HTX-LHK: Impact 11/6/2025

Sullivan's Truck, Auto & Collision will host a 40th anniversary celebration Nov. 15 from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Open to the community, the event will include food and drinks, live music, activities for kids and raffle prizes.

Meet the owners: Founder Danny Sullivan runs the auto shop with his son, co-owner Michael Sullivan, and daughter, Kelly Sullivan McGriff, who oversees business development.

Danny Sullivan began his career as a technician in 1977. From 1981-83, he ran an Exxon station lube center in Kingwood where he was recognized as the No. 1 technician in the nation, McGriff said in an Oct. 23 email. After Exxon moved their business model from gas station mechanic shops to convenience stories, Danny Sullivan opened Sullivan's Advanced Paint & Body in 1985. Today, the shop is known as Sullivan's Truck, Auto & Collision. 

What they offer: The business offers automotive service and maintenance as well as collision repairs; fleet services are also available.

• 22500 Loop 494, Kingwood

Check out what's happening in the Lake Houston area this weekend, Nov. 7-9. 

'Little Shop of Horrors': Lone Star College-Kingwood's Drama Department will present this sci-fi musical at the campus's Main Stage Theatre.

• Nov. 5-8, 7:30 p.m.; Nov. 8, 2 p.m.
• $7 (students), $14 (ages 55 and older), $17 (general admission)
• 20000 Kingwood Drive, Kingwood

• Nov. 8, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
• Free (admission)
• Jesse H. Jones Park & Nature Center, 20634 Kenswick Drive, Humble

• Nov. 8, noon-5 p.m.
• Free (admission)
• 8 N. Main St., Kingwood

Houston City Council on Nov. 5 tabled its decision to create a new “high-risk” rental property inspection program after several council members said the proposal lacks proper enforcement measures.

What happened: Seven council members, including Letitia Plummer, who proposed the program, voted against tabling the decision during the Nov. 5 meeting, saying Council should pass the ordinance so the program can be implemented and properly evaluated. City Council has the legal authority to amend ordinances after they’ve been adopted, the city attorney said.

However, eight council members and Mayor John Whitmire disagreed and voted to refer back to the ordinance Dec. 10 so the policy can be revised to include clearer enforcement protocols.

“We’re at the finish line with an unfinished product,” Whitmire said during the meeting.

About the program: According to the ordinance, multifamily rental properties that receive too many certified habitability citations within six months would have to register as a “high-risk” building and could face daily fines ranging from $250-$2,000 per violation.

Harris County commissioners unanimously approved an increase in the county’s fiscal year 2025-26 no-new-revenue property tax rate during the Nov. 4 court meeting. 

The gist: While commissioners adopted the $2.76 billion FY 2025-26 general fund budget and tax rates for the Harris County Flood Control District, Harris County Hospital District and the Port of Houston Authority on Sept. 24, the no-new-revenue rate was expected to be adopted near the end of October, according to Laura Lucas with the county administration office.

By the numbers: The four rates together make a combined property tax rate in the county of $0.6241 per $100 of valuation, an increase from the FY 2024-25 tax rate of $0.6038 per $100 of valuation.

The takeaway: The county’s tax rate document states the no-new-revenue tax rate will raise more taxes for maintenance and operations than last year’s tax rate. The 0.55% increase will raise taxes on a $100,000 home by approximately $2.42, the document states.

Members of the Quality of Life Committee reviewed $476,669 in grant funds during a Nov. 3 meeting for its SEARCH Homeless Services to create an early childhood development program for low-to-moderate-income families in Houston.

What to know: According to the presentation, the program will provide comprehensive early childhood education to 20 children ages 21 months to 5 years and will include support services to families such as case management, counseling and referral services, transportation and parenting classes designed to reduce barriers and increase household financial stability.

Also on the agenda: Assistant Director of Housing Melanie Parr also recommended providing up to $376,669 in Emergency Solution Grant and Community Development Block Grant funds to the Rapid Re-housing Case Management services to households experiencing homelessness.