March 18, 2025

The hybrid meeting began at 7:04 PM.  On-site snacks were provided by Nick Whitaker and Natalie Matuszcsak. Thanks!

Nick Whitaker, CAFMC president, presented the evening’s itinerary.

Neighborhood Updates:

A Neartown meeting will be held on March 25.

The short-term rental ordinance will be discussed at the city council meeting on March 26. Short-term rental suppliers would pay a fee and register with the city. More information can be found at www.houstontx.gov/ara.str.html.

There will be a rain barrel sale through Abbie Kamin’s office. Information can be found at Rain Barrel Sale Houston, Texas – Rain Water Solutions Inc. The rain barrel’s must be pre-ordered and cost $10.

Crime and Safety

Please report all crimes to Houston Police Department. It gets more patrol in the neighborhood.  If you’d like to meet the officers who patrol our area, you are welcome to attend a Positive Interaction Program (PIP) meeting, held the second Tuesday of each month. Bruce Clark attended the most recent meeting and got a feel for how the police view their role vs. how the public views them.

The Chronicle published city-wide crime statistics with an associated map. Crime has increased at a lower rate than the population growth. The top crime is burglary of a motor vehicle. Trespassing would probably be a higher statistic but it is often not reported. A property owner must be present to testify against the perpetrator. Having a no-trespassing affidavit does make a difference.

We have heard more complaints about crimes, including drug dealing. Perhaps we can post occurrences on a CAFMC Facebook page. For quickest action, call the police non-emergency line 713-884-3131.

There were also several attacks on women in the neighborhood and a man swinging a golf club and hitting fences. A WhatsApp group was suggested to report these crimes.

A guest asked if there was interest in hiring a constable. CAFMC did hire one in 2015. The service only lasted three years because interest in paying the $30,000 required waned. It is probably not fiscally possible.

The drug dealing issue was pinpointed to an apartment at Colquitt. An arrest has been made.

The owner of D&Q liquor on Richmond pays transients to do minor jobs and allows them to stay in the area. Could CAFMC contact the liquor store and see if something can be done? The unauthorized food truck that parks there is also a problem since there is no bathroom so people go in public areas.

Call HISD police if you see a crime occurring on HISD property (713-892-7777).

Safety

We continue having problems with cut-through traffic, running stop signs, and rush hour traffic. There have also been problems with the HISD buses. This should be reported to the HISD Transportation Department. A suggestion was made to get Resident Permit Parking (RPP). You can call 311 and tell them a street needs to be marked as no parking on one side or the other if it is too narrow.

There is a coyote in the neighborhood. A resident hired a tracker to remove it. It has been reported at both 510 and 514 W. Main Street. It is a threat to children and pets. Perhaps contact needs to be made with the Texas A&M Wildlife center.

Communications

The e-mail digest has been sent out. Newsletters will be quarterly. Please send ideas for the newsletter. Also, let us know how you want your contacts to be made. The Director of Communications will create a WhatsApp site and add information to Facebook.

Neighborhood Updates

TIRZ 27 will begin working on Montrose in the area of Allen Parkway to West Clay (Phase 1). Phase 2 covers West Clay to West Dallas. A flashing light like the one near the Museum of Fine Arts will be installed. Work should start the last week of March or the first week of April and work may take a year. Avoid this area! They will be installing storm ducts and water pipes as the first part of the project. You can get more information at www.montroseHTX.org. Segments 2 and 3, from West Dallas to the Mecom Fountain will be handled by METRO.

Renovation of the old Freed Library is still in the budget. It is “empty” but is used to move books back and forth to the new library. This allows it to be called a library still, averting its return to the University of St. Thomas.

Dangling cable lines need to be reported to the company that owns them. That is a challenge. You can report them to our District Council Member, Julian Ramirez (email:  atlarge1@houstontx.gov).

The property at Roseland and W. Alabama will NOT be an Ashby-like hirgh-rise. There are height restrictions on that property.

Budget

We currently have about $11,000 in the bank

A neighborhood cleanup is planned sometime in the next few weeks.

The meeting adjourned at 8:04 pm.