mattyt36

Not if Ken Paxton has his say. (I understand that people can have different opinions over the legal concept of eminent domain, but Ken Paxton’s entire career has been just 100% political theater. When he isn’t criming, of course. Such a loathsome individual who will probably win another term.) https://texasrailadvocates.org/2021/12/21/texas-ags-office-now-inserts-into-texas-central-high-speed-rail-lawsuit/

Who knows? Why don't you tell us, samagon? You've got a long history of "putting things out there" (straw men, usually), but never really engaging. So feel free to give us your view as a starting point and explicitly tell us what you think the implications are for the NHHIP.

Thank you! Much more helpful than @samagon and his phalse phfriend Philomena. At least we found her! https://www.instagram.com/mynameisjasmineg/ And it looks like she has even been in USA Today. Good for her! Jobs: What steps should women take to reenter the labor force? (usatoday.com)

Uh huh. Because @manyeahphilomena is exactly like @mynameisjasmineg. But, admittedly, I don't do the social media, so maybe I'm missing something. Jasmine or Philomena can "feedback" all they want. But, from the files of further political malpractice, if that story is true, and the incident is indeed a criminal offense, I hope the first thing Stop IH 45 did was to help Jasmine or Philomena (Jasmena?) find appropriate legal help versus wagging a finger (SHAME!) with very loaded words and implications on social media. Wouldn't you agree? (Can someone provide a link to the original post anyway?) NHHIP = bribery by who knows what = TTC testimony = abusive home situation = hospitalized = shame on you TxDOT! Yeah, that's definitely a group of responsible and serious people there. Reminds me of a couple people, now that I think about it. Maybe if we built rail none of this would happen. Regardless, hopefully there aren't more Jasmenas out there. And here I thought I had a long week. @Big E obviously the real reason this project didn't proceed is because it didn't cater to the booming Conroe-Galveston commuter market, which, remember, is what the NHHIP is all about.

Maybe others will have better luck than I, but I can’t find a Twitter account @mynameisjasmineg. I’m not surprised.

Better stop it all, then, due to what appears to be bribery by a bunch of grifters. I know if someone came up to me and offered me a check to go testify at a public meeting my first reaction would be, “This seems totally legit.” Remind me to go bribe someone to make public testimony if there’s ever anything I disagree with, if that’s a legitimate way to stop something. Easy peasy! I mean, seriously. In the words of the President, “C’mon man!” I’m sorry but Stop IH-45 group seems really screwed up. Again, I’d love to know their “story,” especially who is paying their bills. I honestly wouldn’t be surprised at all if it was the Republican Party of Harris County with posts like that, for very obvious reasons.

Seems strange that that would be happening now, when the project is on “hold” for anything but design. Bizarre.

Agree, I noticed it for the first time the other day. My first reaction was admittedly negative but my opinion has completely changed. Well done!

