8
Phone: 281-980-6745 ww ww w.fbindependent.com .fbindependent.com P.O.BOX 623, SUGAR LAND, TX 77487-0623 WEDNESDAY, JULY 4, 2012 VOL 5 No. 27 Official newspaper of Fort Bend County, Missouri City & Sugar Land Why Rick Miller is the right choice for House District 26 ✪ Proven experience in executive leadership with a record of producing top results… experience and leadership do matter ✪ Strong conservative values and principles… supports the Republican Party Platform ✪ Key roles and unequalled credentials in serving the Republican Party…Former Chairman of the Fort Bend GOP…twice member of the State Party Platform Committee and Chairman of the Nominations Committee ✪ Life-long servant leader to the Nation, State and County www.vote4rickmiller.com RICK MILLER Republican for Texas State Representative District 26 VETERAN CONSERVATIVE LEADER Paid for by the Rick Miller Campaign, Bruce Bond, Treasurer. P.O. Box 17102, Sugar Land, TX 77496. Email: [email protected] Phone: 281-494-7471 www.Vote4RickMiller.com Vote 4 Rick Miller @vote4rick f you agree that we need a conservative State Representative who will be unwavering in their support of our traditional American values, then I ask for your vote in the Republican Primary. I will fight tirelessly to cut taxes, protect our borders, defend our 2nd Amendment rights and protect the sanctity of life in all forms.” “I Runoff Election Day: July 31, 2012 Seshadri Kumar Publisher & Editor 10701 Corporate Drive, #282, Stafford, TX 77477 Mailing Address: P.O. Box 623, Sugar Land, TX 77487 www.fbindependent.com 281-980-6745 Fort Bend Independent, (USPS 025-572) is published every Wednesday (for a subscription rate of $20 per year) by Fort Bend Independent, LLC., 10701 Corporate Dr., #282, Stafford, Texas 77477. Periodicals Postage Paid at Stafford, Texas. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Fort Bend Independent, P.O. Box 623, Sugar Land, Tx 77487. A bipartisan coalition of U.S. Senators defeated a pro- posal to mandate flood insur- ance for individuals who live behind healthy levees and oth- er flood control structures. The proposal, originally in- cluded in the National Flood Insurance Program reauthori- zation bill, would require fam- ilies to purchase flood insur- ance simply because they live behind a levee, dam or other flood control structure. The senators argued that homeowners and businesses behind flood control struc- tures already pay local and federal taxes for flood protec- tion through infrastructure. A mandatory one-size-fits-all re- quirement would ignore these taxpayer investments and com- pel responsible communities to pay multiple times for flood protection. After a week of fighting against the insurance require- ment, the provision was re- moved from the underlying transportation package. “This mandate would have unfairly forced many Ameri- cans to spend hundreds to thousands of dollars each year on insurance premiums even though their communities have already invested in sound flood control protection. Remov- ing this double whammy from the highway bill is a huge win for Pennsylvania and the mil- lions of Americans across the country who would have been impacted,” Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA) said. “It was apparent to me from early on in this process that the Banking Committee’s trouble- some treatment of levees had to be modified. I am pleased that we’ve reached an agree- ment that allows FEMA to continue its ongoing analysis of how risk areas behind le- vees should be treated under the National Flood Insurance Program,” said Sen.Thad Co- chran, (R-Miss.) “Without removing residual risk, we would essentially be penalizing communities that made the responsible decision to invest in flood protection. By striking this provision, we recognize the significant in- vestments some communities have already made to reduce their flood risk and we encour- age continued investment in these types of projects,” said Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND) After a tenacious and in- tensive information program, Fort Bend County dodged the economy killing bullet of man- datory land use restrictions and mandatory flood insurance. County Judge Bob Hebert said “I am very pleased with the final result. As late as 10 days ago we still had the oner- ous, mandatory provisions.” “In the final bill, even land use restrictions were removed and we had a pretty good bill,” Hebert said. A lot of folks from the levee districts, the EDC and the com- munity worked hard in letting the Congress know about their concerns and U.S. Rep. Pete Olson and Sen. John Cornyn did a good job in help shaping the outcome, he said. “It was in a midnight com- promise that the provisions of Section 107 that we refer to as the “Death Star” were re- moved. Mind you, we recom- mend people that live in flood prone areas like Fort Bend purchase Flood insurance, but do it voluntarily and at the af- fordable level that the old and new law provide, said Andre McDonald, chairman of Fort Bend County Levee Improve- ment District # 2 and president of Fort Bend Flood Manage- ment Association. “There are many people in the County to congratulate for their efforts both in the long ALL RED, WHITE AND BLUE FOR THE INDEPENDENCE DAY. Fred and Leslie Gegen of 3110 Robinson Road are winners of Quail Valley Yard of the Month. The Gegens are part of a growing number of recent residents who are remodeling homes and gardens. Fred and Leslie wanted a unique home with established trees and to make the garden low maintenance. They used custom-welded trellises free standing from the front of the house combined with lower growing perennials, ornamental grasses, and shrubs that don’t require much trimming. A retaining wall enhances their drive and mailbox area with low-care flowers such as Freeway Daisies. It includes a water feature. But you’ll want to drive by to see the clever Uncle Sam welcoming visitors. The Gegens received a Certificate of Appreciation from Quail Valley Garden Club and a plant from Flowers by Adela. The George Foundation has pledged a $1 million chal- lenge grant to the Fort Bend Children’s Discovery Center: A Very Special Project of the Children’s Museum of Hous- ton. The museum plans to open a year-round location at the his- toric Imperial Development in the summer of 2015. To meet the George Founda- tion’s challenge, the museum must raise a matching $1 mil- lion by October 2013 from Fort Bend-based donors. The Discovery Center will occupy a 10,000 square foot restored building; it will house six exhibits with an additional outdoor space, and will give the museum the opportunity to enrich the educational lives of Fort Bend’s children by ex- panding cultural and educa- tional family-focused oppor- tunities prevalent in Houston. The total fundraising goal of the entire project is $3.65 mil- lion. “The facility will be a won- derful addition to Sugar Land and most certainly will en- hance Imperial’s appeal as Fort Bend’s premier destination,” notes Imperial Sugar Land Genera Manager Shay Shafie. “All of us at the Children’s Sugar Land Town Square’s Paradise on the Plaza featured music by Cas Haley, a Texan singer/song- writer, who entertained the crowd with a mix of soul, blues, pop and reggae beats. Eli and Tong Wang enjoy the summer surfing atmo- sphere at Sugar Land Town Square’s Para- dise on the Plaza. For more information on free events at Town Square, visit www.Sug- arLandTownSquare. com. The Fort Bend Children’s Museum will be located within the Imperial Historic District. On the aerial photo, it’s the two story red warehouse between the silos and the three-bay warehouse. Museum are honored to receive this challenge from the George Foundation for the Fort Bend Children’s Discovery Center,” said Children’s Museum of Houston Executive Director Tammie Kahn. “The additional outpouring of positive support from the Fort Bend community for this project has been overwhelm- ing. We are already hard at work bringing to life the ideas that will make the Fort Bend Children’s Discovery Center a true landmark for all of Fort Bend’s families,” said Kahn. In 2006, a group of Fort Bend citizens asked the muse- um to consider opening a sat- ellite location in the area. The two following years, the muse- um conducted summer venues at available retail spaces within Town Square in Sugar Land, each for six weeks. Those sum- mer efforts were well received with 21,000 visitors each year. “I am excited so many more children, parents and teachers will have the opportunity to experience the wonder of our Children’s Museum of Hous- ton,” said CMH board member, Sugar Land resident, and See MUSEUM, Page 3 Senators kill unnecessary flood insurance mandate run and in the last minute phone calling that tipped the scales and got the onerous provision removed. But this wasn’t done in Fort Bend County alone. “Our friends and allies on this issue from around the country helped by doing their share with their Senators. It took us years to build the con- tacts we have to stand up an ef- fort of this size. It helps greatly when we can say we have abid- ed by not only the letter of the law but the spirit of the law as well. “The Levee protection rules call for three feet of additional protection on top of our levees, but in Fort Bend County we have the “Fort Bend Foot”. We raised all of our levees an additional foot of elevation to account for any near term changes. Climate change may or may not happen, but in Fort Bend we are prepared. When the National Academy of Sci- ence Committee on Levees came to Fort Bend County they remarked that our levees are in the top 1% in the Nation and should be used as a goal for other levee districts,” McDon- ald said. County Judge Bob Hebert’s efforts in 2008 stopped a simi Children’s museum at Imperial site See FLOOD, Page 3

Fort Bend Independent

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Page 1: Fort Bend Independent

Phone: 281-980-6745wwwww.fbindependent.com.fbindependent.com

P. O.BOX 623, SUGAR LAND, TX 77487-0623WEDNESDAY, JULY 4, 2012

VOL 5 No. 27

Offi cial newspaper of Fort Bend County, Missouri City & Sugar Land

Why Rick Miller is the right choice for House District 26

✪ Proven experience in executive leadership with a record of producing top results…experience and leadership do matter

✪ Strong conservative values and principles…supports the Republican Party Platform

✪ Key roles and unequalled credentials in serving the Republican Party…Former Chairman of the Fort Bend GOP…twice member of the State Party Platform Committee and Chairman of the Nominations Committee

✪ Life-long servant leader to the Nation, State and County

www.vote4rickmiller.comRICK MILLERRepublican for Texas State Representative District 26

VETERAN CONSERVATIVE LEADER

Paid for by the Rick Miller Campaign, Bruce Bond, Treasurer. P.O. Box 17102, Sugar Land, TX 77496.

Email: [email protected]: 281-494-7471

www.Vote4RickMiller.com

Vote 4 Rick Miller @vote4rick

f you agree that we need a conservative State Representative who will be unwavering in their support of our traditional American values, then I ask for your vote in the Republican Primary. I will fight tirelessly to cut taxes, protect our borders, defend our 2nd Amendment rights and protect the sanctity of life in all forms.”

“I

Runoff Election Day: July 31, 2012

Seshadri KumarPublisher & Editor

10701 Corporate Drive, #282, Staff ord, TX 77477Mailing Address: P.O. Box 623, Sugar Land, TX 77487

www.fbindependent.com281-980-6745

Fort Bend Independent, (USPS 025-572) is published every Wednesday (for a subscription rate of $20 per year) by Fort Bend Independent, LLC., 10701 Corporate Dr., #282, Stafford, Texas 77477. Periodicals Postage Paid at Stafford, Texas. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Fort Bend Independent, P.O. Box 623, Sugar Land, Tx 77487.

A bipartisan coalition of U.S. Senators defeated a pro-posal to mandate fl ood insur-ance for individuals who live behind healthy levees and oth-er fl ood control structures.

The proposal, originally in-cluded in the National Flood Insurance Program reauthori-zation bill, would require fam-ilies to purchase fl ood insur-ance simply because they live behind a levee, dam or other fl ood control structure.

