Highlands Star - Crosby Courier • P.O. Box 405, Highlands, TX 77562 • Phone: 713-266-3444 • Fax: 713-977-1188 • Email: grafikstar@aol.com
CROSBY – Harris County Precinct 2 Commissioner Adrian Garcia indicated that he intends to make sure that as long as he represents the Precinct, county services will not go lacking, anymore.
Last Thursday, the Commissioner and former Sheriff addressed a capacity crowd in the office and serving chapel of Crosby Church hosting the Crosby-Huffman Chamber of Commerce Luncheon concerning flood control, roads, and working together with businesses.
CROSBY – As the San Jacinto River Authority is coming under criticism for setting prices higher for raw water both Newport Municipal Utility District (MUD) and Crosby Municipal Utility District (MUD) are facing issues related to supplying clean, inexpensive water.
According to Bloomberg Law, a pair of Texas Utility companies have alleged that San Jacinto River Authority violated the Sherman 1890 Antitrust Act after the Authority increased the price of wholesale raw water. San Jacinto River Authority (SJRA) was established in the 1930s to manage the water resources of the San Jacinto Basin. The suit accuses SJRA of fixing prices and monopolizing. This all came after the announcement that the River Authority would raise rates related to changes in the under groundwater rates ( aquifer) conservation rules established by the Lone Star Ground Water Conservation District in 2006.
Districts must move much more to surface water according to subsidence laws.
At a meeting last Friday, the Board of Newport MUD voted to increase the water bill by $35 following the residents voting down a $70,000,000 bond last election day.
Crosby MUD board has passed a $3.25 Million dollar bond to be done December 1 and due August 2039.
(Houston, TX) – Elected officials came together today for the grand opening of the new Jim Fonteno Harris County Clerk’s Office Annex located at 14350 Wallisville Road. Dozens attended the ribbon cutting made possible by Harris County partners and the North Channel Area Chamber of Commerce.
“We are very pleased that we can offer our services to area residents that otherwise had to travel far to obtain personal records,” said Harris County Clerk Dr. Diane Trautman. “It also made sense to open an annex here since this building already houses other county offices.”
With this new addition, the Harris County Clerk’s Office now has 11 locations throughout county. Residents can obtain deed information, marriage licenses, birth certificates and other personal records at the office most convenient to them.
Logan Lopez completed the requirements for his Quartermaster and Eagle Scout badges by refurbishing the pavilion in Highlands Heritage Park, and building a wooden fence to improve safe use of the park and screen the railroad from the grass area.
In 1994, Gilbert Hoffman and his wife Mei-ing bought the Highlands Star – Crosby Courier, fulfilling one of Gilbert’s lifelong dreams: to own a newspaper. This also marked the beginning of what would become a small publishing conglomerate, serving the greater Houston area with community papers such as the Star-Courier, Northeast News, and North Channel Star.
This week, Gilbert celebrates his 80th birthday. Upon such a significant milestone, it is worth looking back on his remarkable life, family, adventures, and many careers.
CASTLE ROCK, COLORADO – A woman that had lived and gone to church in Crosby is now on trial for the unthinkable murder of her own 7 year old daughter.
Kelly Turner 41, a.k.a Kelly Grant has been charged with the 2017 murder of Olivia Grant, her daughter. Allegedly she faces 2 charges of murder in the first degree for the same death under Colorado law that makes special provisions for those entrusted with children under 12 years of age. She is charged with child abuse and ten associated counts.
Olivia Grant was seen as a terminally ill seven year old who was a favorite of firefighters and police and pretend opponent of convicted criminals in local events. She had been dubbed the “Bat Princess.” But authorities allege it was a concocted story put together by her mother to bilk the community of money and use the girl’s death as cover.
The grand jury found that Kelly has taken over half a million dollars from Make A Wish Foundation, Medicaid, local hospitals and a half dozen local charities under false pretenses.
On Thursday, September 19, 2019 an Emergency Declaration was implemented in Harris County due to Tropical Storm Imelda. District III, specifically the Crosby area and Newport subdivision, received a downpour of rain which caused flash flooding. The flooding stranded motorist in their cars and people inside their homes. People were in need of rescue and were rescued.
Evacuees were taken to Crosby United Methodist Church for shelter. An immediate need for supplies for evacuees was identified and addressed by Sergeant Donnie Williams. He commandeered help from Deputies Mitchell and Guidry.
The Harris County Sheriff’s Office Citizen’s Police Academy Alumni Association (Ron DeLorge, Bernadette Beauchamp, Karen Foster, Eddie Foster & Becky Moon) along with Captain Morrison recognized and showed their appreciation to all three of them for their bravery and sacrifice made to the citizens of Harris County that were in need.
BAYTOWN – A grassroots citizen group is leading the effort to bring the Battleship Texas to a berth in Baytown, after it is repaired and restored.
The group is headed by businessman Jay Eshbach, with help from well-known historian Russell Hamman, Jake Daniel, Peter Piontkowski, and others.
The Battleship was originally built in 1912, and has seen service in both World Wars. Since 1948 it has been berthed at the San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Park in LaPorte.
The State of Texas has spent $85 million to preserve the ship and keep it afloat, but now wants to turn it over to a private foundation to maintain and operate.
Highlands Rotarians were busy this week, preparing a number of gift wrapped bags with toys and clothing items for the needy children of a Highlands family. The Gift bags will be distributed in the Holiday spirit at the beginning of December.
Harris County, Texas – November 15, 2019 – Today, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo joined business leaders, residents, and community leaders from across the region to deliver the first State of the County address of her term. During her remarks to about 900 attendees, Judge Hidalgo outlined key areas of progress in fostering a safer, healthier, and more equitable Harris County and announced a new initiative that will focus on improving early childhood development.
“The state of our county is strong,” said Judge Hidalgo. “But being strong is about much more than having a low unemployment rate or a strong bond rating. It’s about making sure that all of our residents enjoy equal access to the great opportunities available to them in Harris County. Over the past year we’ve made county government more transparent, made strides to reform our criminal justice system, and have begun to make up for lost time when it comes to investing in our flood control infrastructure. But there is much more to do, and we look forward to another year of ambitious, meaningful initiatives, including a focus on what we can do to improve early childhood development and education.”
Drawing from the “Talking Transition” initiative, Judge Hidalgo will kick off a community engagement series next year as the first step towards a larger goal of a meaningful early childhood development initiative in Harris County. Programs that focus on early childhood development have one of the strongest returns on investment for any type of public program. Children who benefit from initiatives like subsidized childcare and early education tend to have higher high school graduation rates, fewer arrests, lower rates of substance use, and higher rates of employment as adults.
During her remarks, Judge Hidalgo also provided updates on key priorities since her swearing in. Some key areas of progress include: