Wayside Village Agreement Reached

[VicMan]

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nb/ald...ws/4132285.html

Proponents and critics of the plans for Wayside Village have reached an agreement.

1,600 homes will be built in the North Forest ISD area.

[Guest danax]

"Rue had met all city regulations, however, and received every city approval necessary dating back to his general plan in 2004. He awaited only a routine agreement to hook into the city's water system.

While Johnson said the homes would attract the "wrong element," the projected average sales price of $135,000 is more than double the average appraised value for homes in the area."

The guy met every requirement and still had to jump through some hoops. Sounds like they reached a "friendly" agreement but what if he had refused? Could the Council have stopped him? Wrong element? Plutonium maybe? Was Councilman Johnson holding out hope for townhomes and yuppies over there? I haven't been over there for a long time but this sounds like an improvement for the area.

And, Councilman Johnson is forcing him to hire locals as subcontractors. Could this City Council Special Assignment be because this is in a sensitive "minority" area. Boo hoo. I see townhome developers eliminate greenspace every day a lot at a time without a peep from City Hall, other that requiring a tree or two. I like the greenspace and all but if it's not in the current laws then that is that.

Mayor White is worried about developers fleeing to the suburbs. Well, the Greater Houston Builders Association will spread this news around which will scare off any others that might've been thinking about the same thing now. That will leave only free-market-mutant projects like "affordable housing". Another victory for Socialism.

Adding greenspace and sports fields is still not going to be enough to get "the right element" to move in a place with bad schools etc. but it's a start. At least this might bring in a fresh group of blue-collar homeowners instead of blue-bandana renters.

[VicMan]

I think the North Forest area would improve if it was merged into Houston ISD.

BTW, I do not know where the NFISD attendance zoning maps are, so I will not mention any schools right now.

[TheNiche]

I think the North Forest area would improve if it was merged into Houston ISD.

BTW, I do not know where the NFISD attendance zoning maps are, so I will not mention any schools right now.

With very few exceptions (specific corruption or general incompetency), the most common driver of school district performance is demographics. I doubt that merging NFISD with HISD would have any appreciable positive effect.

[VicMan]

With very few exceptions (specific corruption or general incompetency), the most common driver of school district performance is demographics. I doubt that merging NFISD with HISD would have any appreciable positive effect.

I've heard NFISD has had corruption issues (e.g. the employees who were fired for embezzlement)

Even so, HISD is very large, and the merger of less than 10,000 students should have a minimized effect... Also, someone has to take the students of NFISD, IMO.

[FilioScotia]

I've heard NFISD has had corruption issues (e.g. the employees who were fired for embezzlement)

Even so, HISD is very large, and the merger of less than 10,000 students should have a minimized effect... Also, someone has to take the students of NFISD, IMO.

Suggesting that HISD and NFISD merge is the funniest thing I've heard all week. That's because North Forest WAS part of HISD until the mid 1950s. When the U-S Supreme Court ordered public schools to desegregate with all deliberate speed, people in the mostly white northeast corner of HISD decided to secede with all deliberate speed and set up their own mostly white school district.

For a long time it was called the Smiley ISD, after the high school it was built around. Then sometime in the late 60s or early 70s, they changed the name to North Forest, probably to avoid confusion with the much older Smiley ISD over near San Antonio. Whatever, over the years, as more and more black families moved into NFISD, white families moved out, and now it's 70 percent black.

Trust me. HISD won't even consider merging with North Forest because it would be mind bogglingly complicated and controversial. The only possible way it would happen would be for the State Education Agency to FIRST issue a shape up or else order, and give NF a period of time to get its act together. If it fails to improve, TEA would then take over North Forest, suspend the school board, and send in an educational SWAT team to run the district for several years to TRY to get it into working order. TEA did that with the Wilmer-Hutchins ISD outside Dallas several years ago. Then, if even the SWAT team can't do it, TEA would begin the long and painful process of dissolving North Forest, and ordering HISD to absorb the students, teachers and administrators, take over the school buildings, and assume all the debts and liabilities.

And that's the simple scenario. I left out all the hearings, public meetings, legislative and state school board debates, anti-dissolution rallies, protests and marches, and the endless news conferences and charges of racism by Sheila Jackson Lee, Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, Quanell X and every politician with something to gain by grinding their racial axe on the controversy.

[VicMan]

The whole "Quannel X" won't let them idea has been shot down by the U.S. Justice Department allowing the merger of Wilmer-Hutchins ISD, a predominately black and poor performing school district, into Dallas ISD.

Suggesting that HISD and NFISD merge is the funniest thing I've heard all week. That's because North Forest WAS part of HISD until the mid 1950s. When the U-S Supreme Court ordered public schools to desegregate at all deliberate speed, people in the mostly white northeast corner of HISD decided to secede at all deliberate speed and set up their own mostly white school district.

For a long time it was called the Smiley ISD, after the high school it was built around. Then sometime in the late 60s or early 70s, they changed the name to North Forest, probably to avoid confusion with the much older Smiley ISD over near San Antonio. Whatever, over the years, as more and more black families moved into NFISD, white families moved out, and now it's 70 percent black.