The senators argued that homeowners and businesses behind fl ood control struc-tures already pay local and federal taxes for fl ood protec-tion through infrastructure. A mandatory one-size-fi ts-all re-quirement would ignore these taxpayer investments and com-pel responsible communities to pay multiple times for fl ood protection.

After a week of fi ghting against the insurance require-ment, the provision was re-moved from the underlying transportation package.

“This mandate would have unfairly forced many Ameri-cans to spend hundreds to thousands of dollars each year on insurance premiums even though their communities have already invested in sound fl ood

control protection. Remov-ing this double whammy from the highway bill is a huge win for Pennsylvania and the mil-lions of Americans across the country who would have been impacted,” Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA) said.

“It was apparent to me from early on in this process that the Banking Committee’s trouble-some treatment of levees had to be modifi ed. I am pleased that we’ve reached an agree-ment that allows FEMA to continue its ongoing analysis of how risk areas behind le-vees should be treated under the National Flood Insurance Program,” said Sen.Thad Co-chran, (R-Miss.)

“Without removing residual risk, we would essentially be penalizing communities that made the responsible decision to invest in fl ood protection. By striking this provision, we recognize the signifi cant in-vestments some communities have already made to reduce their fl ood risk and we encour-age continued investment in these types of projects,” said Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND)

After a tenacious and in-tensive information program, Fort Bend County dodged the economy killing bullet of man-

datory land use restrictions and mandatory fl ood insurance.

County Judge Bob Hebert said “I am very pleased with the fi nal result. As late as 10 days ago we still had the oner-ous, mandatory provisions.”

“In the fi nal bill, even land use restrictions were removed and we had a pretty good bill,” Hebert said.

A lot of folks from the levee districts, the EDC and the com-munity worked hard in letting the Congress know about their concerns and U.S. Rep. Pete Olson and Sen. John Cornyn did a good job in help shaping the outcome, he said.

“It was in a midnight com-promise that the provisions of Section 107 that we refer to as the “Death Star” were re-moved. Mind you, we recom-mend people that live in fl ood prone areas like Fort Bend purchase Flood insurance, but do it voluntarily and at the af-fordable level that the old and new law provide, said Andre McDonald, chairman of Fort Bend County Levee Improve-ment District # 2 and president of Fort Bend Flood Manage-ment Association.

“There are many people in the County to congratulate for their efforts both in the long

ALL RED, WHITE AND BLUE FOR THE INDEPENDENCE DAY. Fred and Leslie Gegen of 3110 Robinson Road are winners of Quail Valley Yard of the Month. The Gegens are part of a growing number of recent residents who are remodeling homes and gardens. Fred and Leslie wanted a unique home with established trees and to make the garden low maintenance. They used custom-welded trellises free standing from the front of the house combined with lower growing perennials, ornamental grasses, and shrubs that don’t require much trimming. A retaining wall enhances their drive and mailbox area with low-care fl owers such as Freeway Daisies. It includes a water feature. But you’ll want to drive by to see the clever Uncle Sam welcoming visitors. The Gegens received a Certifi cate of Appreciation from Quail Valley Garden Club and a plant from Flowers by Adela.

The George Foundation has pledged a $1 million chal-lenge grant to the Fort Bend Children’s Discovery Center: A Very Special Project of the Children’s Museum of Hous-ton.

The museum plans to open a year-round location at the his-toric Imperial Development in the summer of 2015.

To meet the George Founda-tion’s challenge, the museum must raise a matching $1 mil-lion by October 2013 from Fort Bend-based donors.

The Discovery Center will occupy a 10,000 square foot restored building; it will house six exhibits with an additional outdoor space, and will give the museum the opportunity to enrich the educational lives of Fort Bend’s children by ex-panding cultural and educa-tional family-focused oppor-tunities prevalent in Houston. The total fundraising goal of the entire project is $3.65 mil-lion.

“The facility will be a won-derful addition to Sugar Land and most certainly will en-hance Imperial’s appeal as Fort Bend’s premier destination,” notes Imperial Sugar Land Genera Manager Shay Shafi e.

“All of us at the Children’s

Sugar Land Town Square’s Paradise on the Plaza featured music by Cas Haley, a Texan singer/song-writer, who entertained the crowd with a mix of soul, blues, pop and reggae beats. Eli and Tong Wang enjoy the summer surfi ng atmo-sphere at Sugar Land Town Square’s Para-dise on the Plaza. For more information on free events at Town Square, visit www.Sug-arLandTownSquare.com.

The Fort Bend Children’s Museum will be located within the Imperial Historic District. On the aerial photo, it’s the two story red warehouse between the silos and the three-bay warehouse. Museum are honored to receive this challenge from the George Foundation for the Fort Bend Children’s Discovery Center,” said Children’s Museum of Houston Executive Director Tammie Kahn.

“The additional outpouring of positive support from the Fort Bend community for this project has been overwhelm-ing. We are already hard at work bringing to life the ideas that will make the Fort Bend Children’s Discovery Center a true landmark for all of Fort Bend’s families,” said Kahn.

In 2006, a group of Fort

Bend citizens asked the muse-um to consider opening a sat-ellite location in the area. The two following years, the muse-um conducted summer venues at available retail spaces within Town Square in Sugar Land, each for six weeks. Those sum-mer efforts were well received with 21,000 visitors each year.

“I am excited so many more children, parents and teachers will have the opportunity to experience the wonder of our Children’s Museum of Hous-ton,” said CMH board member, Sugar Land resident, and

See MUSEUM, Page 3Senators kill unnecessary fl ood

insurance mandaterun and in the last minute phone calling that tipped the scales and got the onerous provision removed. But this wasn’t done in Fort Bend County alone.

“Our friends and allies on this issue from around the country helped by doing their share with their Senators. It took us years to build the con-tacts we have to stand up an ef-fort of this size. It helps greatly when we can say we have abid-ed by not only the letter of the law but the spirit of the law as well.

“The Levee protection rules call for three feet of additional protection on top of our levees, but in Fort Bend County we have the “Fort Bend Foot”. We raised all of our levees an additional foot of elevation to account for any near term changes. Climate change may or may not happen, but in Fort Bend we are prepared. When the National Academy of Sci-ence Committee on Levees came to Fort Bend County they remarked that our levees are in the top 1% in the Nation and should be used as a goal for other levee districts,” McDon-ald said.

County Judge Bob Hebert’s efforts in 2008 stopped a simi

Children’s museum at Imperial site

See FLOOD, Page 3

Page 2: Fort Bend Independent

Page 2 • INDEPENDENT • JULY 4, 2012

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Sutton Forest, prestigious two story! Terrifi c location backing to Maranatha Farms. Almost 5000 SF. Updated! Spacious fl oor plan with lots of windows and great views. Low $500’s. Must see! Call Bill Moore 832-875-5111 or 281-980-6000.

$349,500. Crown Jewel – 3/4 Bedrooms/4.5 Bathrooms. Executive Series. 1 1/2 story with upstairs gameroom on wooded lot. Huge master closet. Gorgeous 3/4 acre lot backing wooded reserve. Covered Patio. Hardwd fl oors. Gourmet Kitchen w/granite counters.

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V O F B C !Cross Creek Ranch2,200 - 2,900 sq. ft. (281) 633-25552,900 - 3,300 sq. ft. (281) 238-0919 2,900 - 3,700 sq. ft. (281) 238-0919

Westheimer Lakes1,600 - 3,100 sq. ft. (832) 222-2120

Old Orchard 1,900 - 4,000 sq. ft. (281) 277-18002,600 - 4,400 sq. ft. (281) 265-4555

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River Park West2,200 - 3,300 sq. ft. (832) 222-2804

Telfair3,800 - 5,400 sq. ft. (281) 778-0050

Riverstone2,200 - 2,900 sq. ft. (281) 778-2100 2,600 - 4,100 sq. ft. (281) 778-3840

Sienna Plantation3,400 - 7,000 sq. ft. (281) 778-7800

Creekmont1,900 - 3,500 sq. ft. (281) 431-8600

Shadow Creek Ranch1,600 - 2,900 sq. ft. (713) 436-87511,900 - 3,300 sq. ft. (713) 436-93702,500 - 3,300 sq. ft. (713) 436-8751

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Tyler Perry’s Madea is back on the screen with her raun-chy, in-your-face humor and wisdom. After about fi ve in-stallments (who really knows these things), Madea and Joe Simmons (also played by Perry) take in a white fam-ily from New York. Eugene Levy plays George Needle-man, the hapless CFO for a mob-backed company that launders money and runs a Ponzi scheme. Needleman was groomed by his bosses to be the fall guy when the game played out and the Feds closed in to arrest the guilty.

But Needleman claims he is innocent and Brian (Perry part three) the prosecutor believes him and is willing to protect Needleman and his ungrateful, dysfunctional family of fi ve by stashing them in his Aunt Madea’s house. For those of us who know Madea and have

been fans of Tyler Perry, we know that the Needlemans will need protection from the mob and Madea.

Other than those few twists, the formula of Madea saying and doing outrageous, embar-rassing things while dressed in a huge wig and enormous fake breasts that bounce all over the place, not much has changed from the previous movies. And my audience didn’t care and they laughed heartily throughout the entire movie. Lesson: if you’ve seen and enjoyed previous Tyler Perry movies, then Wit-ness Protection is for you; oth-erwise, let it go.

I could have seen “Magic Mike” but I chose Madea. What does that make me? I’m not sure; still searching my Inner-Larry H. In this search, I spoke to “Dutch” the Gen-eral Manager of AMC First

FILM REVIEW : Madea’s Witness Protection Colony and he informed me that his AMC is second only to AMC Gulf Pointe 30 in the Houston area in terms of ticket sales. I asked him how his new bar was doing and he said “…last night (Friday) we had our biggest sales…the la-dies were out in force to see “Magic Mike” and bought a ton of Daiquiris and Cos-mos…” For you guys that need a chance to meet some

women, here is your chance. Rock ‘n RollGrade 85. Larry H. [email protected]:

The June 27th issue of the Independent had an incor-rect heading for the fi lm re-view. The reviewed fi lm was “Moonrise Kingdom,” and not “Rock of Ages” as was erroneously published. The error is regretted. — Editor.

Annie at Miller Outdoor TheatreAward-winning Fort Bend Theatre will be presenting the

beloved musical Annie as part of renowned Miller Outdoor Theatre’s summer season, August 16-17 at 8 p.m. Enjoy up-and-coming talent showcased alongside professional stage veterans as FBT revitalizes the classic story of an optimistic redhead and her orphan friends against the historical backdrop of the Great Depression. As tickets for this outstanding pro-duction are free, sponsors are needed. If you have a local corporation that would be enriched by the 10,000+ expected audience and wish to support this wonderful non-profi t, please call Fort Bend Theatre today at (281) 208-3333 or visit www.fortbendtheatre.com for more information.

