Greetings!
 
Welcome to the April issue of The Edwards Edition! Since our last update, I have engaged with numerous Houstonians by attending a host of community meetings, participating in the City's Capital Improvement Plan meetings, as well as pushing our community needs forward at City Hall. I value the community's input and will work to incorporate that information into long-term solutions to issues facing our city, as well as in an effort to proactively propel Houston forward. While we face numerous challenges in our city, I am optimistic that we will develop solutions to the issues of today to ensure a more vibrant and economically robust tomorrow.

I invite you all to stay connected with me by contacting my office and following us on social media. Please feel free to email our office at  atlarge4@houstontx.gov  or call (832) 393-3012. 

Let me hear your thoughts and ideas on the issues important to you! 





Sincerely,
 
Amanda K. Edwards
Houston City Council Member, At-Large Position 4



ON THE ISSUES : ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

From the creation of NASA's Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in 1961, which boldly brought the aerospace industry to Houston, to the economic boom following the 1980's oil downturn in which we diversified our economy by supporting more Texas Medical Center growth and a new generation of business, Houston has always possessed an uncanny ability to continue to reinvent itself. As our city works to address its current fiscal challenges, we find ourselves positioned for another opportunity for reinvention that can offset challenges, in part, through creative economic development. Such an effort will require the cultivation of innovative revenue generation opportunities by fostering more public-private partnerships to achieve optimally beneficial outcomes. In addition, we must seek to empower our communities by ensuring that economic opportunity exists within a wide variety of Houston communities.

As we push for more economic development in our city, we should seek to creatively harness emerging technologies that not only diversify Houston's economy, but also that establish  this city as a hub for innovation. As part of its push for innovation and further commercialization of medicine, the Texas Medical Center is expanding its stronghold in patient care, research, education and prevention to even more with the opening of the TMC Innovation Institute. Comprised of the Texas Medical Center accelerator (TMCx Accelerator), TMCx+, TMC Biodesign and JLABS@TMC facilities, the TMC Innovation Institute is positioned to become one of the premier life science commercialization clusters in the world, which will result in breakthroughs in biotech, pharmaceutical, medical device, diagnostics, consumer and digital health companies.  The research labs and incubators located within the TMC Innovation Institute campus facilitate the development of early-stage medical technology and research by combining the resources of the Texas Medical Center with the innovative spark of entrepreneurs. Each of these concept-facilities effectively transform innovation into application by utilizing Houston's vast wealth of existing research as a foundation from which to develop an industry of lucrative innovations and products ranging from new medical devices to advancements in biotechnology. The TMC Innovation Institute marks an exciting time for Houston. O ur city is growing into a global hub for life science startups and entrepreneurs, using the passion and expertise within the Texas Medical Center as catalysts for exciting advances in medicine, which will benefit the overall Houston economy.

Innovation cannot thrive within a vacuum. Alongside the Texas Medical Center, technology incubators are emerging throughout the city.  One such start up, The Station, is designed to connect tech-enabled start-ups with the resources, collaborative work environment and mentorship to drive high-performance solutions. While similar groups, such as the Houston Technology Center, exist, we should strive to encourage more innovators and start-ups to invest in Houston.  It is critical to remember that economic development is not a passive enterprise for any city. When cultivating a diverse economic portfolio that extends beyond a city's existing natural resources, the business community must work in concert with the public sector to encourage the next generation of industry to put down roots in Houston. We must create and support an ecosystem to support investment in and the development of new industry. Making smart investments in our economy now will help to ensure our future prosperity.  Investments in technology and other innovations will reinvent Houston once again - making us a smarter, bolder, more competitive city with unrivaled promise.

HAPPENING AT CITY HALL

Turnaround Houston

In response to a number of public safety and workforce development concerns across Houston, Mayor Turner announced the creation of Turnaround Houston, a proactive approach to crime prevention and community stabilization. A series of comprehensive job fairs offering employment readiness resources, Turnaround Houston serves as a tool of many that can be utilized to combat crime and recidivism. The resource  fairs offer health & mental health resources; information on GED Programs, education and continuing education; resume workshops; resources on job training & job training programs and more for Houstonians who face barriers to employment, including but not limited to those who were formerly incarcerated.  Turnaround Houston is partnering with several local agencies that will sponsor the program and future resource fairs.

Although Harris County is the largest area to house returning inmates from the Texas criminal justice system, opportunities for returning inmates are greatly limited. Often, employers are reluctant to hire individuals with a criminal record. Turnaround Houston aims to increase access to the opportunity to a second chance at a successful life by offering skills, coaching and job opportunities, which is a proactive approach to combating crime and recidivism.

On Saturday, March 26th, more than 400 job seekers attended the first of a series  of  resource fairs offering job training, drug counseling, t attoo removal and other services.  For information or to register for upcoming Resource Fairs, visit www.turnaroundhouston.com .