In re the question of relocation assistance, I was able to find something from the FAA for renters displaced due to airport land acquisition. I'm confident the same standards apply to highways. https://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary/media/Advisory_Circular/AC-150-5100-17-Change-7-Land-Acquisition.pdf See in particular Chapter 4 on Relocation Assistance and form of notice on page 4-1/66. This confirms the eligibility for moving expenses, a replacement housing payment for up to 42 months (if you rent elsewhere) to cover any increase in rent or utilities in the new dwelling, up to a cap of $7,200, or the option to apply this amount in a lump sum as a down payment on acquiring a house. Chapter 6 gets into the Replacement Housing Payment concept; in short this is where the "like" or "comparable" standard comes from. Seems like there may be an opportunity for improvement (e.g., some sort of "inconvenience payment" or increase the $7,200 cap), but renters do get something. (I wonder where the 42 months comes from.) Dear Mr. Tenant: As you may be aware, the Airport Authority is currently acquiring property needed for the proposed expansion of the Orville Municipal Airport and has initiated negotiations to acquire the property you currently are renting. As a tenant-occupant for at least 90 consecutive days prior to the initiation of negotiations for the property, you are eligible for the certain relocation assistance payments to assist your relocation to a replacement property. Your eligible payment amounts have been determined in accordance with the Airport Authority’s approved relocation assistance program for federally assisted projects. Please refer to the enclosed brochure entitled, “Land Acquisition for Public Airports”, for general information on the airport’s relocation assistance process. Your payment eligibility is estimated as follows. 1. Moving expenses. Actual reasonable and necessary expenses for moving personal property, accomplished by a commercial mover and supported by receipted bills, or a fixed payment of $ , based on a schedule of payments for the number of rooms of personal property you are required to move. 2. Replacement Housing Payment. A survey and study of the property available to replace your dwelling finds that you are eligible for a maximum replacement housing payment of $ , provided you lease and occupy a decent, safe, and sanitary dwelling with monthly rent and utilities of $ ,. or more. This replacement housing payment eligibility is based on a property located at (address) which is available for rent at $ , and estimated monthly utility cost of $ . The amount of the replacement housing payment is the additional cost of a comparable replacement dwelling for a period of 42 months following your displacement from the acquired property. 3. Downpayment Option. You may, at your option, apply your replacement housing payment eligibility as a “required” downpayment for the purchase of a replacement dwelling. If the amount of the required downpayment is greater than the rental replacement housing payment eligibility above, the higher amount will be paid not to exceed $7,200.00. The “required downpayment” means the downpayment ordinarily required to obtain conventional loan financing on the decent, safe, and sanitary dwelling you actually purchase. The full amount of the downpayment must be applied to the purchase price of the dwelling and related incidental expenses. RELOCATION CONTACT NAME is the Airport Authority’s representative assigned as needed to assist your relocation. RELOCATION CONTACT NAME will further explain the relocation process and answer your questions concerning your relocation payments. In order for you to maintain eligibility for subsequent relocation payments, please advise and consult with Ms. Wilson before committing to or taking any action regarding purchasing a replacement property or moving your personal property. At this time it is necessary to advise you that you will have at least 90 days to remain on your property. At a later date, and after the Airport Authority has acquired the property, you will be provided a 30 day notice citing a specific date for you to vacate the acquired property. However, please be advised that prior to the Airport Authority acquisition of your leased property you remain obligated to your present lease for payment of rent and other terms and conditions of your lease. NAME phone number is given below, and please do not hesitate to contact him/her should have any questions or concerns regarding your potential relocation.

I hear you dbigtex56, if you take a step back and remove the obvious and absolutely appropriate empathetic response, I'm not sure what the federal regulatory provisions to compensate people who don't have a real estate interest (i.e., in own the place). From what I can recall federal law says renters are entitled to moving expenses and the assurance of "like" accommodations, and perhaps even a subsidy for a period of time if the "like" accommodations cost more. Can anyone confirm? If that's the case, it seems as "adequate" as the compensation for property owners.

Well I see the County Judge met with the SecTrans today as noted in this cryptic tweet, which, at the end of the day, really doesn't say much, which is why politicians always speak in platitudes. Great meeting with Transportation Secretary @PeteButtigieg today in DC. We’re working towards a paradigm shift on transportation in Harris County, to a system that prioritizes people over cars. Glad to have a partner in @SecretaryPete who shares and supports that vision. All I can say is that if the end result is something that convinces both sides that they "won," while also getting additional federal monies for other transportation projects, that's a great outcome.

This is fair and logical. But, I'm sorry, it's completely oblivious to politics. Transportation is, indeed, induced demand to get from point A to point B (except for the not insignificant population of transportation nerds.) Sure it's about supply and where that supply goes, but if you're making an argument to induce demand elsewhere, you're talking about some situation in which, at the end of the day, changes the character of, say, point B by making it less accessible. Sure that may shift demand around but don't be surprised when it p*sses off a lot of people in point B, and, for that reason, may not happen in a run-of-the-mill Western democratic system. I don't know why this is so damned difficult to even acknowledge. These things are not independent. I don't necessarily follow the logic "fix crumbling infrastructure"=contain yourself within existing ROW. First off, it's flawed because TxDOT's stated goal has never been solely fixing crumbling infrastructure, but to provide additional capacity, too (including transit!). But you ask a fantastic question about 610. But to have an appropriate and educated debate about that project versus IH-45, it would be helpful if someone, say, put up some numbers for comparison as to the number of displaced residents, businesses, and the cost. I could be wrong, but my sense is that project was in a different league. Regardless, I'm not sure why anyone is surprised that those who have more political influence are more easily able to obtain desired political outcomes. I mean the statement as written is a truism. Why is anyone surprised? It's certainly not "fair" by any reasonable philosophical standard. You may not like it, but you sure as hell don't fix the problem by stopping the NHHIP.