Page 3: Fort Bend Independent

NewsJULY 4, 2012 • INDEPENDENT • Page 3

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Notice of Public HearingRelease for Public Review and Comment

City of Sugar Land Annual Action PlanFor Use of CDBG Funds

A public hearing will be held to give all Sugar Land residents an opportunity to voice opinions on the Annual Action Plan for use of HUD Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds and proposed projects for the upcoming program year. We would like to hear your comments on how we should prioritize programs for the coming year and how we plan to spend CDBG funding.

Each year, the City of Sugar Land drafts an Annual Action Plan that prioritizes the use of CDBG funds. A draft of the Annual Action Plan will be available for public review and comment beginning June 25, 2012 through July 24, 2012. The draft plan may be found on the City website www.sugarlandtx.gov and in the Offi ce of the City Secretary, City of Sugar Land City Hall, 2700 Town Center Boulevard North, Suite 122, Sugar Land, Texas 77479.

In addition, the City will host a public hearing to further explain the CDBG process and solicit comments and feedback from residents concerning the proposed activities. Comments will be taken into consideration for any changes to the draft plan before submittal to HUD. All attendees are invited to speak on the subject of CDBG at the public hearing on:

6:00 PM, Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Imperial Park Recreation Center

234 Matlage Way

Sugar Land, Texas 77478

Residents may send comments to the City of Sugar Land Planning & Environmental Services Department, 2700 Town Center Boulevard North, Sugar Land, Texas 77479 or P.O. Box 110, Sugar Land, Texas 77487 0110. Residents may fax comments to (281) 275-2771. All comments must be received by the end of the comment period on July 24, 2012 to be considered and included in the City Annual Action Plan.

CDBG Program Background

The national objective of the CDBG program is to develop viable urban communities by providing decent housing, a suitable living environment and expanding economic opportunities principally for low and moderate-income persons. Not less than 70% of CDBG funds must be used for activities that benefi t low and moderate-income persons. CDBG goals include:

1. Improving the urban environment in low and moderate income areas;2. Eliminating blighting infl uences and the deterioration of property, neighborhoods and public facilities in low and moderate-income areas; and3. Ensuring decent, safe, sanitary housing for low and moderate-income residents.

Eligible activities include but are not limited to: public facility construction and improvements; handicapped accessibility; operational funding for non-profi t agencies servicing primarily low and moderate income persons; rehabilitation of owner-occupied housing; housing development assistance; enforcement of city codes; clearance and demolition; infrastructure improvements; business development and job creation activities.

Fair Housing Issues

The Public Hearing will be a forum regarding input on fair housing and related issues. Citizens with suggestions and/or concerns will be provided an opportunity to voice those issues during the last portion of the public hearing.

In compliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act, this facility is wheel chair accessible and accessible parking spaces are available. Requests for special accommodations or interpretive services must be made at least 72 hours prior to this meeting. Please contact Stacie Henderson at 281-275-2170 or by FAX at 281-275-2771.

Note:

The Spirit of Freedom Re-publican Women’s Club will host national speaker, radio host, author and comedian Kevin Jackson on Tuesday July 10 at 7 p.m. at Sugar Creek Baptist Church Cha-pel,13213 SW Freeway. For those that didn’t pre-purchase tickets, they will be avail-able at the door which opens at 6:45. For more informa-tion contact the event chair at 281-543-3195 or email [email protected].

Kevin Jackson is a father of four sons, and an unlikely success story, given his back-ground. He is a former man-agement consultant having some of the world’s largest companies as his former cli-ents. Interaction with promi-nent business leaders, as well as being a business leader himself has provided Jackson real world perspective to poli-tics.

“What you learn about America is people are a lot less interested in race than they are in character.”

Jackson believes that em-

powerment comes when you know who you are and what you stand for. Jackson is a na-tional speaker, a radio show host on Salem Communica-tions out of Tampa, FL, and he is a frequent guest on a variety of other national radio shows. In addition to his Amazon best-selling The BIG Black Lie, Jackson has released his sophomore offering, Sexy Brilliance and Other Political Lies. If you think you recog-nize Jackson, it is likely from his numerous TV appearances on the Glenn Beck Show, The Factor with Bill O’Reilly, and MSNBC to name a few.

Jackson writes his almost daily blog, and is a syndicated writer for TakiMag.com. He contributes to Breitbart’s Big Government, as well as Hu-man Events and American Thinker. His work has been featured in Townhall maga-zine, and about all other na-tional print media.

Along with being a Fellow at the Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics, Jackson earned his Bachelor of Science degree in

The 240th District Court Judge Thomas R. Culver, sen-tenced Wilburt Dwaine Cash to life in prison during a pun-ishment hearing on June 27.

Cash pled guilty last month to aggravated kidnapping, ag-gravated assault and witness tampering but demanded a tri-al on an aggravated sexual as-sault charge. After a two-day trial, Culver found Cash guilty of that charge too. Sentencing was reset to last week.

According to Assistant Dis-trict Attorney Chad Bridges, the crime occurred at a resi-dence in Missouri City on March 6, 2011.

The 30 year-old Missouri City man was charged af-ter kidnapping and torturing a woman for several hours. After he was arrested, Cash attempted to contact his vic-tim and force her to drop the charges.

“The defendant commit-ted horrifi c crimes and we couldn’t agree more with Judge Culver’s reasoning and sentence,” said Bridges.

Cash was sentenced to the maximum two years in a state jail facility on each of two counts of witness tampering for his attempts to coerce his victim into dropping charg-es. He was also sentenced to 15 years in prison on each of three counts of aggravated assault and another 15 years on one charge of aggravated kidnapping. The life sentence

was imposed on the aggra-vated sexual assault charge alone.

“This is one of the worst ag-gravated sexual assault cases I have ever seen in all my years as a District Judge,” Culver said.

“The victim was sexually and physically tortured with pliers and burned with a hot clothes iron and a homemade ‘blow torch’. The punishment I assessed ensures this will never happen again.”

“Justice sometimes de-mands the maximum punish-ment our law allows,” said prosecutor Elan Levy, “and lifetime sentences are meant for people like Wilburt Cash.”

The sentences will run concurrently, but Cash will not be eligible for parole for at least 30 years.

Assistant District Attorneys Chad Bridges and Elan Levy prosecuted the case. Attorney Kennitra Foote represented the defendant.

Capital Campaign Committee Co-Chair Charlene Pate.

“The Fort Bend community values education, and there is no place more exciting to learn than in our Museum,” said Pate.

“The George Foundation Trustees are very interested in fostering the development of Fort Bend’s children. They also know many parents wish to provide access to as many learning experiences as pos-sible for their children,” said

George Foundation Grant Of-fi cer Dee Koch.

“Having the Children’s Dis-covery Center in Fort Bend County will give more par-ents the ability to enrich their children’s lives right in their own backyard. The Children’s Discovery Center will not only be an asset today but for years to come for thousands of Fort Bend County families,” said Koch.

Leading Discovery Center fundraising will be Fort Bend resident and campaign man-ager, Mandi Bronsell, who has 15 years of experience in fun-draising.

Bronsell has lived in Fort Bend her entire life and is now raising her three children in Richmond.

“There’s no place like the Children’s Museum anywhere in the Fort Bend area,” said Bronsell.

“Families in Fort Bend will be enthusiastic about the proj-ect and will embrace it with open arms once they realize the potential it has in creating learning opportunities for their children.” For giving opportu-nities, contact campaign man-ager Mandi Bronsell at (281) 282-7476 or [email protected].

MuseumFrom Page 1

Spirit of Freedom Republican Women hosts Kevin Jackson

Electrical Engineering from Southern Methodist Uni-versity. He owned his own manufacturer’s representative agency in Texas and served as the Vice President of Sales for a Dallas-based technology fi rm. Jackson has been part of the executive management team for various IT systems

integration fi rms, notables be-ing Hitachi Consulting and CSC Consulting, and he has provided management con-sulting services to some of the world’s largest corporations.

To see more Spirit of Free-dom upcoming events, visit www.spiritoffreedomwomen.com

Missouri City man gets life sentence for aggravated sexual assault

MASTER PLANWhen there is extended travel

in the brake pedal (the brake pedal

depresses farther than normally

intended), it is a sign of potential

brake failure that cannot be

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dash light that accompanies

excessive travel in the brake pedal

indicates low brake fl uid, which

resides in the master cylinder. This

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that travels through the brake lines

to the brake calipers via a piston

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protect your safety and that of other

drivers. Please call AUTO CENTRAL

at 281-499-9684 to schedule a

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P.S. There is more than one master cylinder in vehicles so that failure of one will not lead to total brake failure.

lar bill from becoming law and he continued to throw his weight behind this issue, by visiting law-makers in the Capitol. Since that 2008 scare this issue has received a lot more attention and tracking. In addition to the County’s Fed-eral lobbyist, Fort Bend Flood Management Association, a group of offi cials that govern Le-vee owning agencies hired a leg-islative action consultant to help

them understand the process and advise them on the actions to take to make known one size does not fi t all,” McDonald said.

“Fort Bend County Levee Improvement District # 2, Si-enna Levee Improvement Dis-trict, First Colony LID and other smaller LID Districts hired a Fed-eral lobbyist to aid in the effort. I was fortunate to have the time, interest and wherewithal to assist in coordinating the effort.

“ I have to keep in mind that this is just a 5 year extension and

the folks that want us to have mandatory insurance and land use restrictions behind healthy levees are still dedicated to that purpose and will be doubling their efforts to see that it will hap-pen in the next go round. “We have to make sure we provide the protection we do to the best of our abilities and that we are informed of the latest methods and technologies that can help us do that job. FBCLID2.com) tells how and what we are doing,” ac-cording to McDonald.

FloodFrom Page 1

By BARBARA FULENWIDERTo allow or not allow smoking in Stafford’s public places

and businesses drew a good sized audience to Stafford’s civic center last Wednesday where the public hearing on it lasted four hours.

Twenty audience members stepped to the microphone to tell city council members their thinking on the subject and overwhelmingly the majority favored a city ordinance. Of the people who spoke, 16 supported a no-smoking ordinance and four opposed it.

Mayor Leonard Scarcella opened the meeting by saying, “This is an emotional issue with strong feelings on both sides.” He said his comment was based on the communications coun-cil members have received from the public and added that “The ultimate decision will have ramifi cations, which extend far beyond the simple facts.”

If council decides to pass a no-smoking ordinance, Scar-cella said, “Most places (in the city) will be up for consider-ation.” He went on to say that council knows “that smoking is an insidious and dangerous habit to ones health.

“What we are confronted with is a desire by some, and po-tentially the majority, to impose strict sanctions on all busi-ness owners for failing to prevent smoking in their businesses. Claiming it would have no negative impact on the city’s econ-omy is grossly inaccurate and naïve.

“Such a ban would force some of our businesses to close. With that comes the issue of lost jobs and that should be un-thinkable in view of our current circumstances. It can also re-duce the resources of this city and impede reducing the educa-tion of Stafford children,” the mayor said.

