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July 19, 2024

Mayor Whitmire says he'll hold CenterPoint accountable after Beryl. How?

Plus: Beryl aftermath slowed jury selection for ex-HPD officer Goines.

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The 713

July 19, 2024

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Good morning, Houston.

It's finally Friday, y'all. As the Houston area continues to recover from Hurricane Beryl, FEMA Disaster Recovery Centers are now open across the area. Here's where you can find the centers.

🌧️ Temperature check: High of 90; low of 76. Justin's insight: A rare cold front pushed through the Houston area Thursday. It will stall nearby Friday and keep the risk of heavy rainfall goingSign up for our WhatsApp weather channel for live weather updates.

Photo of Yasmeen Khalifa

Yasmeen Khalifa, Audience Engagement Producer

yasmeen.khalifa@houstonchronicle.com

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Best of the Bayou

Mayor John Whitmire speaks alongside Governor Greg Abbott, PUC Texas Chairman Thomas Gleeson and Texas Division of Emergency Management Chief Nim Kidd during a press conference on Texas' ongoing response and recovery efforts for Hurricane Beryl on Monday, July 15, 2024 in Houston.

Photo by: Raquel Natalicchio (Staff photographer)

Today we're talking about Mayor Whitmire saying he'll hold CenterPoint accountable...

If you read one thing: Houston Mayor John Whitmire has channeled residents' frustrations with CenterPoint Energy into strong rhetoric, promising to hold the company accountable for vast and paralyzing power outages after Hurricane Beryl. But the city does not have much power to do so

What did Whitemire say?

Whitmire has personally implored CEO Jason Wells to do a better job in communicating with customers and restoring power, he said. And he has emphasized it is difficult to maintain public safety with the lights out.

"I'm pretty fired up at them, they made my job tougher by not doing their job," Whitmire said Thursday. "I can hold CenterPoint accountable by documenting what kind of bind they put the city government in."

Can Whitmire actually do that? And will he?

The mayor has little power to enact meaningful change at City Hall, which has limited power to regulate CenterPoint. The company also has historically had a cozy relationship with state and local leaders.

Whitmire is not an exception to that rule; the company employs several of his former staffers from the state Senate, and he once invested hundreds of thousands of campaign dollars in CenterPoint's parent company.

Read Benjamin Wermund and Jeremy Wallace's full story here.


📰 Need to Know

  • Hurricane Beryl aftermath slowed jury selection, including for ex-cop Goines. Lawyers are struggling to find enough jurors to hear evidence in the upcoming trial of former Houston police officer Gerald Goines following Hurricane Beryl's massive power outages.
  • Deputy Fernando Esqueda, killed in an ambush, will be laid to rest Friday morning. Esqueda, 28, was shot and killed during an ambush in northeast Harris County on July 10.
  • Houston will host the next RNC. Here's how the city is preparing. Houston officials are trying to prepare for the crush of visitors, intense security and traffic that comes with hosting what is the biggest political gathering for the GOP in the nation.
  • Why are Houstonians seeing more mosquitoes after Hurricane Beryl? Houstonians may have encountered more mosquitoes after Hurricane Beryl came into the Texas Gulf Coast and flooded some areas in the Houston region. 
  • Can AI solve Houston flooding? Texas A&M researchers aim to know. Houston's flooding problems will only get worse as they become more frequent in a changing climate. Researchers are looking at using AI for help.

💼 Business

  • CenterPoint lost $100M that could have helped improve the grid due to poor grant writing. The Houston utility asked federal officials for money to toughen the electric grid, but experts found the application lacking, writes business columnist Chris Tomlinson.
  • Why Trump's new VP pick has some Texas Republicans worried about the economy. J.D. Vance has spoken in favor of raising the minimum wage and praised Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan's work to reign in corporate monopolies.
  • Southern Gents founder shares his journey from CPA to Houston menswear clothier. Fola Lawson, a CPA, is the founder of Southern Gents, a men's clothier based in Houston, which sells online and through Instagram.

🚗 Outside the Loop

  • A GOP donor spent $500k backing his daughter's bid for Texas House. Texas House candidate Caroline Fairly said in her recent primary election campaign that she wasn't accepting funds from her wealthy father. Records show he gave nearly $500,000.
  • Alvin ISD set a $380M bond election to build new schools and boost security. Alvin ISD residents will vote on a $380 million bond in November, potentially giving the district funds for two new elementary schools, a replacement campus and a new junior high school.

⚾ Houston vs. All Y'all

  • The Astros will open the 2025 season with an interleague first at home vs. the Mets. In a first, the Astros will open the 2025 season with an interleague series as the New York Mets visit Houston as part of the schedule released Thursday.
  • AL West lead is on the line as the Astros visit the Mariners to open the second half. Since falling 10 games behind Seattle on June 18, Houston has made up 90 percent of the deficit.
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Get Out

Typhoon Texas in Katy Texas. 

Photo by: Typhoon Texas Houston

Texas Typhoon is offering discount tickets as hurricane relief.

As part of a post-Hurricane Beryl relief effort, Typhoon Texas water park is offering free admission for the rest of the summer to guests who purchase a day pass.


Events at the Chronicle

Houston Chronicle newsroom's senior leadership team. Top row, from left to right: Kelly Ann Scott, Fernando Alfonso III, Alejandra Matos. Bottom row, from left to right: Jennifer Chang, Yaffa Fredrick. 

Photo by: Susan Barber

Subscriber exclusive: Meet the Chronicle's senior leadership team

Houston Chronicle subscribers are invited to a private Zoom event with executive editor Kelly Scott and her senior leadership team on Tuesday, July 23.


If you're a plant killer like me, you might appreciate this list of 13 hardy plants for Houston summers. They'll thrive even when you are on vacation. I've managed to kill multiple succulents, which are said to be the easiest of plants, so wish me luck as I embark on another gardening era. 

Yasmeen Khalifa


Puzzle of the Day: Typeshift

Typeshift #278

Slide the columns of letters up and down to form words in the highlighted row. Score points for each solid letter.

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