It has "nothing" to do with speed? It means "deceive"? Really? No poop, as you might say. It's a metaphor. (Indeed, we're getting meta here.) In any case, why use the word "fast"? How about a dealer doing things with sleight of hand? C'mon. How do you think it originated? And, it is indeed an idiom, but what you have provided here is the definition, not the etymology. Big difference. Holy poop indeed. People keep on saying that, but I still don't know what they mean. But maybe I'm missing something. I shouldn't expect samagon to explain to me, is there anyone else out there who can encapsulate what this means?

I don't disagree with your assessment, but I do think that if you think the way to address these issues is to just stop the project, the approach is seriously flawed and is destined to fail. Again, part of their mission is "to build capacity within Houston neighborhoods to stop the I-45 expansion." WTH does that mean? It sounds pretty creepy when you think about it. As written, it betrays that none of this, at the end of the day, is originating from the community, but rather someone else going around trying to get the community to stop it. This is why it is important to ask who is behind it and who is paying for it. It's political malpractice if you ask me. As you acknowledge, TxDOT is doing what it's always done. It'd be a bit illogical IMO to expect them to do otherwise by default. Plus, one has to also acknowledge that "doing what it's always done" is, at the end of the day, a creature of federal and state funding programs and related legislation. In other words, they're working within the system. And, guess what, they're doing that with the full support of their de facto CEO, Greg Abbott. Stopping this project will do little more than stopping this project. If TxDOT did it, I'd say the motives would definitely not be to "promote walkability," but rather to torpedo Lina Hidalgo. As wise men and women say, be careful what you wish for. None of the above is to say that community groups should not keep fighting in their interest to get their concerns addressed. They'd be stupid not to. But what's also stupid is expecting TxDOT, an agency that truly sees projects such as this at the heart of its mission, to turn around and say, "OOOOOOOPPPPPSSSS, our bad, we should have added a question to the survey about transit, and, dependent on the results of that survey, completely transfer money that we have no statutory authorization to do so to whatever "the people" say they want." That would be illegal and bad governance. It might have the outcome you want, but it's bad governance. You talk about the mindset of Houstonians changing. That's not because the things you referred to (bike lanes, etc.) got built . . . or, at least it wasn't the first step. The first step was getting people in office who were oriented to such projects to begin with. You can rest assured that if Tony Buzbee were elected, policy towards these issues would be at risk, and it would have little to do with a shift in public opinion. (A survey might be used to indicate otherwise, if it had throwaway questions like, "Hey, Houstonian, would you like better transit?" I mean, as my grandmother used to say, sweet Jesus, how do you expect people to answer? You're smarter than that.) Likewise, the best way to change the policy is to work towards changing the administration at the State level, i.e., "turning Texas blue." That could give you the platform you want (I say "could," because of course it's no guarantee). It's inherently flawed to link all of this to one project, with a very small number (at the end of the day) of affected people.

Yes, if one seriously thinks that TxDOT is doing anything particularly fast, i.e., “pulling a fast one,” then they haven’t been paying attention. Of course I’m happy to be proven wrong, but I’ve read nothing indicating this. For those anti-expansion, given it’s a 48-page thread, it’s probably time to summarize the opposition other than simply relying on negative associations with freeways prevalent with urban studies types, e.g., POLLUTION! MORE CONGESTION! DELIBERATELY STICKING IT TO THE POOR PEOPLE! It was definitely worth learning these lessons from the 1950s and 1960s, but I’m sorry, it’s just not the same thing. If you can’t see why, then I don’t know what else to say. Sure, there could be a change in federal or state policies diverting transportation funding to RAIL. (I won’t say transit, as, like it or not, this project includes plenty of transit capacity. It just isn’t New York, London, or Tokyo. But if you can’t see that this isn’t the same as the 1950s, you probably can’t see that Houston is not New York and you probably also can’t see the freeways and sprawl in the NY suburbs from Long Island to Connecticut to New Jersey.) In any case, the idea of sacrificing this project for a nonexistent rail option or to “promote walkability,” as is stated in the Stop IH-45 Now mission statement is absolutely inane. It’s the kind of thinking that made Toronto replace Montreal as the primary city in Canada in a very short time. You’d be sacrificing for absolutely nothing but decreased economic activity. That may be A-OK for some of you, but surely you can acknowledge it is probably not a winning issue for the majority of residents in Houston, Texas. I wish everyone was like me, too, and decided not to replace a car after it was on its last leg, but I’m not delusional. The choices that you may think we have are false … i.e., they’re not real. (All of the above with the “in my opinion” disclaimer, of course.)

