04/24/2008
ROCK 'N BOWL IS SET FOR MAY 27
Cy-Fair - Northwest Houston businesses and residents will have an opportunity to combine fun and support for a good cause at the Chamber’s Seventh Annual Bowling Tournament on Tuesday, May 27, from 6 to 9 p.m. at Copperfield Bowl , 15615 Glen Chase Drive. This year we have chosen a 50’s theme for the tournament, so bring on the poodle skirts, greased hair and get ready to Rock ‘N Bowl.
A portion of the proceeds from the event will benefit an Endowed Scholarship at Lone Star College–CyFair. In the past six years, the Chamber has raised almost $20,000 to benefit scholarship endowments for the college.
Each of the five-person bowling teams will receive dinners of bowling cuisine and goodie bags. Trophies will be awarded for the first-, second- and third-place teams, and there will also be prizes for most spirited team, best-dressed team and the high game for both men and women.
Alpine Field Services, AmegyBank of Texas, Brookside Funeral Homes, Business Network International, Caldwell Companies, CenterPoint Energy, Comfort Suites, Coors Brewing Company, Cy-Fair Lifestyles & Homes, Cy-Fair Houston Chamber of Commerce Ambassadors, Dickens Delivery Service Inc., Executive Inn & Suites, First Community Credit Union, Fox & Bubela, Inc., Hewlett-Packard Company, Houston Community Newspapers/The SUN, Independence Bank, N.A., Jersey Meadow Golf Course, Joe Meyers Ford, Leadership North Houston Association, Lone Star College–CyFair, Members Choice Credit Union, Metropolitan Publishing Co., Inc., Motel 6, PBK Architects, Inc., ProLine Supply Co. and Texas One Community Credit Union have already committed to sponsoring the event.
A wide variety of sponsorship opportunities are still available. To become a sponsor or to reserve your team’s spot call Sherri Padalino at the Chamber Office at 281-955-1100.
In addition, the Auction Committee is looking for all types of donations including sports memorabilia and tickets, restaurant meals, hotel stays, airline tickets and much more. To make a donation to the auction call Jennifer Ellis at the Chamber Office at 281-955-1100.
For more information please call 281-955-1100 or visit our website www.cyfairchamber.com.
04/15/2008
DYNAMO LEADER DIVULGES TEAM’S STADIUM GOALS
Houston Dynamo president Oliver Luck said in addition to defending back-to-back Major League Soccer (MLS) Cup championships, Houston ’s soccer team franchise is looking forward to building a youth/amateur adult soccer complex, and possibly a new stadium, in partnership with the city of Houston in the next two years.
“We are delighted to be in this market,” Luck told Cy-Fair Houston Chamber of Commerce members at the chamber’s April 15 general membership luncheon. “We are happy to have brought two championships to Houston.”
Luck said the future of soccer looks bright in Houston for two reasons: there are more kids playing soccer in the Houston region than any other sport; and the sport is extremely popular among the Latino population, which is a fast-growing segment of Houston ’s population.
Statistics back those assumptions: about 70,000 Houston-area kids are enrolled in youth soccer leagues and clubs; and about 40 percent of the Dynamo fan base is Latino.
“Our biggest challenge with the Latino community is that they believe – whether they come from Mexico , Argentina , Spain – that their game is better than we play here in America ,” Luck said. “We have to earn their respect.”
That is slowly happening, Luck said. At a tournament last year that featured four U.S. teams and four Mexican teams, older Latino gentleman were walking in with shirts favoring the Mexican clubs while their sons and grandsons had on “Dynamo” jerseys.
The team draws about 17,000 fans out for each game played at the University of Houston ’s Robertson Stadium. The Houston Dynamo organization is nearing the end of its three-year lease with the University of Houston , and is looking to build a new stadium near Minute Maid Park and the Toyota Center in downtown.
“UH has been very hospitable to us, but the problem is parking,” Luck said. “We cannot play Monday through Friday before 9 p.m. because parking is needed for students.”
