Observer The Bay Area
VOLUME 8, NO. 49 • THURSDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2017 • COMMUNITY NEWS FOR LA PORTE, MORGAN’S POINT, SHOREACRES, SEABROOK & THE GALVESTON BAY AREA
Texas, Florida members of Congress team up to secure more hurricane relief
As Texans in Congress grow increasingly anxious about Hurricane Harvey relief funding, some joined a bipartisan group of U.S. House members from Florida Friday, threatening to oppose a relief bill unless funding is “significantly improved.” By Abby Livingston Texas Tribune WASHINGTON - Some members of Congress from Texas and Florida are combining forces to strengthen their hand in coming negotiations over hurricane relief for their states. Republicans and Democrats from both delegations have privately expressed frustration with party leadership and Trump administration officials for what they describe as insufficient hurricane relief for Hurricane Harvey in Texas, Hurricane Irma in Florida and Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico. A bipartisan group of members from both states met Friday morning to strategize how to best position their states in coming negotiations over the next week.
Flooding in a Clear Lake neighborhood from heavy rains after Hurricane Harvey on Aug. 27, 2017. Courtesy Mia Mullins
The government faces a Dec. 8 deadline to agree on a spending plan and avoid a shutdown. The objective for the Florida and Texas group is to bring as much leverage as possible to those negotiations to
secure what these members determine to be sufficient relief funding. Increasingly, the word “shutdown” is creeping into the lexicon of Democratic members from
Local business man hosts house party for TX-36 Candidate Jon Powell
these two states. U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, a Houston Democrat who attended the meeting, said it outright Thursday at a U.S. Homeland Security Committee hearing.
“We do not have the adequate resources, and this is going to be on the verge of a government shutdown if Texas and all of the other victims of these hurricanes do not have a compromise where we can work together,” she said. “I would encourage you to tell the president that it is not enough. It simply is not enough.” The representatives attending Friday’s meeting were mostly members of the U.S. House Appropriations and Ways and Means committees as well as other Houston-area members. Even without unanimous support, just a fraction of the combined 63 members in the two delegations could create a formidable voting bloc on the U.S. House floor. There were rumblings earlier in the fall of such an alliance. Last month, the Trump administration announced it was requesting $44 billion from Congress to assist with the Harvey aftermath as well as the recoveries from other recent hurricanes in Florida, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The figure was criticized as See “Hurricane Relief” on page 2
Deceased body discovered on SH 146 in Seabrook At approximately 1:45 p.m. on Monday, December 4, 2017, the Seabrook Police Department received a call regarding a deceased body located at the 3300 block of State Highway 146. A crew working in the area discovered the body lying in thick brush approximately 25 feet west of the highway. The body was not visible from the highway. When Seabrook officers and investigators
arrived on scene they found an unidentified white male. The deceased was wearing pants with a light colored t-shirt and had no identification or property on him. The Harris County Medical Examiner has removed the body and estimates that the body has been deceased in that location for approximately seven days. At this time, investigators do not suspect criminal wrongdoing. The case is under investigation.
Theodore Gossman’s Bait Camp And Gambling House at Kemah, next to The Oyster Shack Al Soto, owner of Elegant Remodeling and Michelle with Cindy Evans and Jon Powell. Photo by Rebecca Collins
REBECCA COLLINS
editor@bayareaobserver.com
On Saturday night, Al Soto local businessman and owner of Elegant Remodeling & Construction hosted a successful “Meet the Candiate” house party for Jon Powell, democratic candidate for TX-36. Powell spoke to a crowded house filled with supporters and told everyone why he’s is running for office. “The reason I’m running is because I believe in public service. I stand for a government of the people by the people and for the people. And not for the special interest, not for the 1%, not for the people who have more money than all of us put together. But rather for the average citizen, for the working class person who relies on Government to provide the necessary infrastructure and services to make life what it is here in this country,” said Powell. Jon Powell is a candidate for the U.S.
House of Representatives in Texas Congressional District 36 in Southeast Texas. Jon and his wife, Cindy Evans, live in Taylor Lake Village in the Clear Lake area. Jon is a geologist, and has devoted his career to working with industry on environmental, safety, and management issues. He and his wife Cindy are committed to public service and have worked in the community in many roles. Jon was an elected official in Taylor Lake Village for a decade, first a City Councilman, then Mayor. He participated in the community advisory panel that serves as a forum for residents and local industry. Cindy, a NASA scientist, served as Police Commissioner in their community. For more information on Jon Powell visit his website at jonpowellforcongress.us. For more information about Elegant Remodeling & Construction visit their website at elegantremodelingbayarea.com.
By Jean West
Candidate Jon Powell and wife Cindy Evans enjoy the company of many supporters. Photo by Rebecca Collins
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I was a very lucky little boy. In 1938 my dad and I started going down to Kemah to visit one of the old friends from over on Old Middle Bayou, Theodore Gossman, at the time he had a Bait Camp next door to the Oyster Shack that was on the location of the later Jimmy Walkers Restaurant. The Bait Camp was next door to the West. It had as white picket fence, with a white wild rose bush in the front yard. A honey bee hive across the yard out front. The house was a little white frame house with a big screened in back room all across the back of the house. On the West side of the house there was a water well with a pump that gave the place fresh clean water. It was piped to the house and down to the shower and on the pier. The pier was a T pier with rooms on the right. There was a cold-water shower and next door was the bait room where he had ice, dead shrimp and small mullet for cut bait. In that room the fisherman could clean their fish on a counter and there was a sink with run-
ning water, he had an old ice chest with iced beer and sodas and another full of blocks of ice. Then the next room was the toilet (outhouse) All of the buildings along Clear Creek during that time had them out over the creek. The waste would be washed away with the tides. The last room to the East was the tac room where he kept oars for the rental skiffs, life jackets and cushions for the seat that doubled as life jackets. There were three little outboard motors for those who would fish out further in the bay. Straight out on the pier was a gate that let boats dock when they were having gambling on Friday and Saturday nights. The yachts came from all over the Bay area. The Bait camp was a gambling pad for some weekends, private poker and crap games. Inside of the house in the West bed room there was a big box of cards that were sealed and a big bucket of dice that were unopened. Next to the gambling paraphernalia were three cases of whiskey. During those game nights the camp was closed to fishermen. Theodore’s dog was brought into the screened in room See “Bait Camp” on page 2