I almost feel sorry for John Whitmire; he stepped into a job that was way above his abilities. The MAGAs like to trash former mayor Sylvester Turner, but just one of Turner’s accomplishments is worth all the praise he deserves and puts him on a pedestal way above one Whitmire could ever reach. Turner did something that Annise Parker and Bill White couldn’t do.
Mayor Sylvester Turner tackled Houston’s massive pension deficit with major reforms, including benefit cuts, increased employee contributions, and voter-approved pension bonds, significantly reducing the city’s unfunded liability from over $8 billion to around $1.5 billion by the end of his term, stabilizing the system through shared sacrifice with city employees and unions.
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Meanwhile, the my-way Mayor can’t even do the basic things, like Heavy Trash pickup or respond to urgent water main problems.
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Two years and a new, really fantastic new Public Works director, but basic city services continue to suffer. It has gotten to the point where Whitmire can’t keep blaming the previous administration. He still does, but less frequently.
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Across the city, Houstonians say they are facing backlogs and delays in heavy trash and yard waste pick-up. To improve this problem, the city has hired contractors and added dozens of trucks to its fleet. Still, it’s unclear if these steps are making a difference.
Edward Johnson said tree limbs have been sitting on the curb in his northwest Houston neighborhood for months, waiting to be picked up.
“Tree waste, there are mattresses, there is furniture,” Johnson said as he pointed out the trash in his neighborhood.
Johnson is not the only Houston resident waiting for heavy trash and yard waste pick-up. The city’s solid waste webpage says yard waste is delayed because crews are being sent to help with recycling and heavy trash instead.
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HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Some northwest Houston neighbors spent weeks wondering what would happen if a fire broke out on their street after a damaged hydrant leaked.
For nearly a month, neighbors in the 1900 block of Althea Drive have dealt with running water coming from a leaky hydrant.
“It feels like the norm now,” Brendan McLaughlin said. “Every day we pull in the driveway and Mister Gusher is still going.”
On Dec. 8, McLaughlin said the water started flowing after he said a truck hit a hydrant.
“Two, three hours later, I was leaving, and saw the water was gushing out of the fire hydrant,” McLaughlin recalled. “We put the report in right away, and it’s been almost a month.”