Chad’s Morning Brief: Lubbock City Council, Imagine Lubbock Together, & More
Here is your Morning Brief for the morning of July 31, 2013. Give me your feedback below and tune in to The Chad Hasty Show for these and many more topics from 8:30 to 11am. Remember, you can listen online at KFYO.com or on your iPhone/Android with the radioPup App.
1. LP&L and the Lubbock City Council (link)
LP&L rates were the focus of last night's Lubbock City Council meeting. The meeting started with a 4-3 vote against allowing LP&L to waive the $30 fee for phone customers who want to set-up a payment plan. Mayor Robertson voted with Gibson and Gerlt to allow LP&L to waive the fee. The fee is nothing more than a punishment for those who call into LP&L. LP&L doesn't want the phone traffic, so instead they punish you.
By the way, at last night's meeting the LP&L Customer Service Manager wasn't in attendance. Not doing yourselves any favors there LP&L.
At the end of the night, the Council decided to wait and see what action the Electric Utility Board made. The final vote of the night to postpone the rate increase failed 5-2 with Robertson and Gibson voting to postpone.
2. Imagine That (link)
According to Imagine Lubbock Together, just about everyone is for Downtown Redevelopment and North/East Lubbock Development. So of course, most of the presentation yesterday was about Downtown. Though Imagine Lubbock was light on most of the details.
Tuesday, at a luncheon at Texas Tech’s McKenzie-Merket Alumni Center, the Lubbock Chamber of Commerce formally unveiled the Imagine Lubbock Together Vision & Strategic Implementation Plan. A number of elected officials were in attendance, including Lubbock Mayor Glen Robertson and city council members Karen Gibson, Jim Gerlt and Latrelle Joy; Lubbock County Commissioners Patti Jones (R), Bill McCay (R) and Mark Heinrich (R); and State Representatives John Frullo (R- Lubbock) & Charles Perry (R- Lubbock).
The implementation plan covers eight different areas: Arts and Culture, Basic and Fundamental Services, Beautification and Image, Downtown, Economic Development, Education, Entertainment and Recreation and Neighborhoods. You can download the 80-page PDF from the Lubbock Chamber of Commerce website, by clicking this link.
In discussing the presentation with KFYO’s Chad Hasty, Imagine Lubbock Together co-chair David Seim said, “I’m really excited. There a lot of things that we can pull together that people have been wanting. I’m excited about this private corporation that is being developed to start doing some projects in downtown.”
The private corporation Seim speaks of is the LDDC, the Lubbock Downtown Development Corporation. Former Lubbock City Councilman Jim Gilbreath serves on the board for the LDDC. Connie Wharton is the chairman of the LDDC. Other board members include Robert Taylor, Mark Bass, Dan Pope, Mark Griffin & Rick Dykes. The LDDC is a for-profit corporation which will work to spur downtown redevelopment.
Connie Wharton also brought up during her presentation that bonds and grants may have to be used in order to fund the projects. What are those projects? Still have to wait to find out.
3. 3rd Special Session Starts (link)
Governor Perry could have waited a while to call the 3rd Special Session. He did not.
Just over an hour after lawmakers ended their second 30-day special session of the year, Gov. Rick Perry called lawmakers back for a third one, with transportation funding the only issue on the agenda.
News of the call was apparent to leaders of the House and Senate earlier Tuesday as they wrapped up the second session's last day.
Standing before mostly empty chairs in the 150-member Texas House, House SpeakerJoe Straus adjourned the second special session and announced that Perry would be calling them all back for a third special session later in the day.
After gaveling in the House at 2:36 p.m., Straus briefly thanked members for their time and hard work during the second special session before acknowledging Perry would probably call a third special session 30 minutes after both chambers had officially adjourned the second special session.
With 30 more days, the question is will lawmakers hammer out a deal on transportation and will the Governor add any other issues to the call.
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These and many more topics coming up on today’s edition of The Chad Hasty Show. Tune in mornings 8:30-11am on News/Talk 790 KFYO, streaming online at kfyo.com, and now on your iPhone and Android device with the radioPup App. All guest interviews can be heard online in our podcast section after the show at kfyo.com.
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