FBN: More federal monies are on the way to help bailout Texas school districts (will it make it to the classrooms though?)--click the title link--

FBN: Who's Pulling The Strings In Missouri City--click the title link for this full FBN report--

--The Johnson Development Co. is the one and the same that pushed up to 2700 school zoning buster apartments on Sienna, hundreds more on Riverstone and now up to 1600 on the SL Imperial Sugar Project.......--click the title link above for more--

FBN: Lack Of Fiscal Restraint Is One Reason Watassek Is Seeking FBISD Board Position #1

Click the title link above for the full article....

FBN: Finally An OP/ED Not Directed/Approved By The FBISD Leadership

See: http://www.fortbendnow.com/2011/04/13/51343

"First, why did the Board reward Dr. Jenney with a new 5-year contract? It has become painfully clear that he is masterful at manipulation and that democracy is not evident on this board. Board meeting after board meeting I have watched him whisper to the board president. She listens attentively to the Superintendent, then begins to maneuver the board in such a way that whenever other board members present strong opposing points, her summation of all of their statements somehow comes out representing only one viewpoint, one that aligns with that of the superintendent’s! It is easy to see that, for the most part, the board has given its power, perhaps not intentionally, to the Superintendent and he is not going to give it back without a fight!" FortBendNow

FB Star Coverage Of FBISD/Federation Candidates Forum

See: http://www.fortbendstar.com/?p=727

OP/ED: More Apartments Coming To FBISD (School Over-crowding An Issue)

Developers Use Home Owner Associations (HOAs) to Hide behind The Mantra of “Protecting Property Values” While They Streamline The Utter Destruction of Property and Community.

How is this crime perpetrated? Easily, it is a game of homeowner diversion and ego stroking, with developer control of the political process and community spending. In the end, communities are “finished off” (ambiguity intended) with a flood of apartments that are built on Tax Investment Redevelopment Zones (TIRZs). The apartments in these zones pay little to no taxes to the schools that they quickly overwhelm. As a result, homeowners “sell-out” and sprawl on to the developer’s next new development, leaving depressed property values, bankrupt schools, confused social systems, and opportunistic political structures behind. All of this happens while people are told by their HOAs that they must spend millions of dollars planting flowers, and on wasteful overblown amenities in order to “compete” with new developments. Homeowners would be wiser to demand authentic communities and sustainable development.

Developers’ HOA control of communities and their misuse of “property value” will no doubt continue until El Paso is a suburb of Houston and everything in between looks like Alief, or until people wake up to what does and does not represent real property value, and sustainable development.

School zoning is the number one factor in establishing property value. High quality and well funded classrooms create property value. People buy into a community for the schools, even if they do not have children, because schools create property value, period! Any community that is zoned for Clements High School could pull up all the grass in their front yards and jack up cars under their trees… still their property values would remain high, because the schools have a reputation that drives the real estate market. In other words, we can all appreciate nice landscaping, but let’s not confuse the over spending on HOA vendor-led ideas about landscaping and amenities, while real property values are being eroded by too many low tax paying apartments overwhelming our public schools. School zoning is the location and the location in the famous “location, location, and location” advice for establishing property value. Neighbors, who respect and support each other, are another vital component of real property value.

Clearly, HOAs do not create a dynamic of neighborliness when they harass people with violation notices that send defensive neighbors out photographing each other’s violations that seem worse than their own. This HOA technique purposely creates suspicion, isolates people, and destroys quality of life, as well as the healthy development of real community. In this way, it is easier to manipulate people to move to the developer’s next new community, when homeowners are not rooted authentically to a real community. Developers benefit when people chase after the developer’s superficial vision of value.

In the end, these industry-driven values and practices will guarantee the destruction of any community. Landscaping and overblown debt creating amenities are a smoke screen that seems to be intended to convince and control homeowners just long enough for the developer to plant an over abundance of apartments, divest himself of his developments, and move on to his next project…

Be a part of an authentic community. Fight to stop the developer driven flood of apartments that will overwhelm and destroy our public schools and our community. Don’t “sell-out.” Claim your community and your authentic values.

Attend the “stop the flood of apartments rally” on April 5th at 5:30 pm on the steps of Sugar Land’s City Hall during the City Council meeting. Demand that our city council not sell-out Sugar Land to developers’ unsustainable ideas and values.

http://www.stopimperialsugarmillapartments.com/

FB Sun: Picks up story on video parody of FBISD superintendent

Click the title link above for more...

Related: http://www.yourhoustonnews.com/fort_bend/news/article_bd4883c3-da5a-5007-9a52-8d87eb0ff4cd.html

Fox 26 Covers Growing Apartment Controversy In Sugar Land With Johnson Developers!--click the title link for more--

MCC comment: Will these further exacerbate school zoning problems and over-crowding like the ones in Sienna & Riverstone by the same development company...? Currently at BMS in Sienna students, because of over-crowding, are being bussed out of the neighborhood...stay tuned!

FBISD Budget Blame Game Campaign Continues-

See: http://www.fortbendnow.com/2011/04/04/51196

MCC comment: This will be the 4th out of 5 years that the current district leadership has been unable to balance the budget and had maintained record bond debt at over 1.5 billion dollars. Don't be fooled by the finger pointing...

FB Star: Johnson Development Apartment Controversy In Sugar Land (this time)--click the title link for more--

MCC question: Just how many property tax busting, school over-crowding apts does that make it for this one company in MC and Sugar Land???

FBI: FBISD Candidates Share Positions

See: http://fbindependent.com/fbisd-candidates-spell-out-their-platforms-p3530-1.htm