In early March, Houston City Council approved a $15.5 million contract to purchase five downtown blocks, and agreed to obtain a sixth block by swapping some city-owned land. That land in Houston ’s East End could house a soccer stadium for the Houston Dynamo.
Luck said the team is not asking the Harris County Houston Sports Authority – the entity that financed construction of Minute Maid Park , Reliant Stadium, and the Toyota Center - to foot the bill for the stadium. Luck was the Authority’s chief executive office until joining the Dynamo organization.
He said the Dynamo has pledged about $80 million of the $110 million needed to build the stadium. The team is in negotiations with city officials over how much the city of Houston could commit to the project.
“We hope to be in there (the stadium) by the 2010 or 2011 season,” Luck said.
The city of Houston also acquired a 100-acre site off Texas 288, near Beltway 8, for a soccer complex that will house 18 fields for youth and adult amateur sports and possibly a Houston Dynamo practice facility. That project should break ground in the next three to four months, Luck said.
Luck said he is, and always has been, impressed with the character of students, parents and coaches who live and work in the Cy-Fair area.
However, he said the Dynamo franchise chose not to build a stadium in a suburb of Houston because it could potentially cut off the other suburban centers due to Houston ’s vast size and traffic problems.
04/03/2008
SPRINT PRESENTS SALUTE TO LAW ENFORCEMENT
The
event will be held on Saturday, May 3 from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Willowbrook
Mall will be teaming up with more than 100 law enforcement agencies
to host Sprint Presents Salute to Law Enforcement. The event is the
largest known single law enforcement exhibition open to the public,
attracting almost 50,000 visitors annually.
Sponsored by the Cy-Fair Houston Chamber of Commerce, Cy-Fair Lifestyles & Homes, Lone Star College – CyFair, Houston Coca-Cola Bottling Company, Kwik Kopy Business Center, Members Choice Credit Union, Spring ISD, Sprint, Sweet Tomatoes and Willowbrook Mall, the Salute offers citizens the opportunity to meet law enforcement representatives, tour vehicles and gather literature about safety. About 100 different agencies will be represented, with more than 200 officers and 90 or more indoor and outdoor exhibits.
The Salute begins at 11:00 a.m. with an opening ceremony that will include singing of “The Star Spangled Banner” and recitation of the names of local officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty.
Throughout the day, visitors will have the opportunity to meet law enforcement representatives and be able to:
Throughout the day, visitors will have the opportunity to meet law enforcement representatives and be able to:
- Tour emergency vehicles
- Climb aboard a helicopter
- Tour the Harris County Sheriff’s Department mobile command center
- Explore a CCEMS ambulance
- Meet officers on horseback
- See the drug-sniffing dogs
- See patrolling robots
- Receive handouts for the children
- Enjoy opening ceremony and on-stage demonstrations throughout the day and
- More exhibits inside and outside
Sprint will be sponsoring the DNA Life Print for all children attending the event. Parents can greatly increase their chance of quickly recovering a missing child if they can immediately provide an FBI -certified 10 digit biometric fingerprint profile, a DNA sample, a high resolution full color photograph, and current statistical information.
Additionally, exhibits will have video presentations about a variety of subjects. Booths will provide opportunities for auto ID, anti-theft devices and light/heat sensitive displays.
For more information about this event or to RSVP for your agency, officers, or organization call Chief Alan Bragg, Spring ISD Police Dept. at 832-764-4901, info@SaluteToLawEnforcement.org or alanb@springisd.org . For sponsorship information call Sherri Padalino at 281-955-1100, sherri@cyfairhcamber.com or visit www.cyfairchamber.com or www.salutetolawenforcement.org.
04/03/2008
HIGHWAY 290’S COMMUTER RAIL FUTURE REMAINS BRIGHT
Transportation planners are nearing the end of a Regional Commuter Rail Connectivity Study , and they say Highway 290 still ranks high among the rail corridors that could one day see passenger rail cars carrying people to and from Houston ’s business centers.
