Greetings from
Council Member Mike Knox
March 2017 Newsletter
Save the Date!
Saturday, April 29, 2017
10am – 2pm
Alief Park and Community Center
11903 Bellaire Blvd, Houston, TX 77072
Council Member Mike Knox’s Spring Fling
“Healthy People, Healthy Pets”

We’re giving families in the Alief community a chance to interact with a variety of city services and entertainment options. This is a fun day geared toward families, exposing them to pet wellness, learning about public safety, learning about healthy habits, and exposing attendees to education/entertainment options in the greater Houston area. This event is free and open to the public.
Downtown Rodeo Parade 

Saturday, March 4 at 10am

Parade begins at 10 am on Walker at Bagby, proceeds east on Walker, turns south on Travis, turns west on Bell, turns north on Louisiana, turns west on Lamar, turns south on Bagby and concludes on Bagby at Dallas. Staging areas on Bagby between Lamar and Rusk, on Walker between Bagby and Sabine Street Bridge, on Sabine Street Bridge between Allen Parkway (outbound) and Memorial Drive (inbound) and on Memorial Drive (inbound). Disbanding areas on Allen Parkway (inbound) and Memorial Drive (inbound). Sidewalk Closures: Bell (north sidewalk) between Milam and Louisiana, Louisiana (east sidewalk) between Bell and Clay, and Bagby (west sidewalk) between Walker and McKinney. Closures from 8:30 am to 2 pm. Route Map

For more information visit: http://www.rodeohouston.com/Visit-the-Show/Pre-Show-Events/Parade

Rodeo Houston!
It's Rodeo time -- the 2017 Rodeo Houston lineup is here! Get ready to Rodeo, March 7 – 26! Visit http://www.rodeohouston.com/ for more info. 
Houston St. Patrick's Day Parade 

Saturday, March 11 at Noon

Parade begins on Texas at Crawford, proceeds west on Texas, north on San Jacinto, east on Preston, and concludes on Preston at Crawford.  Staging on Hamilton (all lanes) between Preston and Congress, Texas (all lanes) between Crawford and Chartres, Preston between Chartres and Hamilton, Avenida de las Americas between Texas and Capitol, Jackson between Texas and Capitol.  Disbanding on Crawford between Preston and Congress, Congress (two south curb lanes) between Crawford and Hamilton, Hamilton between Congress and Preston, Preston between Hamilton and Chartres. Closures from 10 am to 2pm.

For more information visit: http://www.hsppc.org/

Tour de Houston Presented by Apache
Come cheer on Council Member Knox as he struggles to complete the 40-mile route!
WIN A 2016 FUJI SPORTIF
2.1 ROAD BIKE 
WIN A 2016 FUJI SPORTIF 2.1 ROAD BIKE IN TOUR DE HOUSTON PRESENTED BY APACHE CORPORATION BIKE CONTEST
Leaders require followers; cyclists require a bike! Ideally, a really good bike! The City of Houston is offering TWO opportunities to win a new 2016 Fuji Sportif 2.1 to get everyone excited about 2017 Tour de Houston Presented by Apache Corporation!


PRIZE PACKAGE INCLUDES:
-- 2016 Fuji Sportif 2.1 $829.99
-- Photo Op in Front of City Hall, Post Ride
-- Social Media Mentions
-- Priceless Memories


Register at:

http://www.houstontx.gov/tourdehouston/sunandskicontest.html. A winner will be chosen at random from all eligible entries received by the giveaway deadline on Wednesday, March 15, 2017, 5PM. The drawing will be held by the Mayor's Office of Special Events on Thursday, March 16, 2017. The winner will be notified via email or phone. City of Houston employees and their immediate families are prohibited from entering the contest. One entry per person. Duplicates will be deleted. No purchase necessary to enter. Certain restrictions may apply. 

Ride Houston Bcycle for FREE!
Every Friday through March 31

You can ride Houston Bcycle for FREE. Enjoy your free rides, courtesy of BBVA Compass, every Friday through March 31, 6am to 11pm.

For more information visit: http://bbvabright.com/freerides/

City of Houston
2017  Summer Jobs Program
Houston Bar Association's Annual Will-A-Thon Program
The Houston Bar Association's Elder Law Committee sponsors an annual Will-A-Thon program for low-income seniors over the age of 60, their spouses, disabled persons, and veterans of any age. Through this process attorneys provide simple wills and basic medical directives free of charge to those individuals who qualify. This year's Will-A-Thon will be held at Tidwell Park and Community Center (9720 Spaulding, Houston, TX 77016). Individuals can contact Houston Volunteer Lawyers at (713) 228-0735 until March 31st to be screened to see if they qualify for the Will-A-Thon. 