Trust me. HISD won't even consider merging with North Forest because it would be mind bogglingly complicated and controversial. The only possible way it would happen would be for the State Education Agency to FIRST take over North Forest, suspend the school board, and send in an educational SWAT team to run the district for several years to TRY to get it into working order. TEA did that with the Wilmer-Hutchins ISD outside Dallas several years ago. Then, if the SWAT team can't restore educational order, TEA would begin the long and painful process of dissolving North Forest, and ordering HISD to absorb the students, teachers and administrators, take over the school buildings, and assume all the debts and liabilities.

And that's the simple scenario. I left out all the hearings, public meetings, legislative and state school board debates, anti-dissolution rallies, protests and marches, and the endless cries of racism by Sheila Jackson Lee, Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, Quanell X and every politician with something to gain by grinding their racial axe on the controversy.

[TheNiche]

The whole "Quannel X" won't let them idea has been shot down by the U.S. Justice Department allowing the merger of Wilmer-Hutchins ISD, a predominately black and poor performing school district, into Dallas ISD.

Just because the courts wouldn't comply with the Quannel X crowd doesn't mean that the Quannel X crowd would shut up. They'd make as much noise as possible in order to gain media attention. And they'd be successful at getting a lot of folks all huffy about the issue, too...not that it'll do anything other than hurt race relations. But then, the politicians don't care because that's what they thrive on.

[VicMan]

Just because the courts wouldn't comply with the Quannel X crowd doesn't mean that the Quannel X crowd would shut up. They'd make as much noise as possible in order to gain media attention. And they'd be successful at getting a lot of folks all huffy about the issue, too...not that it'll do anything other than hurt race relations. But then, the politicians don't care because that's what they thrive on.

That's what happened with WHISD... sort of.

I found this: http://www.aframnews.com/html/2005-05-25/lead3.htm

From what I can tell, though, the efforts only made a few people angry and didn't really hurt race relations.

NFISD is bigger (9,967 in 2004-2005) than the final enrollment of WHISD (2,916 in 2004-2005), though.

I notice that a lot of teachers at my school agree with me about shutting NFISD.

See: http://www.clipfile.org/2005/12/13/821/ about the merger.

[FilioScotia]

That's what happened with WHISD... sort of.

I found this: http://www.aframnews.com/html/2005-05-25/lead3.htm

From what I can tell, though, the efforts only made a few people angry and didn't really hurt race relations.

NFISD is bigger (9,967 in 2004-2005) than the final enrollment of WHISD (2,916 in 2004-2005), though.

I notice that a lot of teachers at my school agree with me about shutting NFISD.

See: http://www.clipfile.org/2005/12/13/821/ about the merger.

You're absolutely right. The state or federal government should dissolve the NFISD school board and install another, or it should dissolve the district altogether and require HISD to absorb it.

NFISD has NEVER shown the slightest sign of being able to manage itself. That's not racism -- that's a fact. Every year there's a new scandal, and the school children are the victims.

Their poor performance on skills tests is the direct result of the abysmal quality of NFISD's educational product. Parents and students deserve better, but they can't seem to elect a school board that's capable of providing it.

[VicMan]

I had a chance meeting with Jesse Jackson at Bush Airport after returning home from vacation... I didn't get to talk to him much, though.

Why not convince him to back a measure to annex NFISD into HISD? It would be better for North Forest families since they could send their kids to HISD magnet schools for free. Also NFISD would automatically get tax money from wealthy high rise properties in central Houston instead of having to rely on Robin Hood (HISD is a Robin Hood donor)

[Watchful]

For a long time it was called the Smiley ISD, after the high school it was built around. Then sometime in the late 60s or early 70s, they changed the name to North Forest, probably to avoid confusion with the much older Smiley ISD over near San Antonio. Whatever, over the years, as more and more black families moved into NFISD, white families moved out, and now it's 70 percent black.

Funny...that's not the way I remember it at all. I remember the district being known as the "Northeast Houston ISD" - and at one time (pre-desegregation) having the two high schools - Smiley HS, the white school and B. C. Elmore, the black school. I think Elmore became a middle school campus when Forest Brook HS was opened.

This link takes it back a bit further...

http://classroom.northforestschools.org/we...ool_history.htm

Wikipedia also suggests the name Northeast Houston ISD predated North Forest.

[FilioScotia]

Funny...that's not the way I remember it at all. I remember the district being known as the "Northeast Houston ISD" - and at one time (pre-desegregation) having the two high schools - Smiley HS, the white school and B. C. Elmore, the black school. I think Elmore became a middle school campus when Forest Brook HS was opened.

This link takes it back a bit further...

http://classroom.northforestschools.org/we...ool_history.htm

Wikipedia also suggests the name Northeast Houston ISD predated North Forest.

You are absolutely right. It WAS called the Northeast Houston ISD. I was just repeating things I heard many years ago, or "thought" I remembered, and it doesn't bother me one bit to be corrected.

Thanks for setting me straight. I can testify that memory is the second thing to go when pass 60. I forgot what the first thing was.

My poor memory does nothing to change the fact that NFISD is still a miserable excuse for a school district and should be dissolved and absorbed into HISD.