“We have been talking with the railroad companies…and they have told us that certain rail corridors are not practical for commuter rail,” said Sam Lott, with Kimley-Horn Associates and director of the Houston Galveston Area Council’s (HGAC) Regional Commuter Rail Connectivity Study. “Fortunately, 290 is not one of them.”
Lott told members of the Cy-Fair Houston Chamber of Commerce’s combined Transportation Committee/Highway 290 Passenger Rail Coalition (290 PRC) that 290 needs a “multi-modal” approach: a long-distance commuter rail line from the Northwest Transit Center to Waller and beyond, a short-distance suburban commuter system from the Northwest Transit Center to Beltway 8, and a light-rail connection from the transit center to downtown and other major hubs.
He said the study team is still working on the details of a 290 system, as part of a larger regional rail commuter system. They will wrap up the regional rail study, and hold public meetings, this summer.
Last year it was announced that the Highway 290 corridor ranked in the top five candidates in the region for a commuter rail system. Since then, Harris-Galveston Area Council’s Regional Commuter Rail Connectivity Study team has been conducting an in-depth evaluation on each of those corridors – Highway 290, the Hardy Toll Road , Westpark, Interstate 45 south and U.S. 90 –to determine the most feasible railroad corridors in the region for commuter rail implementation in conjunction with freight rail service.
Lott said the study team has delved into several components: a ridership analysis of each corridor; a calculation of how much it would cost to build and operate a regional commuter rail system; a feasible location for a hub terminal and maintenance and storage facility; and right-of-way needs.
The ridership analysis shows Highway 290 in the middle of the five corridors in terms of average daily ridership: Hardy – 9,000; Highway 90 – 7,400; Highway 290 – 6,900; Westpark – 6,800; and Interstate 45 South – 6,800. The team added a sixth corridor – Texas 249 – and found that it could add another 5,200 riders in to the mix.
The cost to run 88 trains per day in five corridors would be about $90 million a year. Total capital/infrastructure costs to build the system would be about $2.9 billion.
The team has identified five potential locations for the hub terminal and maintenance facility, Lott said. Those include the Northwest Mall area, Northwest Transit Center , Eureka rail yard, Hardy rail yard and Old South rail yard.
Lott said the team has identified potential right-of-way needs for the system.
“We are talking with Metro (Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County), the Texas Department of Transportation and Harris County about protecting property they control so that we have options,” Lott said.
Getting commuters in to downtown, the Galleria, and points beyond would be a challenge because right-of-way inside Loop 610 is tight, and many entities want to lay claim to it for various projects, he said. In the end, not everyone will be happy with the results.
“We don’t have many options – we need to move people between outlying developments to the center of town,” Lott said. “We can’t keep building more and more freeways. We can’t have it all the way we want it, but I believe a good solution lies in a long-distance commuter rail system.”
The Cy-Fair Chamber has lobbied for several years for a commuter system that links the booming Cy-Fair area and points beyond to downtown Houston and other major commercial and business centers.
The privately-owned Union Pacific Railroad line that borders U.S. 290 is not heavily utilized by that company for freight rail operations.
The Cy-Fair Houston Chamber Board has adopted a resolution supporting mass transit in the U.S. 290 corridor. The City of Jersey Village, City of Waller , Waller Economic Development Council, Waller County , City of Prairie View , City of Hempstead , City of College Station , and City of Bryan have adopted similar resolutions.
For more information about the Regional Commuter Rail Connectivity Study go to www. hgaccommuterrail.com.
04/03/2008
CY-FAIR CHAMBER URGES RESIDENTS TO VOTE ‘YES’ IN LONE STAR COLLEGE BOND ELECTION
The Cy-Fair Houston Chamber of Commerce leadership is solidly backing the Lone Star College System’s proposed $420 million bond plan, and is urging its membership – and all college district residents – to vote in favor of the bond referendum at the polls in the May 10 general election.
The Lone Star College System’s rapid – and projected - growth has created a need for new facilities throughout the college district to house students who come to them for a post-graduate education. For that reason, the college district’ board of trustees voted to call the bond election, which will not increase the college district’s already low 11.44-cent property tax rate.
