90. Larry H. www.larryhmoviereviews.com

281-342-4530 myaccesshealth.org

Page 8 • INDEPENDENT • NOVEMBER 29, 2017

COMMUNITY

Jingle Tree wraps up during Cookies with Santa

NO SHAVE NOVEMBER. The Rosenberg Police Department is proud to announce that the department has raised $800 for the No-Shave November Fundraiser. The fundraiser was so successful that the police department has extended the time that an officer may grow his beard for another month. For another $25 donation, an officer may continue to grow his beard until Jan. 1, 2018. All the money raised goes to cancer research. Let’s make cancer “Fear the Beard!”

Honorees are the Himesh Gandhi family – Jaiden, Farrah and Himesh. chairs are Jana Baumann, Wanda Sdao and Elizabeth Butler. The Planning and Advisory Committees include: Betty Baitland, Jennifer Bombach, Jennifer Chiang, Deanna Clapsaddle, Dorine Craig, Amy Davison, Cindy Dempster. Star Edwards, Farrah Gandhi, Pat Houck, Syndee Howgate, June Joseph-Steele, Kelsea Lake, Judy Maddison, Cee Cee Parker, Alexcia Spraggon, Andrea Suarez, Ashley Van Hoozer, Brooke Walsh, Linda Webb and Geraldine Whitt.

For tickets or more information on Jingle Tree festivities, visit www.hmns.org/sugarland

The more models you visit, the greater your chances of winning.

Sienna elves will vote each week, looking for the merriest posts. ;MRRIVW [MPP FI TYFPMWLIH IEGL 8LYVWHE] EX 7MIRRE4PERXEXMSR GSQ 7MIRRE'PEYW

or call (281) 313-2277.

The Houston Museum of Natural Science at Sugar Land—On Oct. 3, 2009, a historic prison building in the residential community area of Telfair opened to the public, transformed – as the new Houston Museum of Natural Science at Sugar Land.

This satellite facility of HMNS includes five permanent galleries reflecting the most popular exhibit areas of the downtown Museum location.

HMNS is located at 13019 University Blvd. (at the corner of University and New Territory Blvds.)

Shown (L to R) are: Associate Judge Walter Armatys of the 328th District Court, Rob H-E-B, Child Advocates of Fort Bend Board President Jim Lockwood, and Child Advocates of Fort Bend CEO Ruthanne Mefford. The Honorable Ron Pope, The Honorable Brenda Mullinix, and The Honorable Judge David Perwin finalized 25 adoptions including the adoptions of 7 children from the foster care system on Friday in celebration of National Adoption Day. The Fort Bend County 328th, 387th, and 505th District Courts joined courts across the country in opening their doors on National Adoption Day to complete adoptions and celebrate all families who adopt. “This year’s National Adoption Day was a wonderful celebration” said Metoyer Martin, CASA program director and chair of the event. “It is always great to see the attorneys, CPS, Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) volunteers and judges all work together to finalize the adoptions and ultimately give these children safe, permanent and loving homes.

It is great to see them all settled in loving homes.” Child Advocates of Fort Bend is a non-profit agency dedicated to advocating on behalf of abused and neglected children through the use of specially trained community volunteers and staff. Volunteers advocate for children’s emotional, physical and educational needs while they are involved in the court system. Visit www.cafb.org or call 281-341-9955.

TWO $500 WINNERS Each Week!

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Darling . CalAtlantic . Chesmar . David Weekley . Gracepoint . Highland . Meritage MI Homes . Newmark . Perry . Shea . Taylor Morrison . Toll Brothers . Trendmaker . Westin Photos posted between Saturday, November 25, 2017—Sunday, December 31, 2017 are eligible. Selfie must be taken in a model home in the Village of Sawmill Lake in Sienna Plantation, Missouri City, Texas and posted to facebook.com/SiennaPlantation.

Ten winning posts will be chosen; two per week. Winner must be 18 years or older. All decisions final. Winners will be announced on the Sienna Plantation Facebook page and published each Thursday at SiennaPlantation.com/SiennaClaus.

Entrants are responsible for monitoring the Sienna Facebook page or landing page for notifications. Sponsor reserves the right to change winner selection method at its sole discretion. Prize is $500 to each winner, and you may win only once.

Winner is responsible for picking up their prize at the Sienna Plantation Homefinder Center, 5777 Sienna Parkway, #100, Missouri City, Texas 77549. Facebook is not a sponsor or in any way affiliated with this promotion. Ho! Ho! Ho!

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The holiday season is a magical time, and even more so at HMNS Sugar Land with one of Fort Bend’s most anticipated holiday traditions—Jingle Tree. The special event tree auction featured a showcase of beautifully decorated trees that were sold at auction during final bidding on November 16.

Trees were sponsored and decorated by Fort Bend designers, museum supporters, local celebrities and artistic visionaries. Jingle Tree wraps up Saturday, December 2, during Cookies with Santa.

“Cookies with Santa is one of our best family events at the museum. Children can play in our Block Party special exhibit while parents hold a place in line to see Santa, then go home with a photo of their special visit with Santa and Mrs. Claus. We’re also excited to honor Jaiden, Farrah, and Himesh Gandhi, a Sugar Land family very special to the museum. This final event during Jingle Tree is a festive way to support HMNS Sugar Land’s mission of science education while helping provide science enrichment to local underserved populations,” said Adrienne Barker, director and chief development officer of HMNS at Sugar Land.

•Saturday, Dec. 2, 10 a.m—1 p.m - Cookies with Santa – honoring Jaiden, Farrah & Himesh Gandhi. Includes a photo with Santa and Mrs. Claus, holiday crafts and the tradition of cookies and milk.

Personal cameras are welcome for candid shots, as well.

•$5 per person for members. $5 per person for non-members with the purchase of a special discount $5 exhibit hall entry ticket.

The Jingle Tree Event Co-

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