If you have any questions, please contact the Houston Bar Association at (713) 759-1133 or email Ashley Gagnon Steininger at ashley@hba.org or Jessica Creamer at jessical@hba.org
BARC Achieves a Historic 91.5% Animal Live Release Rate from November 2016 through January 2017
90 day endeavor pays off thanks to staff, sponsors, Houston's community, volunteers, foster & rescue partners

BARC Animal Shelter and Adoptions is celebrating one of the greatest achievements in its history: a 91.5% cumulative animal live release rate from November 2016 through January 2017. The monthly save rates were 91.1% in November, 92.0% in December, and 91.3% in January. Throughout the 90-for-90 effort, BARC worked to reach a cumulative 90 percent animal live release rate over three months for the first time. The live release rate is the percentage of BARC animals placed into homes and safe environments.

BARC took in 6,096 dogs and cats during the three month effort; about 98 animals each day that BARC was open to the public. Within that time frame, 2,743 pets were adopted, 2,113 were transferred to rescue groups, 434 cats were trapped, neutered and returned, and 240 lost pets were returned to their owners. An additional 809 animals went to foster homes where they will remain until they are ready for permanent adoption.

This effort was no easy feat considering the ever-changing and unpredictable number and condition of animals entering BARC daily. Many of the animals that come through BARC's doors need rehabilitation and a little bit of TLC, but staff and volunteers treat every animal as if it were their own.

Since its massive transformation in 2009, BARC has improved all aspects of its live release programs and animal control efforts. Additionally, BARC has worked to set the standard for municipal shelters across the country by opening a new adoption center, launching the Healthy Pets Healthy Streets free spay/neuter program, and opening Texas’ first municipal in-house, low-cost spay/neuter clinic called Fixin’ Houston. Achieving a 91.5% cumulative live release rate for three months was a great next step as BARC strives to be the best municipal animal shelter in the country.

The simplest but most powerful thing you can do to help BARC and pets throughout our community is to talk to your friends, neighbors, and family about caring for pets responsibly. Visit www.HoustonBARC.com to donate to BARC online.

BIG FIX HOUSTON 

Mayor Sylvester Turner, Harris County Judge Ed Emmett, Council Member Karla Cisneros and Unity for a Solution representatives have announced “Big Fix Houston,” a first of its kind collaboration between public agencies, civic leaders and smaller nonprofit rescue and advocacy groups with the goal of tackling pet overpopulation in Houston. 

The initiative, honoring National Spay/Neuter Awareness month, kicked off on February 11, 2017. The project focuses
on 11 targeted areas with the most complaints about stray and homeless animals and/or the fewest spay neuter options. The goal is to educate pet owners and spay and neuter, vaccinate and microchip as many animals as possible. Volunteers will educate pet owners and provide them with vouchers for free spay/neuter, vaccinations and microchip services with cooperating providers. 

ABOUT BIG FIX HOUSTON
Almost twenty partner organizations, led by Unity for a Solution, have come together to support the “Big Fix Houston” initiative with the unified goal of offering free spay, neuter, vaccine and microchip services to the residents of the Houston neighborhoods with the most complaints about stray and homeless animals. To make a donation or find out more about Big Fix Houston go to www.bigfixhouston.org.

Levy Park Now Open
Construction of Levy Park is now complete after nearly a year-and-a-half.  Regular weekly programming will begin immediately with an incredible variety of activities ranging from boot camp and yoga to story hour with the Houston Public Library. All regular programs at Levy Park are free and open to the public. 

For a complete list of Levy Park programs and activities, visit levyparkhouston.org.  

Chef Tim Love's Woodshed to Open at Levy Park

The Levy Park Conservancy has announced that the flagship restaurant Woodshed, planned for Levy Park, will be led by nationally-acclaimed Texas-based Chef, Tim Love. In addition to the restaurant, tentatively scheduled to open in mid-2018, Love and his team will also operate concessions for the Park's food kiosk and the double-decker bus in the beer garden, both currently scheduled to open later this year. The Woodshed will showcase Love's signature urban western cuisine that has won him both popular and critical accolades. 
  