“Our board passed a resolution in support of the bond referendum – it is very important to the vitality of our area,” said Reginald Lillie, the Cy-Fair Houston Chamber of Commerce’s board chairman. “We have formed a PAC (political action committee) to promote the bond issue, and we encourage everyone to get out and vote and support this very important bond election.”
Erin Al-Salman, Cy-Fair Houston Chamber of Commerce president, said the Citizens For Lone Star College PAC meets every other Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. at the Chamber office, 11734 Barker Cypress #105.
“We are 100 percent behind this bond issue,” Al-Salman said.
The Chamber recognizes the Lone Star College System’s need for bond funds for projects, which includes new construction and renovations for campuses in the college system, parking and safety improvements, new performing arts facilities and a second University Center .
The Lone Star College System operates five colleges and six satellite centers. Enrollment system-wide is currently about 50,000 students. Lone Star College-CyFair has the largest enrollment with over 11,000 students.
Dr. Earl Campa , vice president of Student Success at Lone Star College- CyFair , said the proposed bond package includes about $95.5 million for projects at the Cy-Fair campus. That college was constructed in 2003 with the tremendous help from the Cy-Fair Chamber and community.
Those projects include a 170,000-square-foot classroom addition, which would cost $39.2 million; a $19.7 million satellite campus, similar to Lone Star College–CyFair’s Fairbanks satellite campus, which could be located further out along Highway 290; $16.3 million to purchase the Fairbanks Center satellite building; a 30,000-square-foot student services building at $9.5 million; $6.6 million for additional parking facilities; $2.1 million for new satellite traffic infrastructure; and $2.1 million for science lab renovations.
Campa said Cy-Fair College is at 135 percent utilization of existing buildings and has five portable buildings on site to keep up with growth at that college site. The college’s nursing and emergency medical services programs have waiting lists.
“We don’t want to put a cap on enrollment and say we can no longer serve additional students, but if we run out of space we may have to consider that,” Campa said. “We are already getting creative with our courses, and offer online courses, distance learning and weekend classes.”
If the bond referendum does not pass, Campa said the Lone Star College System will continue to add temporary buildings to house the growing student population, and would not be able to address other needs outlined in the bond plan.
He said the growth is the driving force behind the need for a bond issue. That, coupled with the fact that the state is decreasing its proportional share of funding for community colleges, and those colleges are charged with a mission of keeping tuition costs low for students, make bond funding a key source of revenue for much-need infrastructure and expansion projects.
Community colleges can only use state funds for approved instructional costs. The college district must fund new construction projects through the local property tax rate, or other funding sources.
Lone Star College–CyFair’s growth closely mirrors Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District ’s growth, which is exploding and is projected to reach about 116,000 students in the next five years.
Registered voters in the Lone Star College System can participate in early voting April 28-May 6, and the general election date is May 10. For more information, go to www.lonestar.edu/bond2008 or www.voteforlonestar.org.
Archived News
02/29/2008 2nd Annual Cy-Fair Federal Credit Union Spring Swing Golf Tournament
02/29/2008 Partnership with Lone Star College-Cy-Fair is a Success
02/29/2008 Salute to Law Enforcement Renamed in Honor of Underwriter
02/21/2008 Annual Sprint presents salute to law enforcement on Saturday, May 3 at Willowbrook Mall
02/21/2008 Lone Star College System's Growth Equals Need for College Expansion Projects
02/21/2008 Cy-Fair Federal Credit Union Annual Spring Swing Golf Tournament
02/14/2008 Another record year for the Chamber Herd “Trail Riders”!!!!
02/14/2008 BIG Academy offers credits for attendance
01/04/2008 Chamber ceremony ushers in New Year, new leadership
01/04/2008 Board forms Chamber’s backbone
01/04/2008 Chamber awarded top honor in state competition
01/04/2008 Leaders foresee active 2008 Chamber year
01/04/2008 Four chamber members named “Business of the Year” finalists
01/04/2008 Attorney takes on leading role on fire department board
01/04/2008 Volunteer heart beats strong in Cy-Fair fire department