Recycling

During the past several weeks, recycling has been headline news in our city. After extensive negotiations, Houston City Council approved a new, two year recycling agre ement with Waste Management on March 23rd. Due to the decline in the price of commodities, Waste Management, the City of Houston's recycling vendor, initially demanded a longer term and a significant increase in the cost of providing recycling services. After intense negotiations with Waste Management, the City agreed to a two year arrangement that will enable the City to recycle all previous items except for glass. This compromise was the only way to maintain the City's commitment to recycling without an interruption to such services. The City will continue to encourage glass recycling by encouraging Houstonians to make glass deposits to the 10 glass recycling sites across the city.

To find the drop-off site nearest your location, and to look up its hours and guidelines, click here

AROUND THE CITY


COH Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) Town Halls  

The City of Houston's CIP meetings, held during February and March, have wrapped up for Fiscal Year 2017. These CIP meetings have helped to facilitate invaluable community feedback regarding potential public infrastructure projects for each district. Building upon positive changes to the CIP process, the Public Works and Engineering Department incorporated e-tablets into the meeting process to help explain to residents, in real-time, project locations, status and timelines. Meetings were well attended throughout the city and residents were able to provide input to projects that would affect them directly. This community feedback will be incorporated into the 2017 Capital Improvement Plan and City Council will vote on the next five-year CIP for Houston this July. 

Houston Bike Plan 


The City of Houston has released its draft Houston Bike Plan , the next step in the City's efforts to help make Houston a safer, healthier and more bicycle-friendly city. If the proposed plan is fully implemented, it could triple the existing bikeway miles and provide six times more high-comfort bikeway miles than what Houston has today.

With the draft plan complete, the City is seeking comments from Houstonians. Several online tools and activities are available to gather community input on the Houston Bike Plan website at houstonbikeplan.org .  Please provide your feedback on the plan by completing a brief online survey located at houstonbikeplan.org/participate .

The public comment period closes April 11, 2016. The City will then modify the draft Plan based on the feedback received and make it available to the public.
For questions or comments, please email bikeways@houstontx.gov .
 
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT SPOTLIGHT

Lady Emma Primas

Our Community Engagement Spotlight focuses on Lady Emma Primas who, at the age of 110, remains one of Houston's most vibrant and engaged residents. Born on August 5, 1905, years before women would win suffrage rights and decades before African Americans would win the right to vote, Lady Primas is well known throughout the community as a dedicated voter and a lifelong supporter of the NAACP. Lady Primas continues to attend numerous civic and community functions and currently serves with the National Council of Negro Women, Inc., where she is the oldest member in the Houston Chapter. 

To commemorate Lady Primas' extraordinary life and contributions, the Houston Museum of African American Culture unveiled its exhibit entitled, "Life at a Glance: 110 Years with Lady Emma Primas" which captured moments from a life dedicated to the principles of hard work, perseverance and civic engagement to which we should all strive. 





KIPP Sunnyside High School Lemelson-MIT InvenTeam 

Houston's future problem solvers may very well be already hard at work in a classroom in South Houston. Students from KIPP Sunnyside High School have been awarded a prestigious grant for the 2015-2016 school year by the Lemelson-MIT Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to invent technological solutions to real-world problems of their own choosing. 

The KIPP Sunnyside High School InvenTeam, under the leadership of their instructor Mr. Kyle Kenan, has been working on an autonomous pothole 
remediatio n device to quickly, safely and economically fill potholes and other depressions on metropolitan roads.  
On February 12th, the KIPP Sunnyside High School InvenTeam showcased their progress at a presentation and Q&A session for community leaders. The students' w ork was so impressive that the group was asked to come to City Hall on March 29th to meet  members of Houston's City Council, Mayor Sylvester Turner's Office and the leadership team at the City of Houston's Department of Public Works and Engineering. The students received a proclamation from the City and were featured on the City's public access channel, HTV!

Congratulations to the students of the KIPP Sunnyside High School InvenTeam for pursuing innovative solutions to the real-world problems of today! 

Acres Home Chamber for Business and Economic Development 27th Annual Awards Banquet

On March 25th, the Acres Home Chamber for Business and Economic Development celebrated its 27th Annual Awards Banquet.  Founded by Mr. Roy Malonson in 1994, the Acres Home Chamber for Business & Economic Development (the "Chamber") is recognized as a cornerstone within the Acres Homes community. Currently, the Chamber provides leadership, as well as personal and professional development opportunities to small businesses, entrepreneurs and the community.   At the banquet, the Chamber recognized both Mayor Turner and me for our work in the community. We are thankful for the Chamber's support, and we salute the Chamber for its years of dedicated leadership to the Acres Home community!


 
OPPORTUNITIES FOR OUR COMMUNITY

Hack-A-Thon

In keeping with our push toward innovation, we encourage you to participate in the fourth annual City of Houston Hackathon , which will be held on May 14 - 15, 2016 at the Houston Technology Center. The 24-hour event brings together hundreds of software developers, designer s , po licy wonks and other civically engaged citizens to create innovative digital solutions  to the issues facing our city. To find out more about this year's Hackathon, or to RSVP, visit www.houstonhackathon.com

OUT AND ABOUT