Councilman Robert Sorbet said his concerns about a pro-posed ordinance to prohibit smoking in Stafford are public health, the property rights of individual business owners and workers’ safety. “Each one has implications and there’s no clear cut answer to any one,” he said.

Even though Councilman Cecil Willis told the audience that’s he “growing more and more frustrated with government telling me what to do, when to do it and how to do it…here is an example of where people are asking government to intrude into their lives.”

Most members of the public who spoke talked about the health issues caused by smoking and how smoke negatively affects them. One of those was Mary Louise Court who said she lives with asthasma and COPD.

She said, “The public health to me is a right. To me it’s not government intrusion. I think the work place should be abso-lutely smoke free.” At the same time she said, “I don’t want to step on anyone’s businesses. I am totally against government intrusion. I’d like to see all restaurants smoke free.”

Business owner and Stafford native, Frank Cash, opposes a no-smoking ordinance because he said he believes it’s a prop-erty rights issue. “I don’t smoke and I’ve got a no smoking sign on my building and that’s my right to do that. I don’t see that the government needs to intrude on property rights any more. “If business people think more people will come in if they put up a no smoking sign, leave it up to them. It’s not city council’s business. We don’t need any more government at the state, city level or big boy level,” Cash said.

Larry Forehand, who identifi ed himself as having more than 62 restaurants throughout Texas including one in Staf-ford, said he favors the smoking ban. In the restaurants he has that don’t allow smoking, he said, “We’ve seen no economic impact whatsoever. “I owed a restaurant in the Bear Creek/Copperfi eld area and we made the decision to not allow smok-ing. Sales dropped fi ve percent and now we’re showing a fi ve or six percent increase in sales,” he told council.

After the audience members had their say, council members weighed in. Felicia Evans-Smith said she favors passing an ordinance but Sorbet, Willis, Ken Matthew and Wen Guerra all said it warrants more discussion. Willis said, “We know smoking is not good. We’re beyond that point. Where do you go from here to satisfy businesses and their customers?”

The mayor concluded the meeting by saying the city oper-ates on its economy and “anybody who doesn’t realize that has blinders on. I went to the businesses in Stafford. Virtually every business owner said, ‘We’d prefer to have it (smoking) but we’ll do whatever the ordinance says.”

The mayor also pointed out that enforcement will be a ”big aspect” and cost money. “Anytime you pass an ordinance it will be costly. I want to know all the intricacies. This will get a full look,” he concluded.

Stafford public weigh in on smoking ban

Page 4: Fort Bend Independent

Seshadri KumarPublisher & Editor

Email: [email protected]

www.fbindependent.com

For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten

Son, that whosoever believeth in him

should not perish, but have everlasting

life. (John 3:16)www.

freebibleliterature.com

Opinion

Scanlan

Musings: Green

The View from Sugar Land

Page 4 • INDEPENDENT • JULY 4, 2012

By JANICE SCANLANUnless you’ve been fl ood-

ed or there have been re-cent fl oods, you likely don’t think about storm sewers or drainage when you’re buy-ing a new home. Most of us expect city codes to include such elements . . . and only think about them when things aren’t working. However, many buyers today seek open spaces and willingly pay more money for amenities such as ponds, trails, trees, and recreation.

What if there were meth-ods that shift costs into things that people want that also take care of important things like drainage? Bio-swales are low places, wetlands or de-pressions between slopes that provide for drainage. They provide detention, cleanse water and support plant life. They can also be channeled into tanks that store water for irrigation and save water and money.

A Fort Bend civil engi-neering fi rm recently trans-formed a contender for Ugli-est Entrance/Parking Lot in the World with a bio-swale garden. Aguirre & Fields, LP not only wanted to improve the entrance into Sugar Land Conference Center which it owns, but also demonstrate how bio-swales can be used in new construction and re-development in an affordable way.

It certainly transformed

the parking lot and entrance to the conference center. Grasses could have been used. How-ever, by using more expensive plantings of low maintenance native plants and fl owers, in-teresting rocks and trees and a dry creek bed, the conference center now is made interest-ing and attractive. Truthfully, I couldn’t imagine attempting to enter the conference center during a hard rain with water downspouts piping more wa-ter into the parking lot near the entry. Now roof drainage is channeled immediately into the garden.

Does this really work? In a fi fteen minute, 1.1 inch rain the bio-swale detained and chan-neled the water and fi lled the underground tank. It decreased run off 97%. Aguirre & Fields estimates a 50% irrigation cost savings in a normal rain year. They plan to measure and com-pare water quality between the bio-swale in back and run off in front of the building.

Controlled projects in oth-er cities have already proven these methods. For example, a low income neighborhood in Toledo, Ohio, had suffered basement fl ooding for years, which was causing sanitary sewer backup and raw sewage spilling into a lake. New storm sewers had been considered too costly to build. However, a bio-swale proved to be economi-cally feasible and solved the fl ooding and sewage backup problems.

All city codes have drainage requirements. Many require landscaping plans and have water release fees. Aguirre & Fields’ Steve Albert explains, “Incorporating landscape into the storm water management system using bio-swales and wetland ponds allows for cost savings with fewer storm sewer pipes and smaller detention ponds. This shift in investment results in a more attractive site at lower cost both initially and over the life of the project.

“The quality of storm water runoff is improved by slowing down rainwater runoff and us-ing the water on the site to irri-gate the landscape. Widespread adoption of these methods would reduce our community’s costs for storm sewer systems and clean up our streams and lakes.”

Taxpayers will be happy to know that Fort Bend County and city leaders are taking no-tice of these methods.

While the Toledo project used inexpensive plantings, London, known for the beauty of its parks and open spaces, has built a bio-swale at Olym-pic Park. My blog will have pictures and links so that you can see the wide variety of projects that save money and the environment.

Visit http://traction.typepad.com/musings

By RUSSELL JONESOn September 20, 2009, in

the midst of the national debate over ObamaCare, the President was interviewed by George Stephanopoulos, previously a Clinton administration func-tionary not known as a leader of conservative causes. In an amazingly candid moment, Stephanopoulos asked Obama about the individual mandate contained in the Affordable Care Act then pending before Congress: “Under this man-date, the government is forcing people to spend money, fi ning you if you don’t. How is that not a tax? . . . it’s . . . a tax in-crease.”

Obama repeatedly denied it. “No. That’s not true, George. . . . you can’t just make up that language and decide that’s called a tax increase. . . . “

Stephanopoulos held his ground. “Webster’s Diction-ary [defi nes a tax as ] a charge, usually of money, imposed by authority on persons or prop-erty for public purposes. . . . But you reject that it’s a tax increase?”

Obama would not budge. “ I absolutely reject that notion.”

When a majority of states later challenged the mandate as stretching the commerce clause of the Constitution be-yond its limit, the administra-tion changed its public tune in its arguments before the lower courts. Well, they said, if ObamaCare is not valid under the commerce clause, it must be valid as a tax.

Whoa! Obama declared that it was not a tax, but here was the solicitor general argu-ing the opposite of his boss’s public position. As the case wound its way up through the court system, the tax argu-ment continued to be made, if not fully relied upon, by Obama’s own lawyers. When

arguments were fi nally made before the Supreme Court, the mandate’s validity as a tax was opined again, but most court observers ignored it as a minor supplement to the administra-tion’s primary claim of valid-ity under the commerce code. No one seemed to take the ar-gument seriously.

No one, that is, but Roberts. The Chief Justice took it upon himself to write the court’s opinion and to rewrite Obam-acare based entirely upon the validity of the mandate as a tax. To his credit, Roberts’ opinion does seem to circum-scribe future expansion of the commerce clause. Somehow, that just does not seem to make up for handing the best medi-cal care system in the world over to the federal govern-ment.

The court’s decision, taken with the reelection of Obama in November, will result in a fundamental departure of the character of the American Re-public from that which existed as recently as the administra-tion of Bush 43. For the past 100 years, so-called progres-sivism, renamed American lib-eralism, has slowly but inexo-rably advanced its cause. The

ultimate goal is the destruction of capitalism and the adoption of European style redistribu-tion of wealth from the pro-ducers in the economy to those who would live off the labor of others. The nation may have reached its tipping point with last week’s decision, and may well surpass it if Obama is elected again.

Michael Carvin, the at-torney who argued the case against Obamacare before the court, best summarized what happened. “What the admin-istration … thought they were doing was completely uncon-stitutional . . . . They got away with bait-and-switch. A fraud has been perpetrated on the American citizenry.”

Obama still will not admit that the ACA raises taxes on the middle class. Instead, he insists that it imposes a pen-alty for failure to comply with the act. Instead of admitting that Roberts gave him, in the fi nal analysis, exactly what he wanted, he knows that the political implications of admit-ting imposing a new tax could well hurt him among the unde-cided voters in November.

In the meantime, the deci-sion has solidifi ed tea party ac-tivists and others opposing the legislation. It was arguably middle-class fury with Obam-aCare which led to Obama’s shellacking in the 2010 elec-tions and gave Republicans a majority in the House. The court’s decision may have handed the administration victory in the battle of Obam-aCare, but it may have assured his loss of the war next No-vember.

Jones served as a member of the Sugar Land City Coun-cil from 2003 through June, 2011. He owns a law fi rm and a title insurance company in Sugar Land.

Jones

Absolutely not a tax

Bill & Jared Jameson

Trust is defi ned as “being able to place confi dence; to do something without fear or misgivings.” The most critical element of the proper functioning of our fi nancial markets is trust in the system, belief in the information we rely upon to make decisions and being assured that those giving the advice operate without confl icts of interest.

Numerous recent activities within the fi nancial markets and corporate America have raised fears that the informa-tion and recommendations we rely upon to make fi nan-cial investment decisions have been compromised by the actions of some people in the fi nancial business and corporate America. Does this mean all advice and those in corporate America are dis-honest? Absolutely not, but without the ingredient of trust and integrity being pres-ent we are always at risk of making decisions based on information that has not been given absent confl icts of in-terest.

Information or recommen-dations can be faulty due to bad research or faulty conclu-sions but given in good faith. These situations happen all the time. No one is infallible in the fi nancial business. This has nothing to do with not be-ing trustful or being without integrity. It has another label. The question then remains who can I trust? The decision on who you trust with your fi nances, your retirement as-sets, your investments cer-

tainly is dependent on the ability and investment prow-ess of the individual, howev-er without trust and integrity the relationship will not be in an individual’s best interests.

Warren Buffet’s very im-pressive sidekick Charlie Munger uses the term “in-centive-caused bias” to refer to the very human trait that leads people to develop a bias towards things that are in their personal best interest. It is essential that investors make sure that those who they rely on for information and advice are not beholden to others. And when they get information or advice from others, if the source is sub-ject to incentive-caused bias, they must factor that in.

This incentive-caused bias is the reason I believe the fee-only advisor is the per-son you should trust. The fee-only advisor’s incentive is clearly aligned with their clients. He has no confl icts of interests that will lead him

to favor one investment over another.

The fee-only advisor’s challenge is to be disciplined in sticking to his invest-ment approach and maintain his intellectual integrity by making sure that his invest-ment decisions are based on thorough research and sound judgments, as opposed to shaky information provided by a third party with an un-healthy level of incentive-caused bias.

Find the advisor who has competence, commitment, will take personal responsi-bility for his actions, exhibits consistency and integrity and keeps open communication at all times. You can place your trust with this person.

WJ Interests is a fee-only fi nancial planning and in-vestment management fi rm in Sugar Land. For more infor-mation, please contact us at [email protected] or 281-634-9400.

Who Can I Trust?

To the Editor:Where is my Voter Regis-

tration Card? Do I need my VRC to vote?

Are these two separate ques-tions with differing answers or are they the same question simply restated?

Based upon conversations with friends and neighbors, they are the same, but I beg to differ.

My VRC did not arrive by April 14th, the deadline rec-ommended by the Fort Bend Elections offi ce. I called and asked for a replacement card. It was not a problem with fail-ure to issue a card, so it has been presumed the card is lost in the mail.

I assumed I was in the mi-nority; that most voters re-ceived their VRC. However, I may be wrong because friends that worked as poll workers in the two May elections told me that numerous voters in-formed the poll workers that they had not received their VRCs. No effort was made to tabulate or somehow keep records of the number of vot-ers that did not receive their VRC, even when one of my friends volunteered to do so.

The apathy by friends, neighbors and elected offi -cials toward this issue trou-bles me greatly.

Can you vote without your VRC? Yes, bring a picture i.d. to the polling station. I think the more important question is: Can someone else vote us-ing my VRC?

The signifi cance of my opening question should now be apparent!

Would you be concerned if you ordered a box of checks for your bank account and it was “lost in the mail”? What about your social security card? Why is there such apa-thy toward VRCs in this key election year?

The only way the Fort Bend Elections offi ce will know the magnitude of lost VRCs is if everyone affected calls them to request a replacement. 281-341-8670.Tomalea BenchRichmond

Fort Bend County Election Administrator John Oldham responds:

Between March 30 and April 5, our offi ce had mailed approximately 280,000 Voter Registration certifi cates to active voters in Fort Bend County.

Aside from those that were returned by the Postal Service as undeliverable, it is our be-lief that most voters received their cards in a timely manner.

However, it is likely that a signifi cant number of voters in two zip codes did not re-ceive their certifi cates.

We have no reason to doubt that these cards were not de-livered to the Post Offi ce for mailing, and over the past six weeks we have had ongoing conversations with represen-tatives of the Houston Post Offi ce where the cards were

mailed, the North Houston Sorting Center, The Rich-mond Post Offi ce and the Katy branch offi ce that would have been responsible for the cards delivery.

Although we initially re-ceived some confl icting in-formation from one of our local offi ces, all centers have assured us that they have searched, and continue to search, their facilities and have found no trays of cards awaiting delivery.

We are grateful that we have citizens in our county who recognize the importance of conducting fair and honest elections.

We are also grateful to vot-ers who are conscientious enough to ask for a replace-ment voter certifi cate. How-ever, the fact that we do not know what happened to these cards does not constitute apa-thy on the part of the Election Offi ce.

The fact that there is no way to know exactly how many cards in these two zip codes were delivered, nor how many were not delivered, does not constitute apathy.

What is signifi cant is that since these cards were mailed, our offi ce has conducted elec-tions on May 12 and May 29 in which 58,738 registered voters cast ballots.

In neither of these elec-tions is there any reason to be-lieve that anyone voted fraud-ulently using another voters certifi cate.

Where is my Voter Registration Card? Letter

Page 5: Fort Bend Independent

JULY 4, 2012 • INDEPENDENT • Page 5

Providing fee-only services

to individuals, families and businesses

since 1996.

(281) 634-9400www.wjinterests.com

Dr. Christopher Smith, Or-thopedic Surgeon at Method-ist Orthopaedic Specialists of Texas (MOST), was the fi rst in Fort Bend County to per-form a custom partial knee replacement.

Osteoarthritis is the most common form of knee arthri-tis, affecting tens of millions of people worldwide. It is a degenerative joint disease characterized by the break-down and eventual loss of joint cartilage. The break-down and wearing of carti-lage causes the bones to rub together, resulting in extreme pain.

The most common signs of osteoarthritis are pain with ac-tivities, stiffness of the knee, swelling, limited range of motion and tenderness along the joint. “If you experience any symptoms of knee ar-thritis, you need to make an appointment for a thorough examination to determine the source of your symptoms and to discuss if you would be a candidate for partial or total knee replacement,” states Dr. Smith.

Knee replacements have been available for years, help-ing those with problems main-tain mobility and live without pain. A new form of custom knee replacement is changing the way doctors and patients look at knee replacement sur-gery. The Conformis custom knee replacement implant is specifi cally designed for each patient based on his/her individual anatomy. A cus-tom knee replacement offers unique advantages versus a

traditional knee replacement. “Custom knee replacement provides superior fi t specifi c to each patient,” explains Dr. Smith. Customized implants mirror the surface contours of your knee to help provide greater coverage and implant fi t. Also, the implant is able to restore your knee’s normal motion through preserving healthy cartilage, bone and ligaments; your knee is able to retain more of its natural function.

Customized instrumenta-tion is built to match your knee, reduce the amount of bone preparation and simplify your procedure which allows for a less traumatic process. “One remarkable advantage of the custom knee replace-ment surgery is that my pa-tients are often able to walk, as tolerated, a few hours after surgery,” says Dr. Smith.

A CT scan provides the ini-tial diagnosis as well as a de-tailed three-dimensional im-

age of the knee, used to design the implant to fi t the unique contours of the patient’s knee. “Once Dr. Smith and I decid-ed to move forward with the customized partial knee im-plant, he gave me a script for a CT scan. The surgery date was set, and I began prepara-tions for surgery and beyond,” said Daniel Gaugh.

“I felt signifi cant pain relief within weeks and was very impressed with how quickly I was able to get back to my daily activities. I would high-ly recommend the custom knee replacement with Dr. Smith. It feels like I have my old knee back that I had be-fore my injury.”

For an appointment with Dr. Smith, or one of the MOST physicians, call 281-494-MOST (6678).

To learn more about Meth-odist Orthopaedic Specialists of Texas or for more informa-tion visit MethodistOrthope-dics.com.

Christopher Smith, M.D. and patient, Daniel Gaugh

Methodist Orthopaedic Specialists performs fi rst custom knee replacement in county

By JOANNIE & THOMAS J. PARR, M.D.

Our current healthcare sys-tem is so broken that it has been gradually imploding on itself for the past several years.

The recent Supreme Court decision on the Affordable Care Act (ie: the ACA or Obamacare) is probably go-ing to accelerate this process. Unfortunately, neither the sys-tem that existed before, nor the system President Obama and the Democrats put into law, is going to be the solution to our current healthcare mess.

The heart of the problem is that we no longer have any idea what the true Fair Market Value is regarding any medical treatment or surgical proce-dure in the United States. This is what happens when any government tries to “control” any section of the economy, and America’s doctors have now been under Federal price controls for 20 years.

More to the point, insurance companies and our local, state, and federal governments have created a healthcare market where the person who is “sell-ing” the goods and services has no control over the price he or she is charging, and the person who is “buying” that good or service has no control over what will be paid.

Outside third parties negoti-ate among themselves, cutting deals that benefi t the third par-ties at the expense of the real buyers and sellers.

We know we cannot have a vibrant economy if our food, housing, and gasoline were managed this way, so it should be no surprise that it did not work in healthcare!

Obamacare only makes this situation worse by creating a committee to set all prices re-lated to your personal health-care. This committee of bu-reaucrats will be appointed by the President and will function completely beyond the reach of Congress. All healthcare providers in the U.S. will be forced to accept this extremely low level of compensation or eventually to withdraw from the government controlled system altogether.

Furthermore, healthcare has never been considered a

taxable commodity until the passage of Obamacare, where items such as implants were declared taxable, and now with the blessing of the Supreme Court, the entire payment sys-tem is defi ned as taxable.

In the midst of this chaos, entrepreneurs in the health care industry will gradually lead us to a new system which will be more rational and func-tional.

Meanwhile we - including you the patients - are going to encounter some real problems in our healthcare system. But we are Texans, and we prefer to tackle our problems with great zeal. We are already in the midst of a great upheaval in Texas medicine. It is still going to take a number of years for us to see ourselves arising again as the phoenix of excellence in healthcare, but we will. We will gradually fi gure this out.

Lean and meanThe Texas Medical Associa-

tion (TMA) has documented in surveys of its members that Texas’ physicians have reached the point where they are having to learn how to be-come “lean and mean” in the way they practice medicine, or quit. None of us is happy about the options, and each of us is individually making prac-tice changes in hopes of being able to continue doing what we have dedicated our lives to accomplish.

But any way you look it is, these changes will create dis-appointing situations for some of our current and future pa-tients, forcing them to have to make diffi cult choices as well.

Businesses are always drop-ping low profi t products from their inventory, and doctors now must also start doing so. This is not what we wanted to do when we chose medi-cal school over MBA school, but it is the reality of where we are. We are being forced to learn how to operate a busi-ness in order to survive.

This past week, an excellent primary care physician told us that she would no longer be able to accept any new Medi-care patients. If a patient is al-ready established with her be-fore turning 65, she will allow

that patient to remain in the practice under Medicare. But she explained that the regula-tions, the hassles, the threats, and the unreasonably low compensation involving Medi-care were no longer worth the risks.

Also this past week, a pa-tient was wanting recommen-dations for a different primary care physician because her current doctor was going to a Concierge or boutique type of medical practice. She thought it was unreasonable for him to charge her more than what Medicare was willing to pay. Our staff was unable to help her understand that her doc-tor was losing money every time he saw her, nor was she willing to understand that the additional fee was intended to include services Medicare would not cover. She could not believe this annual fee was perhaps the best way he was going to be able to keep patient wait times reasonable and still have enough time during her offi ce visits for her doctor to pay full attention to her needs.

As another example of change, we recently told one insurance company, with which we are not currently a provider, that if it would of-fer us a more reasonable rate of compensation, we would be happy to drop our lowest pay-ing insurance plan and give their insureds that space in our appointment schedule instead. We love our patients, and we want to take care of all of them. However, there are only so many hours in a day and our landlord and our employees like to be paid.

Government managed healthcare is not a new con-cept. It has existed in other countries for decades, and

therefore has already proven to create healthcare delivery problems we consider unac-ceptable in the U.S.

But because politicians are unable or unwilling to tell their constituents that their promise of “free” healthcare to all was fundamentally fl awed from the get-go, this is where we are.

In all of these other coun-tries, government managed healthcare has always resulted in a two-tiered system--a gov-ernment system and a private system--whether legally or not. The government run sys-tem always ends up providing a lower standard of care than the private system. This is be-cause the government’s one-size-fi ts-all concept does not apply well to individuals and their unique healthcare needs.

