May 2012 
Highway 290 Construction

 

The Houston region's population is expected to grow by 64% between 2006 and 2035. In that time frame, the population of the US 290 corridor between IH 610 and FM 2920 will swell to an estimated 888,000. To accommodate this significant growth, the US 290 Program has developed a plan to increase highway capacity on US 290 and the Hempstead Tollway from the IH 610/US 290 interchange to FM 2920. The program includes the creation of:

  • 5-6 general-purpose lanes in each direction from IH 610 to SH 6
  • 4 general-purpose lanes in each direction from SH 6 to the proposed SH 99/Grand Parkway
  • 3 general-purpose lanes in each direction from the proposed SH 99/Grand Parkway to FM 2920
  • A four-lane, two-way managed lanes facility along Hempstead Tollway from IH 610 to the proposed SH 99/Grand Parkway  

Additionally, US 290 METRO HOV operations will be moved to Hempstead Tollway managed lanes, easing congestion on US 290. For more information on the US 290 Program, visit my290.com or call 1-800-95US290.

 

"Love Your Block" Grant Program 

Nonprofit organizations are encouraged to apply for "Love Your Block" grants to support volunteer-led street block revitalization projects. The grants will support twenty projects that revitalize green spaces, transform blighted areas and advocate for quality open space.

 

Those selected for the grants will receive a $500 gift card from Home Depot to purchase supplies and equipment necessary to implement the projects. City of Houston community partner Keep Houston Beautiful will support the projects by providing supplies, tools and other resources to offset costs. A grant review committee will provide guidance to align funded projects with existing city priorities.

 

The grant application deadline is Friday, May 11, 2012. Applicant groups must have nonprofit status. Eligible groups include block, neighborhood and tenant associations as well as community garden clubs and religious-based organizations. Grantees will be notified on Friday, May 25, 2012. Funded projects must be completed between June 1 and December 31, 2012.

 

To apply for a "Love Your Block" grant, visit HoustonSERVICE.org. For more information, email [email protected] or call 832-393-0971. The new grant program is part of Houston SERVICE under the Mayor's Volunteer Initiatives Program in the Department of Neighborhoods.


HPL Presents Steven Fenberg

On Saturday, May 12 at 2 p.m., join fellow Houstonians, history buffs and story-lovers at the beautifully restored Julia Ideson Building (500 McKinney) as award-winning writer and filmmaker, Steven Fenberg, discusses his new biography of Jesse Jones, Unprecedented Power: Jesse Jones, Capitalism, and the Common Good.

 

Though evidence of Jones's legacy can be found throughout Houston, few know the story of the businessman, philanthropist and Washington insider. With just an eighth-grade education, Jones's power was second only to that of President Franklin Roosevelt; his hand shaped the policies that pulled the nation from the Great Depression, and his foresight saw that the country's manufacturing industry was prepared to outfit our military as World War II broke.

 

Fenberg had unrestricted access to the collections of the Houston Endowment, the philanthropic organization founded by Jesse and Mary Gibbs Jones, while writing his definitive account of the life of Jesse Holman Jones. Treat yourself, and your sense of story, to an afternoon out.

 

For more information, visit the Houston Public Library's website

Council Member Jack Christie
phone: 832.393.3017