December 6, 2023
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 | Cat DeLaura, Audience producer |
Best of the Bayou
Today we're talking about the I-45 rebuild...
If you read one thing: The first $150 million worth of work on the $10 billion-plus I-45 rebuild will start construction in 2024, even as many facets of the megaproject remain unresolved and opposition to widening plans remains.
What construction will begin next year?
TxDOT will start work on a drainage project along I-69 through EaDo, from I-45 to Buffalo Bayou. The work could start by late summer, provided officials open bids on the project in June as scheduled.
What is the current approved plan?
The approved plan for I-45 adds two managed lanes in each direction – similar to the Katy Managed Lanes in the center of Interstate 10 – and rebuilds the general use lanes, frontage roads and crossing streets from downtown Houston north to Beltway 8. In spots, the new freeway right of way could claim an area up to 400 feet wide, pushing back or wiping out hundreds of homes and businesses between I-10 and the beltway.
How can you learn more?
There are a number of public meetings planned, starting at 5 p.m. today at St. John's Downtown Church. Two others are scheduled over the next eight days and three more will be held virtually.
- Read Dug Begley's full story here.
Stay in the Loop
Photo by: Susan Barber
📰 Need to Know
- 52 HISD schools would have been rated F under blocked TEA school rating system. A state judge in October blocked education officials from moving forward with their new rating system, but under the planned update about 40% of the district's 274 schools would have received D or F grades.
- Kidnapped Houston teen saved in Tennessee after three cries for help. The 15-year-old girl's attacker, Wilmer Rivera-Hernandez, 33, was sentenced to 50 years in federal prison for kidnapping and sexual assault.
- Texas woman sues to get emergency abortion amid risky pregnancy. The first-of-its-kind lawsuit, filed Tuesday, is significant because it comes a week after state lawyers suggested before the Texas Supreme Court that only pregnant women in immediate distress could bring claims against the state's abortion ban.
💼 Business
- Tomlinson's take on methane cuts: Words are cheap, action is hard and new rules around one of the most potent greenhouse gases are putting oil and gas company climate pledges to the test, writes columnist Chris Tomlinson.
- What Venezuela's threat to Guyana means for Exxon. President Nicolás Maduro's referendum to claim sovereignty over a large swath of Guyana threatens a key growth area for oil majors Exxon and Chevron.
- The largest glass recycler in North America declares bankruptcy for U.S. operations. Houston's Strategic Materials said it would restructure the business after being hit by inflation, interest rates and competition.
🚗 Outside the Loop
- A new report finds Woodlands shopers among the biggest spenders in the U.S. Residents of The Woodlands have the largest holiday spending budget in the Houston metro area and the 10th largest among 550 U.S. cities this year, according to the study.
- New residential development planned for 10 acres near Katy's hottest entertainment venues. City Choice Realty has purchased nearly 10 acres of land near Katy Asian Town and the Colonial Parkway entertainment hub for the use of residential development.
Point of View
Photo by: John Branch
Why do we call American democracy an 'experiment'?
Since the founding fathers, we've called American democracy an "experiment." Is it? And is it working, asks Thomas Coens, research associate professor of history at the University of Tennessee.
- Finally, Mayor Sylvester Turner takes action on erroneous Houston water bills. With a month left in his tenure, Mayor Sylvester Turner finally decided to do something to fix people's erroneous water bills. The question is what took him so long, asks the Editorial Board.
Houston vs. All Y'all
Photo by: Elizabeth Conley, Staff Photographer
Texans Mailbag: Whose role increases after Tank Dell's injury?
Jonathan M. Alexander answers readers' Texans questions, including about which receivers' roles will increase after Tank Dell's injury and why Houston can't put away teams earlier.
- How Texans would fare against Jaguars, Colts in AFC South tiebreaker scenarios. With just five games remaining in the regular season, the Texans are barely on the outside of the AFC playoff picture. At 7-5, they're in a four-way tie with the Steelers, Browns and Colts for the final three postseason berths.
- Astros' Lance McCullers Jr. and Luis Garcia playing catch again. McCullers and Garcia, recovering from arm surgeries, are taking another step in their recoveries, with July targets for their returns.
- 25 years since last football title, Aggies look to another new coach for return to prominence. Twenty-five years ago this week, Texas A&M won its most recent football conference title. Mike Elko becomes the fifth coach since then tasked with returning the Aggies to prominence.
- Rockets vs. Thunder: Five things to watch as Houston seeks an end to their three-game losing streak. The Rockets look to continue their stellar home play as they host the Thunder on Wednesday.
Get Out
Photo by: Courtesy Duc Nguyen
University of Houston grad Dức Nguyen finds success in the Vietnamese film biz.
"The Last Wife," a period piece Nguyen co-wrote, opens in theaters Friday in the U.S., including Houston.
- Black Pumas, Macy Gray are among top Houston live events to see this week. Also the Houston Symphony accompanies "The Nightmare Before Christmas" and Yussef Dayes brings jazz from London.
In Cat Learned Something New Today news: This map of Texas sold for over $700,000, and I had no idea maps could be so expensive.
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