Haves and have-notsThe two-tiered systems also

create two different classes of citizens, the “haves” and the “have-nots.” While this is ac-ceptable in some societies and in some cultures, it is not our American way. Liberal politi-cians believe that the ACA will prevent this from happening in America, and there are many who believe Obamacare was designed to evolve into a one-tiered Universal Healthcare system for America.

Interestingly, trying to move all Americans onto Universal Healthcare shows an amazing lack of understanding regard-ing so many Americans’ belief in individual rights, and there-fore, it will not work out as the liberals intend.

Short of making it illegal on a national level for any physi-cian licensed in any of the 50 states to provide private health-care, we will be able to main-tain a legal two-tiered system. And because of the Supreme Court’s decision involving the Federal government’s dicta-tion of Medicaid standards to the States, the Federal Govern-ment is also unable to dictate to States what their licensed physicians will be permitted to do inside their respective States. Thus, it is safe to as-sume that Texas will never tell its physicians that we cannot have private-pay patients.

Our challenge, as physi-cians, is trying to fi nd an ap-propriate balance between the tier-one and tier-two levels of practice, taking into consider-

ation our patients’ needs and the corresponding levels of compensation. It is a balance we have never before been forced to do to this extent, and it defi nitely will be a learning process for us in practice man-agement.

The truth is there is no way Americans with either access or enough money are going to accept being denied health-care, even if it means traveling elsewhere to get it. As a result, we have already had a new travel industry, called Medi-cal Travel. We even have In-ternational Medical Insurance available to those who want to buy it. The original purpose of this insurance was to cover emergency health care needs while traveling overseas or while living outside the United States; however, if the demand for healthcare outside the U.S. grows, it will be available.

Perhaps our biggest concern long-term about the Federal government’s micromanage-ment of our healthcare system is the potential for America losing its standing in the world for excellence in medical ad-vancement.

Even with all of the fl aws of the system, the medical system we had during the past 15 to 20 years enabled United States scientists to be the established leader in medical innovation and technology.

In October, 2006, the “New York Times” reported that “when it comes to medical in-novation, the United States is the world leader. In the last 10 years, for instance, 12 Nobel Prizes in medicine have gone to American-born scientists working in the United States, 3 have gone to foreign-born sci-entists working in the United States, and just 7 have gone to researchers outside the coun-try.”

As Federal regulation further inhibits medical researchers and clinicians in their creative efforts, we are substantially risking the discouragement of further advancements. Our Federal government is perhaps forcing medical research to move outside the U.S. where pharmaceuticals and medical devices can be developed, re-searched, and brought to mar-ket sooner and at less cost.

Personal responsibilityIf you have been following

our articles over the past cou-ple of years, you already know we believe patients are going to have to assume more per-sonal responsibility for their own health and their own qual-ity of life. It is now extremely important to do all you can to take care of yourself and your family, and to encourage your friends to do the same. Fail-ure to do so could put you in a situation where you simply will not be able to have access

to treatment you might other-wise be able to receive.

The government fi nanced healthcare tier, operated by bureaucrats, will increasingly be looking for ways to “save money” (which is really ra-tioning).

Rules are already in effect that will allow medical treat-ment only after certain “con-servative” steps have been done and have failed.

Eventually, those who can not or will not stop smoking, lose weight, control their dia-betes and blood pressure, and exercise regularly, will go to the end of the medical care line, and may be denied care entirely for elective medical treatment.

Frighteningly, many of the “experts” who hope to com-prise these ACO-mandated medical determination pan-els have written in the past that medical care is too costly to be offered to all, and that availability should be based on one’s age and future life expectancy.

You should establish a per-sonal diary to show dedicated effort and progress. The medi-cal record documentation is already burdensome and will only become more so.

You need to understand that without suffi cient documenta-tion, your physician will not be able to obtain permission from the government, from the insurance companies, or from the hospitals to go for-ward with treatment.

This problem already exists for total joint replacement and spine surgeries, as well as for implanting heart pacemakers and defi brillators.

The penalties already in ef-fect for hospitals and doctors who could possibly “appear” to be trying to circumvent these bureaucratic rules are so draconian that we are already having problems being paid for some of the healthcare provided.

The reality is that under any government managed health-care program, these penalties will only get worse.

(NOTE: Our previous ar-ticles can be found online at www.fbindependent.com under Opinions or on our website at www.tompar-rmd.net )

Dr. Thomas Parr, an ortho-pedic surgeon in Sugar Land, can be reached at 281-491-7111. Dr. Parr and his wife, Joannie, have been a team for well over 45 years. She has a BS Degree in Business and Finance and a Masters De-gree in Federal Tax Law and has worked in the Medical accounting industry for more than 25 years. Visit www.tom-parrmd.net for more informa-tion.

Texas doctors will be “lean and mean” to stay in “business”

Thomas Parr Joannie Parr

Page 6: Fort Bend Independent

Page 6 • INDEPENDENT • JULY 4, 2012

NOTICE OF FOUND PROPERTY ON MARCH 7, 2012, AN ITEM OF PERSONAL PROPERTY WAS FOUND ON THE NORTH BOUND FEEDER ROAD OF U.S. HIGHWAY 59 NEAR WILLIAMS TRACE BOULEVARD, SUGAR LAND, TEXAS 77478. IF YOU ARE THE TRUE OWNER OF THIS PROPERTY, PLEASE CONTACT SGT. O’DONNELL AT (281) 275-2588 TO IDENTIFY AND CLAIM IT.

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

REQUEST FOR VARIANCE1222 CARDINAL AVENUE

REQUEST FOR A VARIANCE TO THE 25-FOOT PRINCIPAL BUILDING SETBACK FROM THE WATER’S EDGE REQUIREMENT, 1222 CARDINAL AVENUE, LOT 24, BLOCK 2, SUGAR LAKES SECTION TWO (RECORDED IN BOOK 25, PAGE 1, F.B.C.P.R.), IN THE STANDARD SINGLE FAMILY RESIDENTIAL (R-1) DISTRICT

PURPOSE: ONE (1) PUBLIC HEARING SHALL BE HELD AT WHICH ALL PERSONS INTERESTED IN THE PROPOSED VARIANCE SHALL BE GIVEN AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE HEARD.

WHERE: CITY OF SUGAR LAND CITY COUNCIL CHAMBER 2700 TOWN CENTER BOULEVARD NORTH

WHEN: ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT 5:00 P.M., JULY 18, 2012

DETAILS OF THE PROPOSED VARIANCE MAY BE OBTAINED BY CONTACTING THE CITY OF SUGAR LAND DEVELOPMENT PLANNING OFFICE, TELEPHONE (281) 275-2218 OR EMAIL [email protected]. THE DEVELOPMENT PLANNING OFFICE IS OPEN MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY FROM 8:00 O’CLOCK A.M. TO 5:00 O’CLOCK P.M., AND LOCATED IN CITY HALL, 2700 TOWN CENTER BOULEVARD NORTH, SUGAR LAND, TEXAS. PLEASE CONTACT US IF YOU WISH TO SET UP AN APPOINTMENT TO REVIEW ADDITIONAL DETAILS IN PERSON.

Vicinity Map:

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

SPECIAL EXCEPTION3002 SILENT SPRING DRIVE

REQUEST FOR SPECIAL EXCEPTION TO THE REAR YARD SETBACK REQUIREMENT, 3002 SILENT SPRING DRIVE, LOT 14, BLOCK 1, COLONY CREEK SECTION ONE (RECORDED IN INSTRUMENT NUMBER 1172498, F.B.C.P.R.), IN THE RESTRICTED SINGLE FAMILY RESIDENTIAL (R-1R) DISTRICT

PURPOSE: ONE (1) PUBLIC HEARING SHALL BE HELD AT WHICH ALL PERSONS INTERESTED IN THE PROPOSED SPECIAL EXCEPTION SHALL BE GIVEN AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE HEARD.

WHERE: CITY OF SUGAR LAND CITY COUNCIL CHAMBER 2700 TOWN CENTER BOULEVARD NORTH

WHEN: ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT 5:00 P.M., JULY 18, 2012

DETAILS OF THE PROPOSED SPECIAL EXCEPTION MAY BE OBTAINED BY CONTACTING THE CITY OF SUGAR LAND DEVELOPMENT PLANNING OFFICE, TELEPHONE (281) 275-2218 OR EMAIL [email protected]. THE DEVELOPMENT PLANNING OFFICE IS OPEN MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY FROM 8:00 O’CLOCK A.M. TO 5:00 O’CLOCK P.M., AND LOCATED IN CITY HALL, 2700 TOWN CENTER BOULEVARD NORTH, SUGAR LAND, TEXAS. PLEASE CONTACT US IF YOU WISH TO SET UP AN APPOINTMENT TO REVIEW ADDITIONAL DETAILS IN PERSON.

Vicinity Map:

NOTICE TO BIDDERS Sealed bids in triplicate, one (1) original and two (2) copies, addressed to the City of Sugar Land, Texas, will be received until 11:00 o’clock a.m., Thursday, July 19, 2012, for:

UPS INSTALLATION

Sealed bids shall be appropriately marked as follows:

BID NO. 2012-32 UPS INSTALLATIONBIDDER’S NAME, ADDRESS, AND DUE DATE

Bidder shall sign and date the bid. Bids that are not signed and dated will be rejected.

Signed and sealed bids shall be delivered to the Offi ce of City Secretary, on or before 11:00 o’clock a.m., Thursday, July 19, 2012, City of Sugar Land City Hall, Suite 122, 2700 Town Center Boulevard North, Sugar Land, Texas, 77479. All bids received after the appointed time shall be returned to bidder unopened. Notice of the award of contract shall be given by the City within thirty (30) days following the date for opening of bids.

The City reserves the right to revise or amend the specifi cations prior to the date set for opening of bids. Such revisions or amendments, if any, will be announced by addenda or addendum to the specifi cations. Copies of such addenda will be furnished to all prospective bidders and may or may not aff ect the bid opening date.

The City of Sugar Land reserves the right to reject any and all bids and to waive informalities in bids received. The award will be made to the lowest responsible bidder.

ITB documents may be secured from City of Sugar Land; Offi ce of City Secretary, 2700 Town Center Boulevard North, Suite 122, Sugar Land, Texas, 77479, or by registering with https://www.bidsync.com, registration is free. All bid documents, amendments and other information relating to the bid will be posted on the site.

Questions regarding the bid must be received by the City of Sugar Land Purchasing Offi ce no later than 3:00 P.M., Thursday, July 12, 2012. Questions will not be accepted after this time. Please contact Jason Poscovsky, Contracts Manager, telephone number (281) 275-2302 or email [email protected].

