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Select elected officials get what the doctor ordered, a hefty pay raise
Fort Bend County Judge KP George and three county commissioners last week voted to give a hefty salary increase to a few, select officials by adopting the proposed 2025 elected officials’ salary. Major beneficiaries of this political largesse include a 26.2 percent raise for County Attorney Bridgette Smith-Lawson (D),…
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Fort Bend County and UH Enhance Commuter Service with New Stop at UH Main Campus
Fort Bend County and the University of Houston (UH) have announced a strategic collaboration to significantly improve the Downtown Commuter service, specifically designed for the convenience of Fort Bend County students. The new initiative includes a new stop at the UH Main campus, offering a smoother and more efficient commute for students located in the…
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2024 Fort Bend Infrastructure Conference
The 2024 Fort Bend Infrastructure Conference is a collaborative effort between the Central Fort Bend Chamber and the Fort Bend Chamber. This half-day conference will take place on Friday, September 13th, from 7:30 am – 1:30 pm at Safari Texas Ranch in Richmond, TX. This educational conference promises to…
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Patel indicted on four felony and misdemeanor counts each
Taral Patel, the Democratic candidate for Fort Bend County Precinct 3 Commissioner, was indicted Wednesday by a Fort Bend County grand jury on four felony counts of online impersonation and four misdemeanor counts of online misrepresentation of identity related to his race for the commissioner’s court seat. The indictments cap…
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Fort Bend County Master Gardeners Host Fall Plant Sale to Promote Healthy Living and Sustainability
The Fort Bend County Master Gardeners is gearing up to host their highly anticipated fall vegetable and herb plant sale on Saturday, October 12. In their continued efforts to promote healthy living and sustainability among local residents, the Master Gardeners will sell a broad range of locally grown plants that are well-suited to the Fort…
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Taral Patel, Fort Bend County Commissioner candidate, faces 4 felony indictments
FORT BEND COUNTY, Texas – Taral Patel, Democratic nominee for Fort Bend County Precinct 3 Commissioner, has been indicted for impersonating people online to threaten others. According to court documents, Patel created Facebook accounts impersonating other people with the intent to harm, defraud, intimidate, or threaten others. He would post…
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Taral Patel Indicted in Fake Racism Case
RICHMOND, TEXAS (Covering Katy News) — Fort Bend County court records indicate that Taral Patel, the Democratic nominee for Fort Bend County Precinct 3 Commissioner, was indicted on Tuesday on four felony counts of online impersonation and four misdemeanor counts of Misrepresentation of Identity. The indictment amplifies the legal…
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Fort Bend adds University of Houston to downtown commuter bus route
While the university has its own private shuttle between campuses, it restricts who is allowed to take the bus due to heavy demand. Fort Bend County is now offering a bus service for University of Houston students commuting into the city. The county has added a new stop to its…
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Fort Bend County commissioner candidate Taral Patel indicted of 4 felony counts of online impersonation
FORT BEND COUNTY, Texas – Fort Bend County court records reveal that Taral Patel, the Democratic nominee for Fort Bend County Precinct 3 Commissioner, was indicted on Tuesday by a Grand Jury on four felony counts of online impersonation. Patel, who was arrested in June on a felony charge…
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Suspect charged in fatal shooting of man in Fort Bend County
HOUSTON, Texas — Charges have been filed against a suspect arrested in the fatal shooting of a man at 15815 Boonridge Road around 12:10 a.m. on July 26, 2023. The suspect, 34-year-old Ricky Lee Garcia, of Fort Bend County, is charged with murder in the 268th State District Court, according to a press release from…
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Trammell Crow-Led JV Starts Work on 1.35M-SF Industrial Park
Commercial real estate developer Trammell Crow, with joint venture partner Daiwa House Texas, recently broke ground on Blue Ridge Commerce Center, a five-building industrial park in Fort Bend County. The project, which covers 92 acres, will be completed in the summer of 2025 and will create over 1.35 million square…
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Fort Bend County Commissioners Court votes to give raises to elected officials
Local elected officials will see pay raises ranging from 4% to 26%. Fort Bend County Commissioners voted recently to give themselves — and other elected officials — a raise this year. Local elected officials will see pay raises ranging from 4% to 26%. County attorney Bridgette Smith-Lawson will…
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Fort Bend ISD’s top earners made nearly $5 million
FORT BEND COUNTY – Fort Bend Independent School District’s top 25 earners collected base salaries totaling almost $5 million in the 2023-24 school year, according to staffing data from the Texas Education Agency and the Houston Chronicle. Two superintendents occupied the top-paid spots for the 80,000-student district last school year: Christie Whitbeck, who served as…
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Fort Bend County Appoints Roosevelt Weeks as Library Director
RICHMOND, TEXAS (Covering Katy News) — The Fort Bend County Commissioners Court has appointed Roosevelt Weeks as the new Library Director of the Fort Bend County library system. Weeks will officially assume the role on Oct. 7, 2024. Weeks brings more than 20 years of experience in library leadership….
