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December 11, 2023

Mayor-elect Whitmire gears up to lead City Hall

Plus: The fate of small oil companies is in question under a new methane rule.

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The 713 Morning

December 11, 2023

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Good morning, Houston.

We've officially elected a new mayor. More on Mayor-elect John Whitmire below. 

🌤️ Temperature check: High of 63; low of 49. Justin's insight:  Temperatures early Monday morning will be in the 30s near and north of Houston, which could result in patchy frost. A warming trend gets underway this week. Read more here.

Photo of Cat DeLaura

Cat DeLaura, Audience producer

cat.delaura@houstonchronicle.com

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Best of the Bayou

Today we're talking about our new Mayor-elect John Whitmire...

If you read one thing: Behind the scenes, Mayor-elect John Whitmire and his advisors are mapping out an administration and beginning to form working groups for the transition as he prepares to take the helm of the fourth largest city in the country on  Jan. 2. Here are some of the big issues Whitmire will face during his first year in office

Finances: 

Like any new mayor, Whitmire will have about six months to win City Council's approval of his administration's first budget plan  He has vowed to get the city on a more sustainable financial footing, an aim he will have to balance with the costly goals of hiring more police officers, improving infrastructure and bolstering city staff for garbage collection, permitting and other functions.

His budget proposal in the early summer will be the first sign of how he plans to prioritize those issues – and, more importantly, how he plans to pay for them.

Fight with the firefighters union:

Whitmire will inherit a long-running stalemate between the city and the firefighters union, one of his most ardent supporters. Whitmire has sworn he will drop a city lawsuit related to the firefighters on day one and seek to quickly get them a contract.

Public safety: 

The new mayor – best known for rewriting the state's criminal justice laws in the 1990s – will have to address crime, the issue he fully embraced as City Hall's top priority during his campaign. 

He has promised to be directly involved in recruiting police officers and to bring in Department of Public Safety troopers to help augment Houston police as well. Police Chief Troy Finner, who Whitmire said he would retain, greeted his new boss at Whitmire's election party Saturday night.

Go deeper: 


Stay in the Loop

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Photo by: Susan Barber

📰 Need to Know

💼 Business

🚗 Outside the Loop


Point of View

'Too many bail decisions in Texas are based on who has the money to get out — not on public safety.' - Editorial Board

Killing spree in Austin and San Antonio has nothing to do with bail reform.

The events that led to the shootings in Austin and San Antonio underscore the reality that Texas' criminal justice system prioritizes cash over public safety, writes the Editorial Board

  • Journalistic neutrality needed during Israel Hamas war. "I do get what the political cartoonist was going for, but he crossed some lines for me and others with the prominent swastika use," writes one reader in a letter to the Editor

Houston vs. All Y'all

Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) rolls out of the pocket under pressure from New York Jets linebacker Bryce Huff (47) during the first quarter of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 10, 2023, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

Photo by: Adam Hunger, Associated Press

Texans analysis: C.J. Stroud and playoff chances take a big hit.

An early calf injury to WR Nico Collins and a late head injury to QB C.J. Stroud are only part of the 30-6 loss to the Jets that dropped Houston to 7-6

  • Rockets welcome Amen Thompson's return vs. Spurs. Sidelined by an ankle sprain since Nov. 1, the rookie hasn't been idle of late, drawing glowing reviews in practice and averaging 21.5 points in two G League games. 
  • Texans one of six AFC teams at 7-6 but out of playoffs for now. The Texans are tied with six teams in the AFC for the final two wild-card playoff spots and have wins over three of them yet are ranked eighth, one spot out of the playoffs.
  • Ex-Dash coach James Clarkson files defamation lawsuit vs. NWSL. The former Houston Dash coach alleges he was defamed last year when the league and players' association released a joint investigation that said he engaged in "emotional misconduct." 

Get Out

Data from the years of Christmas Bird Counts shows a decline in many species of birds include the blue jay. Photo Credit: Kathy Adams Clark. Restricted use.

Photo by: Kathy Adams Clark, Kathy Adams Clark/KAC Productions

Want to help Houston's bird population? Join the Christmas Bird Count.

The National Audubon Society will conduct its annual Christmas Bird Count from Dec. 14 to Jan 5, and you can participate.

I had a blast at Lights in the Heights this weekend. I loved seeing how the neighborhood turned out to celebrate it. And any occasion when pedestrians get to take over the streets usually reserved for cars is a good time in my opinion. 

— Cat DeLaura

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