Glenda Gundermann, TRMC, CMC, AAECity Secretary

PUBLIC HEARING NOTICEThe Commissioners Court of Fort Bend County, Texas has set a public hearing at 1:00 p.m. on Tuesday, August 7, 2012 for Lakes of Williams Ranch Section 1 Partial Replat No. 2, Precinct 1. The hearing will be held in the Commissioners Courtroom, William B. Travis Bldg., 309 S. Fourth St., Rm. 700, Richmond, Texas.

Under state law, you the owner, have certain rights with respect to the proposed replat. Should you wish to exercise your right, you may be heard at the planned public hearing. You may contact Brian Nawara with Texas Engineering and Mapping at 281-491-2525 for information prior to the hearing.Submitted by,Dianne WilsonFort Bend County Clerk

PUBLIC HEARING NOTICEThe Commissioners Court of Fort Bend County, Texas has set a public hearing on Tuesday, July 24, 2012 at 1:00 p.m. for acceptance of the traffi c control plan for Sienna Village of Anderson Springs Section 22, Precinct 2.

The hearing will be held in the Commissioners Courtroom, 309 South Fourth St., Suite 700, William B. Travis Bldg., Richmond, Texas. You are invited to attend and state your approval or objection on this matter.

Submitted by,Dianne WilsonFort Bend County Clerk

PUBLIC HEARING NOTICEThe Commissioners Court of Fort Bend County, Texas has set a public hearing on Tuesday, July 24, 2012 at 1:00 p.m. for acceptance of the traffi c control plan for Cinco Ranch Southwest Section 46 and Cinco Ranch Southwest Section 46 Partial Replat No. 1, Precinct 3.The hearing will be held in the Commissioners Courtroom, 309 South Fourth St., Suite 700, William B. Travis Bldg., Richmond, Texas. You are invited to attend and state your approval or objection on this matter.

Submitted by,Dianne WilsonFort Bend County Clerk

PUBLIC HEARING NOTICEThe Commissioners Court of Fort Bend County, Texas has set a public hearing on Tuesday, July 24, 2012 at 1:00 p.m. for acceptance of the traffi c control plan for Cinco Ranch Southwest Section 35, Precinct 3.

The hearing will be held in the Commissioners Courtroom, 309 South Fourth St., Suite 700, William B. Travis Bldg., Richmond, Texas. You are invited to attend and state your approval or objection on this matter.

Submitted by,Dianne WilsonFort Bend County Clerk

PUBLIC HEARING NOTICEThe Commissioners Court of Fort Bend County, Texas has set a public hearing on Tuesday, July 24, 2012 at 1:00 p.m. for acceptance of the traffi c control plan for Pine Mill Ranch, Section 6, Section 12 and Section 13, Precinct 3.

The hearing will be held in the Commissioners Courtroom, 309 South Fourth St., Suite 700, William B. Travis Bldg., Richmond, Texas. You are invited to attend and state your approval or objection on this matter.

Submitted by,Dianne WilsonFort Bend County Clerk

PUBLIC HEARING NOTICEThe Commissioners Court of Fort

Bend County, Texas has set a public hearing on Tuesday, July 24, 2012 at 1:00 p.m. for acceptance of the traffi c control plan for LJ Parkway Street Dedication Phase III, Orchard at Riverstone, Section 1 and Creekstone Village at Riverstone, Section 6 Phase I, Precinct 4.

The hearing will be held in the Commissioners Courtroom, 309 South Fourth St., Suite 700, William B. Travis Bldg., Richmond, Texas. You are invited to attend and state your approval or objection on this matter.Submitted by,Dianne WilsonFort Bend County Clerk

PUBLIC HEARING NOTICEThe Commissioners Court of Fort Bend County, Texas has set a public hearing on Tuesday, July 24, 2012 at 1:00 p.m. for acceptance of the traffi c control plan for Long Meadow Farms, Section 18, Section 20 and Section 28, Precinct 4.

The hearing will be held in the Commissioners Courtroom, 309 South Fourth St., Suite 700, William B. Travis Bldg., Richmond, Texas. You are invited to attend and state your approval or objection on this matter.

Submitted by,Dianne WilsonFort Bend County Clerk

PUBLIC HEARING NOTICE

The Commissioners Court of Fort Bend County, Texas has set a public hearing on Tuesday, July 24, 2012 at 1:00 p.m. for acceptance of the traffi c control plan for Winfi eld Lakes, Section 15, Precinct 2.

The hearing will be held in the Commissioners Courtroom, 309 South Fourth St., Suite 700, William B. Travis Bldg., Richmond, Texas. You are invited to attend and state your approval or objection on this matter.

Submitted by,Dianne WilsonFort Bend County Clerk

Notice of Public HearingJune 29, 2012

Notice is hereby given for a Public Hearing to take place at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Missouri City to be held on Monday, July 16, 2012, at 7:00 p.m. at: City Hall-Council Chambers, Second Floor, south doors, 1522 Texas Parkway, Missouri City, Texas, 77489 for the purpose of considering whether the building or structure located at 11710 North Evelyn Circle, Missouri City, Harris County, Texas is substandard. The property is owned in fee by Hector M. Zavala and Irma A. Zavala, 10301 Sandpiper #166, Houston, Texas 77096. The property is more particularly described as follows:

LOT THREE (3), IN BLOCK ONE (1), OF FONDREN PARK, SECTION ONE (1), A SUBDIVISION IN HARRIS COUNTY, TEXAS, ACCORDING TO THE MAP AND/OR PLAT THEREOF RECORDED IN VOLUME 105, PAGE 44, OF THE MAP AND/OR PLAT RECORDS OF HARRIS COUNTY, TEXAS.

The structure, garage roof and interior are observed to be severely damaged by fi re. The roof above the garage is open with some permanent supporting members missing, providing no permanent coverage. The interior of the structure is severely smoke, water damaged or burnt, lending it unfi t for human habitation. The structure is currently secured from unauthorized entry by plywood. The extensive damage to the structure renders it a potential hazard to surrounding properties and the property is not properly maintained. Therefore, the subject structure is deemed by city offi cials as meeting substandard structure criteria.City offi cials recommend immediate demolition and removal of all damaged buildings and accessory structures including the concrete slab foundation located at 11710 North Evelyn Circle, Missouri City, Harris County Texas.The owner of this property is to appear at this public hearing and show cause why such building or structure located at 11710 North Evelyn Circle, Missouri City, Harris County, Texas should not be declared to be a substandard building or structure and why the owner should not be ordered to repair, vacate, or demolish and remove the building or structure including the concrete slab foundation. Additionally the owner will be required to submit at the hearing proof of the scope of any work that may be required to comply with Article XI, Substandard Structures of Chapter 14 of the Missouri City Code of Ordinances and the time it will take to reasonably perform the work.According to the real property records of Harris County, you own the real property described in this notice. If you no longer own the property, you must execute an affi davit stating that you no longer own the property and stating the name and last known address of the person who acquired the property from you. The affi davit must be delivered in person or by certifi ed mail, return receipt requested, to this offi ce not later than the 20th day after the date you receive this notice. If you do not send the affi davit, it will be presumed that you own the property described in this notice, even if you do not.Any lienholders or mortgagees may appear at the public hearing and make comments.Submitted by:Dale WellsBuilding Offi cial, Missouri City, Texas

cc: Hector M. Zavala andIrma A. Zavala10301 Sandpiper #166Houston, Texas 77096

Citifi nancial, Inc.4600 Fuller Drive, Suite 101Irving, TX 75038

Citifi nancial, Inc.12778 Fountain Lake CircleStaff ord, TX 77477

Citifi nancial, Inc.c/o CT Corporation System350 N. St. Paul St., Ste 2900Dallas, TX 75201

Denise Hunt, TrusteeCitifi nancial, Inc.12778 Fountain Lake CircleStaff ord, TX 774 77

Fort Bend County Demo-cratic Party Chairman, Steve Brown, will host a series of Town Hall meetings this month to get input on national Democratic Platform issues. Brown was recently appoint-ed to the Democratic National Convention’s Platform Com-mittee.

There, he will help shape and approve the Democratic Party’s platform at their na-tional convention this Sep-tember in Charlotte, NC.

“In order for me to properly represent the interests of lo-cal Democrats in Charlotte, I think it only makes sense that I ask for their input,” stated Brown.

“I want to hear directly from local residents on the is-sues they feel should be our

priorities- not only for the Democratic Party but our state and nation as well,” he con-cluded.

The tour schedule is listed below:

July 17, 6:30 p.m. - 8 p.m.Sienna Branch Library8411 Sienna Springs Blvd.Missouri City

July 24, 6:30 p.m. - 8 p.m.University Branch Library14010 University Blvd.Sugar Land, Texas 77479 July 31, 6:30 p.m. - 8p.m.Cinco Ranch Branch Li-

brary, 2620 Commercial Cen-ter Blvd. Katy, Texas 77494

For more information or to RSVP contact Steve Brown directly at [email protected].

Notice of Public HearingJuly 2, 2012Notice is hereby given for a Public Hearing to take place at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Missouri City to be held on Monday, July 16, 2012, at 7:00 p.m. at: City Hall-Council Chambers, Second Floor, south doors, 1522 Texas Parkway, Missouri City, Texas, 77489 for the purpose of considering whether the building or structure located at 3202 Confederate Dr., Missouri City, Fort Bend County, Texas, is substandard. The property is owned in fee by Alejandro Zuniga, 211 Taranto Ln., Houston, Texas 77015. The property is more particularly described as follows:

LOT SEVEN (7), BLOCK FOUR (4), REPLAT OF VICKSBURG: VILLAGE OF SHILOH SECTION ONE (1 ), A SUBDIVISION IN FORT BEND COUNTY, TEXAS, ACCORDING TO MAP OR PLAT THEREOF, RECORDED UNDER SLIDE NO. 843/A, MAP AND/OR PLAT RECORDS OF FORT BEND COUNTY, TEXAS.

This structure is observed to be severely damaged by fi re. The roof is non-existent with no permanent supporting members, providing no permanent coverage. The interior of the structure is severely burnt, lending it unfi t for human habitation. The structure cannot be expected to withstand storms or hurricanes and is not currently secured from unauthorized entry. The extensive damage to this structure renders it a potential hazard to surrounding properties during a windstorm or other natural disasters. Therefore, the subject structure is deemed by city offi cials as meeting substandard structure criteria.City offi cials recommend immediate demolition and removal of all damaged buildings and accessory structures including the concrete slab foundation located at 3202 Confederate Dr., Missouri City, Fort Bend County, Texas.The owner of this property is to appear at this public hearing and show cause why such building or structure located at 3202 Confederate Dr., Missouri City, Fort Bend County, Texas, should not be declared to be a substandard building or structure and why the owner should not be ordered to repair, vacate, or demolish and remove the building or structure including the concrete slab foundation. Additionally the owner will be required to submit at the hearing proof of the scope of any work that may be required to comply with Article XI, Substandard Structures of Chapter 14 of the Missouri City Code of Ordinances and the time it will take to reasonably perform the work.Any lienholders or mortgagees may appear at the public hearing and make comments.