For more information, visit levyparkhouston.org

Transportation Information Sources
 
Minor Critical Emergency
Home Repair Program
The Minor Critical Emergency Home Repair Program (MCEHRP) is open!  Please call the Housing and Community Development Department (832.394.6161) for more information. Please see requirements: 
  • Minor critical emergency home repairs are those repairs critically needed to alleviate life, health or safety hazards
  • Applicants must be qualified to participate in the program; applying does not guarantee approval for or acceptance into the program
  • Rebuilding Together Houston will provide critical repairs UP TO $10,000 per home to qualified applicants
  • Specific repair services are determined based on condition of home, cost of repairs and availability of funds
For more information, please contact the MCEHRP at 832.394.6161 , or the Department at 832.394.6200 .
Channel 55.2 Launches in Houston 
On February 1st, 2017, WCETV launched Channel 55.2 in the Greater Houston area with Mandarin programs from China Central Television Station (CCTV) International Channels, broadcasting 24 hours a day, aiming to deliver the best quality TV programming and great watching experiences for viewers in Houston.

With the launching of WCETV Digital on KTBU Channel 55.2, it not only provides a quality Mandarin speaking program for the viewers in the Greater Houston area, but also builds a cultural bridge between Americans and Chinese for mutual understanding in culture, economy, construction and tourism.

WCETV is the first worldwide media partner of CCTV since 1998, which delivered CCTV programs on wcetv.com to worldwide viewers. In 2009, WCETV cooperated with China Television Corp to launch international channel CCTV-4 in the Greater Los Angeles area, with coverage of more than 16 million home viewers. Since 2000, WCETV has been launching CCTV-News Channel in Houston, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago and Santa Barbara, covering 560 million viewers in the United States.

Viewers can visit  www.wcetv.com , www.wcetvdigital.com , check the program listings or call 626-912-3388 for more detailed information. 
Contracting Opportunities
University of Houston

The University invites you to submit a proposal to provide an evaluation and recommendations for its finance operations, including the following departments and programs: Financial Reporting and Compliance, Travel, Procurement, Student Accounting, State Appropriation Accounting, Budget Office, Student Financial Services, Treasurer's Offices, Tax Accounting, Accounts Payable, Plant Accounting, the Historically Underutilized Business Office, research Accounting, Property Management, Business Services, and General Accounting. The evaluation would include an analysis of current business processes, bench-marking current business processes to best practices, identifying gaps and deficiencies in current process and policy, recommending process and policy revision to model best practices, assisting the university in developing procedure and desk manuals, evaluation of current staffing and recommendations for staffing levels, and organizational reporting structure to align with best practices, and assisting the university in addressing recommendations and deficiencies discovered during this review. Proposals are due March 7, 2017 at 2:00 pm 

Click here for more information!

The University is requesting an online training/education content provider to provide cloud-based e-learning training and education solutions and resources focused on business/management, leadership, IT, digital literacy, compliance and other professional/personal development resources. Requests are due March 16, 2017 at 3:00 pm. 

Click here for more information!

City of Houston

The City Secretary for City of Houston will receive Proposals for the following General Services Department Project: The project consists of design and construction of the new (5) bay Fire Station approximately 15,000 SF. The project will consist of, but not limited to, site work, foundation, structure, MEP systems, furniture, appliances, landscaping, and signage. Proposals are due Thursday, March 16, 2017.  

Click here for more information!

Houston Housing Authority

The Houston Housing Authority has issued this solicitation with the intent to establish a contract with a Property Management Company (PMC) to manage HHA's Low-income Multifamily Public Housing Communities. Solicitations are due by March 31, 2017 at 4:00 pm.  

Click here for more information!

Houston First

Houston First has recently released its food and beverage contracting opportunities. Please click here to see the details of this opportunity. As a reminder, all contracting opportunities are advertised under the Do Business section of www.HoustonFirst.com.   

