Hosting a crowd of over sixty constituents on September 24, State Representative Jon Rosenthal, who represents District 135 in the Texas House, was joined by Harris County Precinct 4 Commissioner Lesley Briones in providing updates on current projects and a forecast of the forthcoming meeting of the state legislature. The pair spoke at a joint “town hall” held September 24 at the Weekly Community Center, 8440 Greenhouse Road in Cypress.

Rosenthal’s district covers a portion of Katy north of Clay Road on the east side of the Grand Parkway and west of Highway 6. Harris County Precinct 4, headed by Briones, covers the western quarter of the county and includes much of the greater Katy area as well as Cypress and Tomball, among other areas.

Briones focused her presentation on infrastructure projects in or near the immediate area, including the “All in 4 Katy East” study currently underway, $6.1 million in flood resilience projects, drainage improvement projects in the Addicks watershed, widening of multiple roads from two to four lanes and a West Harris County Transit study. She also reviewed development of education and economic opportunities, public health initiatives, and justice and safety initiatives, all of which have previously been reported in the Katy Times.

Briones also provided an update on the “Sidewalks 4 Precinct 4” project which is completing 50 miles of sidewalks across the precinct in 2024 and 2025. In the Cy-Fair ISD area, the sidewalk near Postma Elementary on West Road has been completed and sidewalks are under construction at Kahla Middle School on West Little York, near Watkins Middle School in the Kieth Harrow-Highway 6 area, along Longenbaugh near Andre Elementary School, near West Little York and Greenhouse near Jowell and Hoover Elementary Schools, and in the Villages of Bear Creek near Sheridan Elementary, Thornton Middle School and Cypress Lakes High School.

Stating that “Democracy is not a spectator sport,” Briones reminded attendees that election day is November 5 and that early voting will be conducted October 21 through November 1. Nine voting locations are available at Precinct 4 parks and community centers, she said. She also urged support for the Harris County Flood Control District’s proposed tax rate which will appear on the November ballot. Funds from the new tax rate will provide improvements to the county’s aging flood control infrastructure, she said. Since 2000, the county’s flood control assets have doubled, she said. “We need to maintain our current assets at a rate that is safe and effective,” she said.

Rosenthal, who is running unopposed in the November election, serves on the county affairs and agriculture and livestock committees in the Texas House. He focused his remarks on funding for public education, which he noted is required by the Texas Constitution. “Schools are the central issue,” he said, “and they are struggling.” His other top two priorities are health care and “combatting bigotry,” he said. Rosenthal said that not only is there a movement in the state legislature called “alien land laws” which are designed to prevent citizens from other countries from owning land in Texas. but there is also a push to prohibit these individuals from holding certain jobs. “That’s not the American way of life,” Rosenthal said.

Questions from the audience included questions on school funding, flood control, and matters related to municipal utility districts.