Neighborhood activists challenge next Mayor, must improve drainage and city services

Along bustling Bellaire Boulevard in the west side community of Alief - the biggest "ask" of Houston's next Mayor is simple, but multi-faceted. 

"City services that are lacking. Some of the roads here are just horrendous," said Alief neighborhood activist Barbara Quattro.

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Quattro calls it better execution of "the fundamentals" or put even differently, do what all cities are supposed to do, but do it better.

"Tend to the basics. Get the trash picked up on time. Fix the roads. Do something with Metro, well this is a metro issue, do something with metro, so it doesn't take two hours to get to the Medical Center."

30 minutes to the west in the neighborhood of Trinity Gardens, the call for over-due action from Houston's next Mayor is more urgent.

"It's like two different Houston's, and it used to be on the other side of the railroad track, but we are always on the other side of the railroad track out here," said community leader Huey Germain Wilson.

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According to Germain-Wilson, flood mitigation is the most pressing priority.

"In heavy rain events, the people in this community flood, because their ditches aren't grated and they don't have culverts. They couldn't afford to purchase their own culverts, and we are way down the list on getting the City to come in and do the culverts," said Germain-Wilson.

Add to the chronic lack of drainage, the widespread absence of sidewalks and the generally poor condition of parks with few, if any, amenities.

With progress, if not perfection, the goal, Huey offered a message to the next mayor.

"What other communities are struggling with drainage in the fourth-largest city in the country? If you'd fix drainage in our communities, I think we'd be pretty excited," said Germain-Wilson.

HoustonAliefNews