February 2017 Events
Super Bowl Live Experience
Super Bowl LIVE presented by Verizon was a free nine-day family-friendly fan festival in downtown Houston
celebrating Super Bowl LI. Anchored in Discovery Green and encompassing
more than 750,000 square feet, approximately the size of 13 football fields, Super Bowl LIVE presented by Verizon featured live music and
performances, interactive exhibits, great food and a 90-foot tall virtual
reality trip to Mars. 
Habitat for Humanity SuperBUILD LI Home Dedication

Houston Habitat for Humanity, along with the National Football League, the Houston Super Bowl LI Host Committee, the City of Houston, Chevron and other sponsors launched a building blitz to commemorate Super Bowl LI. SuperBUILD LI, made a great impact by creating and transforming neighborhoods.  In particular, the builds impacted the children of Habitat homeowners by affording them the stability of home and community.

http://houstonhabitat.org/superbuild_51/

Downtown Pachyderm Luncheon

Members and guests of the club meet every Thursday, for lunch to hear presentations on a wide range of civic and political issues from elected officials, candidates for public office, government agency heads and political activists. I was the guest speaker in February discussing the economic impact of Super Bowl LI in Houston. 

Houston Celebrates Yao Ming
Mayor Turner and City Council presented former Houston Rockets basketball player, Yao Ming, with a proclamation from the City of Houston. The special celebration was  for the retirement of Yao Ming's No. 11 basketball jersey. The day was chosen to coincide with the Chinese New Year. 
Texas Lunar Festival

At the annual Texas Lunar Festival, we celebrated the impressive qualities of every culture while celebrating the Asian Lunar New Year. For the past 20 years, community leaders and volunteers have worked hard to promote the remarkable diversity and impressive leadership of the greater Asian community while fostering friendship among nearly every culture.
Thousands of citizens across the great State of Texas visit the festival every year. 

http://www.texaslunarfest.net/

Public Safety and Homeland Security Meeting

Member of HPD's Gang Division reported there are more than 20,000 gang members in Houston. If you see something, say something.

http://www.houstontx.gov/council/committees/publicsafety.html

District E CIP Meeting -- Clear Lake

Over 100 District E residents attended the Capital Improvement Project Town Hall at Space Center Houston. Attendees had a chance to hear from representatives from the Public Works and Engineering Department as well as the Houston Parks and Recreation Department regarding local projects in the Southeast/Clear Lake Area. Chief Resiliency Officer Stephen Costello provided a brief update on Storm Surge details and Clear Lake Substation Captain Jerome Stevens addressed recent panhandling issues in the area.

http://www.houstontx.gov/cip/

Houston Hispanic Forum Career and Education Day

The Houston Hispanic Forum's Career and Education Day is an annual event that benefits students from the Houston area. Through resources, it provides guidance to Houston's youth and their families who are preparing for college through student and parent workshops, and opportunities to learn about careers, financial aid and college admissions. Universities and colleges have representatives attend this event.  

Houston’s Black Heritage Visitors Guide Official Launch Celebration

I joined Council Member Michael Kubosh for the official launch of the new “Houston’s Black Heritage Visitors Guide” -- the first of its kind in Houston to promote tourism in our African American neighborhoods. This guide brings together tourism, economic development and our city’s distinguished African American history. It includes places of interest to visit, including Houston’s black historic sites, our city’s finest black-owned restaurants, nightlife and annual events. 

Black History Month Program in Acres Homes
Black History Month, or National African American History Month, is an annual celebration of achievements by black Americans and a time for recognizing the central role of African Americans in U.S. history. I was glad to join the seniors who attended the Acres Homes Multi-Service Center for their Black History program. 
Alzheimer's Association 9/11 World Trade Center Artifact Ribbon Cutting

After receiving an important artifact from the remains of the September 11, 2001 Twin Towers site, the Alzheimer’s Association Houston and Southeast Texas Chapter coordinated the ribbon cutting ceremony of the 9/11 Memorial and Remembrance Garden. In August of 2016, the Alzheimer's Association, was proud to receive a portion of steel raft from the PATH (Port Authority Trans-Hudson) station, which was in the World Trade Center basement. This 700-pound artifact was kept by the Alzheimer’s Association as a memorial site and gardens constructed and housed at the Chapter’s headquarters.

http://www.alz.org/texas/

Service Requests:
Important Information:
(832) 393-3014

311 or (713) 837-0311

Emergency
911

HPD Non-Emergency 
(713) 884-3131

(832) 393-0955

(832) 393-1100

Mayor Sylvester Turner
City of Houston
P.O. Box 1562
Houston, TX 77251
311 or 713.837.0311 


Staff Information:
John Moss
Chief of Staff

Carla Hulsey
Deputy Chief of Staff

Lanny Griffith
Communications Director
City Council Member Mike Knox, At-Large Position 1 | 900 Bagby St., First Floor | Houston, TX 77002 | (832) 393-3014 | Atlarge1@houstontx.gov
Stay in touch!