Submitted by:Dale WellsBuilding Offi cial, Missouri City, Texas

LEGAL NOTICEREQUEST FOR SEALED

COMPETITIVE PROPOSALSSealed Competitive Proposals will be received in the Offi ce of Gilbert D. Jalo-mo, Jr., County Purchasing Agent, Fort Bend County, Travis Annex, 301 Jack-son, Suite 201, Richmond, TX 77469 for the following until THURSDAY, JULY 19, 2012 at 1:30 P.M. CST). All propos-als will then be opened in the Offi ce of the Purchasing Agent, Travis Annex, 301 Jackson, Suite 201, Richmond, TX 77469 and the names of the proposers made public. Proposals received after the specifi ed time will be returned unopened. Solicitation and any and all addendums will be posted on Pur-chasing Agent’s website located at www.co.fort-bend.tx.us. RFP 12-058 – PRINT MANAGEMENT SYSTEMA MANDATORY pre-bid conference will be conducted on Thursday, July 12, 2012 at 9:00 AM (CST). The man-datory pre-bid conference will be held at Fort Bend County Purchasing De-partment located in the Travis Annex at 301 Jackson, Suite 201, Richmond, TX. All bidders are required to attend in order to participate. Bonds are not required. Fort Bend County reserves the right to reject any or all proposals.Signed:Gilbert D. Jalomo, Jr., Purchasing AgentFort Bend County, Richmond, Texas

National Democratic Platform town hall meetings

Page 7: Fort Bend Independent

JULY 4, 2012 • INDEPENDENT • Page 7

Personal orthopedic surgeon to Recreational Elites, World Cup & Olympic Athletes, and American & International Professionals.

We Understand Athletes!

Thomas J. Parr, M.D.Orthopedic Surgery & Sports Medicine

www.tomparrmd.net www.FtBendSportsMedicine.com14090 Southwest Fwy, #130, Sugar Land, TX 77478

281-491-7111

Your personal Board Certified ORTHOPEDIC SPORTS MEDICINE physician!

SPORTS: Skeeters’ Corner

Not just oil, Pennzoil

Kwik Kar Lube & TuneFamily Owned& Operated6171 Hwy 6 (@FM1092)Missouri City

A Kwik Kar is a Happy CarMon-Fri: 8 a.m.- 6 p.m. Sat 6 a.m. to 5 p.m.

281-261-8066Stop. Go. Pennzoil.

Not Just Oil, Pennzoil

Proud fan of Sugar Land Skeeters

Skeeters League Standings(as of 7/1/12)Liberty Division W L PCT GB STREAK LAST 10Long Island Ducks 38 24 0.613 - 6W 8-2Camden Riversharks 30 32 0.484 8 2W 5-5Southern Maryland Blue Crabs 28 35 0.444 10.5 2L 2-8Bridgeport Bluefi sh 27 36 0.429 11.5 1L 5-5

Freedom Division W L PCT GB STREAK LAST 10Lancaster Barnstormers 39 24 0.619 - 2W 6-4York Revolution 33 30 0.524 6 2L 6-4Somerset Patriots 30 33 0.476 9 1W 4-6Sugar Land Skeeters 26 37 0.413 13 4L 4-6

We are proud of Sugar Land Skeeters

MIKE TIDWELLMASTER PLUMBER#37825

LICENSED -INSURED281-980-6265

AV Rated by Martindale Hubbell Not certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization

PROUDLY SERVING FORT BEND SINCE 1981

In the Sugar Land Industrial Park 407 Julie Rivers Drive, Sugar Land, Tx. 77478

281-242-8100 [email protected] www.jonesattorneys.com

● Real Estate ● Health Care Law ● ● Business and Corporate Law ●

● Banking ● Creditors' Rights ● Collections ● ● Business Litigation ● Mergers and Acquisitions ●

● Estate Planning ● Probate ●

RUSSELL C. JONES THELMA HOLOWAY JONES

JANICE SUCHYTA STEPHANIE STIGANT

Thu 5 BRI Pops in the Park Independence Day Cel-ebrations. Fort Bend Sym-phony performance with Fire-works!

Fri 6 BRI “Best in Tex-as” postgame concert with Roger Creager! Texas A&M Former Student Night!

Sat 7 BRI First 2000 kids (12 and under) will re-ceive a Youth Sized Replica Skeeters Jersey Giveaway.Kids Run the Bases! Fire-works!

Sun 8 BRI Catch on the Field! Team Autograph Ses-sion! Skeeters Buzz Brigade Peanut Butter and Jelly Ban-quet!

Fri 13 SOMD Sienna Plan-tation Community Night! Batman Night with Batman themed fi reworks

Sat 14 SOMD First 2000 fans will receive a Skeeters Baseball Hat giveaway Kids Run the Bases

Sun 15 SOMD B a s e b a l l USA Night! Catch on the Field! Team Autograph Ses-sion!

Mon 16 SOMD S a -lute to Cricket with pregame demonstrations!

Tue 17 SOMD Martial Arts Night!

Wed 18 SOMD Jew-ish Heritage Night, Rosenberg Community Night

Thu 26 CAM Guys Night! Postgame Remote Control Dig to win a brand new fl at screen TV; Recog-nize the July Student-Athlete of the Month!

Fri 27 CAM Rodeo Spirit Night with Biggest Belt Buck-le Competition and Texas Two Step dance off! Country Mu-sic Fireworks

Sat 28 CAM U n i v e r s i t y of Houston Night! First 2000 fans will receive a Travel Cof-fee Mug

Sun 29 CAM Bike Night! Cajun Menu in Performance Mazda Picnic Plaza! Catch on the Field! Team Autograph Session!

Mon 30 SOM Tue 31 SOM Dance Night!

Teams BRI = Bridgeport Bluefi sh

CAM=Camden Riversharks

LAN = Lancaster Barnstormers

LI = Long Island DucksSOMD =Southern

Maryland Blue CrabsSOM = Somerset Patriots

YR =York Revolution

Special promotions during Skeeters July home games

SKEETERS PLAYER STATISTICS

Batting StatsPlayer P AVG G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB HBP SO SF SH SB CS DP E

x VanOstrand, J IF .368 27 95 14 35 8 1 3 20 15 1 9 3 0 0 0 4 2

x Botts, J OF .348 39 155 27 54 14 2 9 33 16 1 40 0 0 2 0 3 4

Negron, M OF .340 16 53 13 18 5 0 0 5 13 0 8 1 0 2 2 0 0

Lane, J OF .327 16 55 10 18 8 0 3 15 11 0 10 1 0 0 0 3 0

Martinez, O C .309 47 162 17 50 8 0 0 14 7 7 12 1 2 1 0 3 7

Castro, O IF .306 48 173 27 53 10 2 2 23 25 2 21 2 0 1 1 10 5

Johnson, K C .300 4 10 3 3 0 0 1 4 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 1 0

Mejia, M C .295 22 78 5 23 0 1 1 4 9 2 17 0 0 0 0 4 0

x Locke, D OF .285 40 165 28 47 6 1 4 24 12 2 29 1 1 4 1 4 1

Bell, B OF .285 54 228 29 65 19 3 1 21 14 0 33 1 1 6 1 7 0

x Harrison, B OF .282 29 103 24 29 5 0 8 19 15 1 23 0 0 3 0 2 0

x Morton, C C .250 6 16 2 4 2 0 1 2 3 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 0

Pressley, J IF .249 58 209 24 52 9 0 7 35 25 4 40 4 0 0 0 10 6

Ramos, D IF .243 36 136 19 33 7 2 5 11 8 1 33 1 3 3 0 2 3

Hagen, M IF .241 27 87 9 21 8 0 3 9 7 0 22 0 0 1 0 4 2

x Gutierrez, V IF .219 8 32 4 7 2 0 0 4 0 0 5 0 0 0 0 1 2

Suarez, I IF .214 42 140 19 30 8 0 1 12 15 0 37 0 2 1 2 2 9

Moss, S OF .186 13 43 5 8 2 0 2 9 5 1 17 2 0 1 0 2 0

x Cintron, A IF .167 7 30 3 5 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 1 1 1

x Benitez, D IF .139 11 36 2 5 0 0 0 3 1 0 11 1 0 0 0 4 3

Figueroa, L IF .107 9 28 2 3 0 0 0 4 4 0 5 2 0 0 1 0 0

Rodriguez, R OF .094 21 64 6 6 1 0 0 2 3 1 9 0 1 0 0 3 0

x Cabral, M IF .087 8 23 1 2 0 0 0 0 3 2 4 0 0 0 0 2 2

Gordon, D P .000 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

x Allen, J C .000 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Richardson, D P .000 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1

Totals .269 63 2122 293 571 122 12 51 274 211 27 394 20 10 25 9 72 48

Pitching StatsPlayer G GS CG IP H R ER BB SO W L SV 2B 3B ERA

Parcell, G 2 0 0 2.2 1 0 0 3 3 0 0 0 1 0 0.00

Hagen, M 1 0 0 1.1 3 1 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0.00

x Startup, W 15 0 0 21.0 11 4 3 6 16 3 1 0 3 1 1.29

Majewski, G 22 0 0 30.0 22 10 7 9 21 2 1 8 6 0 2.10

x Wright, M 8 8 0 49.0 38 13 12 9 47 2 0 0 6 3 2.20

Liriano, P 13 4 0 41.2 36 14 12 16 25 3 3 0 7 0 2.59

Richardson, D 6 2 0 15.2 13 5 5 6 15 1 0 0 0 0 2.87

Krebs, E 19 0 0 24.0 18 9 8 8 26 1 1 0 2 2 3.00

Lane, J 4 3 0 19.2 17 9 8 5 16 1 2 0 3 0 3.66

Phillips, H 15 8 0 44.0 58 25 19 15 23 1 4 0 8 1 3.89

Livingston, B 12 12 0 70.1 67 34 33 23 44 7 2 0 12 3 4.22

x Rackel, T 6 0 0 10.1 9 5 5 3 5 0 0 0 3 0 4.36

Morgan, S 18 0 0 26.2 29 19 13 12 14 0 0 0 8 2 4.39

McKeller, R 14 8 0 47.1 49 28 26 28 24 1 4 0 9 4 4.94

Gordon, D 12 8 1 54.1 62 41 39 20 40 1 4 0 15 3 6.46

x Flores, D 5 1 0 10.2 13 8 8 7 7 1 1 0 1 1 6.75

Villa, K 11 0 0 14.1 17 11 11 6 7 0 2 0 4 0 6.91

Nix, M 18 4 0 38.1 42 35 33 18 32 1 7 1 10 2 7.75

x Houston, R 13 1 0 9.2 14 16 14 14 9 1 2 1 2 1 13.03

x Ketchner, R 4 4 0 9.0 20 22 20 7 9 0 3 0 4 1 20.00

Totals 218 63 1 540 539 309 276 216 385 26 37 10 104 24 4.60

Page 8: Fort Bend Independent

Page 8 • INDEPENDENT • JULY 4, 2012

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