Houston Health Department director retires after 21 years
Houston Health Department Director Stephen Williams is retiring from his role after first joining the position in 2004, council member Mario Castillo announced during an Aug. 26 City Council meeting.
The backstory: Castillo said during Williams' time as director, Williams helped initiate a minimum wage for city employees, paved the way for Houston to become the first Texas city to be accredited by the Public Health Accreditation Board in 2014 and helped launch My Brother’s Keeper, a program aimed at addressing inequitable conditions for the city’s youth, particularly boys and young men of color.
Quote of note: Williams said when he first came to Houston in 2004, he didn’t “particularly like Houston,” and expected to only work as the director for three and a half years.
However, he said his mindset changed as he continued to work in the city, calling the city a “fertile ground” for creativity and new ideas.
Check out 7 Labor Day specials happening around Houston this weekend
Feeling festive and looking for somewhere to celebrate? Here are a few restaurants and bars offering Labor Day specials across Houston.
Azumi Known for flying seafood in from Tokyo, the contemporary Japanese restaurant is celebrating Labor Day with 50% off all maki and hand rolls from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sept. 1. Azumi also offers a large selection of sake and a diverse menu, featuring caviar, ceviche and Japanese wagyu beef.
4444 Westheimer Road, Ste. G-130, Houston
PKL Social To celebrate Labor Day, PKL Social is offering a three-day weekend brunch menu, featuring items such as mimosas, bananas foster French toast and chicken and waffles. Customers can also enjoy the sports bar’s four pickleball courts, two golf simulators and 25 big screens.
Harris County authorities to crack down on DUIs during Labor Day weekend
An interagency crackdown on drivers impaired by alcohol or drugs in the Houston area began Aug. 28 for the extended Labor Day weekend, Harris County Precinct 1 Constable Alan Rosen announced.
The gist: Constable Precinct 1 deputies and officers from other law enforcement agencies will be out across Harris County to find and arrest drivers under the influence, according to a news release.
Notable quote: “The number of people killed or injured by drunk or drugged drivers remains at a scandalously high level in Harris and surrounding counties,” Rosen said. “On this last of this year’s extended summer weekends, due to Labor Day observances, I urge everyone to refrain from this deadly kind of driving, for their own sake and the public’s.”
FOODIE FRIDAY Check out these new restaurants and bars opening across the Houston area.
According to an Aug. 21 release, Local Public Eatery opened a new location at Market Street in The Woodlands, marking the concept’s first Houston location and second Texas location. The 5,140-square-foot space features curated artwork, vintage lighting and cozy area rugs, according to the release. The space also offers a screen at the bar for sports and a wrap-around patio with a retractable roof, intimate dining spaces and a central deck bar.
At the bar, customers can find a large selection of beer, wine and hand-crafted cocktails like the Spicy Guava Margarita. Local Public Eatery offers comfort food classics including fried chicken ramen, loaded potatoes and barbecue rice bowls.
🧇 The Waffle Bus now serving waffle sandwiches in Bridgeland (Read more)
😋 2 new restaurants coming to The Woodlands from chefs Austin Simmons and Aaron Bludorn (Read more)
🍖 Fire Craft BBQ brings Texas-style eats to Kingwood (Read more)
🆕 Amanecer Mexican Cafe to add authentic comfort meals to Heights palate (Read more)
The coastal eatery has two locations in Memorial City and River Oaks, with plans for a third restaurant to open in Rice Village this fall. Known for its raw bar selection and seafood, Liberty Kitchen recently announced the opening of its third location off Morningside Drive in an Aug. 6 social media post. A few customer favorites on the menu include the Chesapeake crab balls, buttermilk lobster bites and char-grilled Gulf oysters. The restaurant also offers sushi and sashimi cuts such as tuna poke, citrus chili salmon Scottish sashimi and black truffle hamachi.
'Where would the money come from?': Harris County commissioners weigh year-long hiring freeze across county departments
Harris County commissioners and department leaders are considering implementing a yearlong hiring freeze to save at least $25 million in costs to address a projected $200 million-plus shortfall in fiscal year 2025-26. Budget Director Daniel Ramos presented the personnel freeze proposal during the Aug. 26 commissioners court meeting, which stretched until 10 p.m. as nearly 200 residents signed up to address agenda items.
Explained: Ramos said three of the county’s bigger departments—the engineering office, information technology services and public health—would be the most affected. The freeze would exclude positions in several departments identified as critical by county officials, including law enforcement, elections, the county clerk and park maintenance offices.
Quote of note: “It's definitely inconvenient for the departments,” Ramos said, "but the crossroads that we're at ... is, do we want to go back and identify $25 million worth of departmental cuts at this point or do we want to do something more blanket, like a hiring freeze?"
Amid Democratic criticism, Texas lawmakers vote to overhaul STAAR and launch new tests in 2027
Both chambers of the Texas Legislature have voted to overhaul the state’s standardized testing system, putting public school students one step closer to taking new exams in the 2027-28 school year.
The details: House Bill 8 would eliminate the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness and replace it with three shorter tests, which students would take at the beginning, middle and end of each school year.
Bill author Rep. Brad Buckley, R-Salado, said HB 8 would “reduce test anxiety, provide teachers with immediate feedback and create a pathway for trust in our system again." The majority of House Democrats and a few Republicans disagreed, arguing Aug. 26 that the bill would increase the amount of time students spend on exams and essentially create “another STAAR test” developed by the Texas Education Agency.
Next steps: After state senators passed HB 8 with a 21-7 vote Aug. 27, the bill returned to the House for consideration of a Senate amendment. If House lawmakers sign off on the changes, HB 8 will be sent to the governor.
