HOUSTON – During a city council meeting on Wednesday, newly-elected John Whitmire decided not to vote on a major agenda item this week, which involves a $2 million investment to help Fifth Ward residents being impacted by cancer clusters.
Instead, Whitmire said he and residents need at least 30 days to get more answers regarding the environmental disaster that is in desperate need of environmental justice.
“This is a program that is so important to all of us. Some progress has been made, but in my briefings, there are a lot of questions that need to be answered to make this successful as it should be,” Whitmire said.
In September of 2023, the city council, under the leadership of former Mayor Sylvester Turner, approved $5 million to help residents who wanted to voluntarily move out of the Fifth Ward and Kashmere Gardens cancer cluster.
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The $5 million approval came after officials learned that cancer-causing chemicals found near the Fifth Ward rail yard caused residents to be diagnosed with leukemia, lung and throat cancers.
“People are constantly being diagnosed with cancer and dying from cancer,” said Turner. “And of course, people have been asking UP, Union Pacific, to step up and assume responsibility. UP continues to say there is no causation, there is nothing wrong out there, but it does not negate the fact that the Texas Department of Health has found a higher concentration of people with cancer than any other parts in the Houston area and children dying from cancer. Those are the realities, those are the facts.”
On Wednesday, council members were set to vote to begin spending $2 million of those allocated funds for administration purposes.
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But, Whitmire halted the vote, saying the old administration and council members did not get the numbers right. He said the plan to help move residents would cost much more than $5 million.
“Why did you all settle on $5 million instead of the 40 to do the job? Let’s do it right and be responsible,” Whitmire said. “We have unanswered questions. It would be easy for me to just go along, and get along, but that is not the purpose in me being here. The two million, no one has a plan for how to administer it, so give us a month to come up with a plan. Give us a month to come up with who are the experts that can manage this.”
Mayor Whitmire said he needs at least a month to develop a plan for the land, notify residents of the city’s plan, and figure out an equal area to move the residents with similar taxes and bills.
“I don’t know that it would be a claw back, it’s just that we would postpone for a month, and I don’t know if those non-profits that have been doing counseling told the relocation candidates that their utility bills might be three times as high in their new location. I understand perception, but I’m dealing with reality now,” Whitmire said.
He added that he wants to have a discussion with the CEO of Union Pacific to discuss the issue and their responsibility to share the $40 million tab.
Council members approved the mayor’s thirty-day time period, and in the meantime, Whitmire said he plans to go to the Fifth Ward neighborhood and meet with residents and federal, state and county members.