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Rickert Calls Elected Officials Pay Raises “Unacceptable”
RICHMOND, Texas (Covering Katy News) — Republican County Treasurer Bill Rickert calls the recent pay raises for Fort Bend County elected officials “unacceptable” and “a slap in the face” to struggling county residents. On Aug. 27, the raises were shepherded through on a 4 to 1 vote by the Democratic majority on the Commissioners Court.
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FBCL’s ‘Community Reads’ features ‘Olympus, Texas’ this fall
Fort Bend County Libraries invites the public to join in this year’s “Community Reads” initiative, a county-wide reading program encouraging communities to read and discuss a particular book together September through November. The 2024 selection is Stacey Swann’s debut novel, “Olympus, Texas”. Book discussions on “Olympus, Texas” will take place…
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Rookie of the Year: Liska Sims, Keller Williams Southwest
Liska Sims is an accomplished real estate agent with Keller Williams Realty Southwest. With a career spanning over two decades, Sims started in the mortgage industry and transitioned into the real estate sector. Her unique background allows her to provide invaluable insight to her clients. Specializing in assisting sellers and first-time homebuyers, Sims is equipped…
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Houston Humane Society assists in rescue of three neglected horses in Fort Bend
Houston Humane Society recently assisted in the rescue of three horses from deplorable conditions in Fort Bend County, according to a news release from the nonprofit agency. The horses – one male and two females – were found to be living in an unsanitary environment without access to food and were all observed to be…
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Fort Bend Transit expands existing service to UH main campus
This week, Fort Bend County Transit and the University of Houston begin an expansion of the existing Downtown Commuter Service tailored to benefit students in the Fort Bend County area. The new partnership introduces a drop-off point at the UH Main campus in Houston, providing students with easer access to the campus.
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Houston Humand Society assists in rescue of three neglected hores in Fort Bend
Houston Humane Society recently assisted in the rescue of three horses from deplorable conditions in Fort Bend County, according to a news release from the nonprofit agency. The horses – one male and two females – were found to be living in an unsanitary environment without access to food and were all observed to be…
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Two men sentenced to prison in separate child sexual assault cases
Two men were recently sentenced to state prison on separate charges stemming from sexual abuse of a child, according to a press release from the Fort Bend County District Attorney’s Office. On August 26, Carlos Larios, 47, of Houston, was sentenced by a Fort Bend County jury to 32 years…
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First Colony library to host Sept. 12-13 money management workshop
On Thursday and Friday, September 12 and 13, from 2-3 p.m. each day, Fort Bend County Libraries’ First Colony Branch Library will present a special two-part “Financial-Literacy Workshop: Understanding Money” program in the Meeting Room of the library, located at 2121 Austin Parkway in Sugar Land. In the workshop, Lynne…
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Fort Bend libraries offer demonstrations of online collections in September
Throughout September, Fort Bend County Libraries will hold demonstrations of EBSCO’s MasterFILE(tm) Complete – an online collection of journals, magazines, newspapers, and reference ebooks. Attendees will learn how to search this online resource for complete articles from Consumer Reports, U.S. News & World Report, TIME, Better Homes & Gardens, Sports…
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It’s not a bad idea to set a good example
As you may have seen in last week’s Fort Bend Star, the Fort Bend ISD board last week voted on long-contentious revisions to the district’s policy on selecting and retaining books in the district’s libraries. I touched on that issue in a previous column, so I won’t revisit it here. The new policy has been…