For the record, I’m in no way saying it’s not a big deal for those affected. I’m just saying that—at least as far as I can tell—the scale is minimal, especially compared with original freeway developments.

Notwithstanding the multiple responses implying something to the contrary, your post remains ACCURATE. Funny how that works. Congratulations, Tulsa! Even if Houston did “take it from Tulsa,” so to speak, it would be the latest on a relatively long list, and I, for one, would rather be Houston.

One would hope so. The stated mission of Stop TxDOT I-45 (from their website) is: To elevate walkability, challenge the status quo of transportation policy, build capacity within Houston neighborhoods to stop the I-45 expansion, and advocate for strategic, inclusive, and equitable transportation in Texas. That's a pretty damned broad mission, and they've linked it all to this one project. If that's really what they want to do, it doesn't seem to me this is the best way to do it. (In fact, as written it does imply a "blanket condemnation of the whole project" for purely symbolic reasons.) It's like a caricature of the 1960s anti-freeway protests, and the issues just aren't the same. Sure, there are anecdotes that make it seem similar from a "gut reaction" perspective, but it's nowhere near the scale. (My humble opinion, of course.)

Acc to Misspelled Doug: Though there is concern about the project’s impacts in Midtown, Third Ward and Eado, the most vocal opposition to the project emanates from north of downtown where TxDOT proposes to add two managed lanes in each direction to I-45. That widening, which requires the destruction of hundreds of homes and businesses adjacent to the freeway, has drawn scorn and accusations that highway officials are perpetuating decades of carving freeways through low-income and minority communities to the detriment of those neighborhoods. Is there a summary of this opposition anywhere? Are we talking about just the 610-Downtown segment or going all the way to the Beltway? Does this refer to the Stop IH 45 Now group? Does anyone know how long this group has been together, who formed it, who funded it (most importantly), and how they have historically participated in the comment process?

I know this is counterintuitive, given the whole point of going public is to raise money, but it's strange this happened today and the supposed leak to Forbes was a banker. Fertitta Entertainment seeks to terminate Fast Acquisition deal - Houston Business Journal (bizjournals.com)

But note he didn’t call it FAKE NEWS, which is obviously the new standard 🤣

Best news I've read in a while! Maybe we can at least get the place cleaned. I can't believe Toyota doesn't complain.

Ah, I get it. Thanks.

So strange it turns south before entering the heart of Greenway Plaza, what a waste. Seems like Weslayan makes much more sense than Edloe.

Understood, but I think that's a bit simplistic. "Ahhhhhh, freeway construction during major event=definite nightmare." The biggest determinants are the construction phasing plan and the volume of traffic flows. If we're talking about tourists, then the traffic flows are dependent on where the hotels are. It's my sense that the supply of hotel rooms is weighted downtown and to the west, with the only other major concentrations at IAH and The Woodlands, but obviously these won't be the most attractive hotel rooms, and traffic should be taken as a matter of course. For people staying downtown, the light rail will be the most attractive transportation option, as it has been with the Super Bowl and Final Four. Obviously people staying to the west or in the Galleria won't be affected. For those wanting to use personal vehicles from downtown, the number one traffic determinant will be the surface street connections to the freeways from downtown. Since there's generally a quadrant system to enter and exit downtown, I'm not sure why what's happening on the perimeter in terms of construction will be that impactful, as long as the entries and exits bypass the construction. Anyway, there's no way of knowing now, but I wouldn't be so quick to assume that the NHHIP is going to be a "nightmare" for the World Cup, at least from the perspective of the "thousands of tourists" who are visiting, especially given the lead time involved for planning.