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NRG Park needs $2 billion for facility repairs, according to new assessment

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NRG Park needs $2 billion for facility repairs, according to new assessment

Facilities within NRG Park need roughly $2 billion of repairs, according to a new assessment that will inform the complex’s next master plan.

The Harris County Sports & Convention Corporation released a facilities condition assessment Wednesday detailing the costly repairs needed in the park that is home to the Houston Texans and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

The assessment estimated a 30-year capital expense project is needed to address the aged facilities. With a price tag of $116 million alone, the mostly costly repair outlined in the assessment is a new rooftop.

But it’s still unclear who might bare the costs of repairing the multi-billion dollar complex. 

“NRG Park is one of our region’s most valuable public assets,” Martye Kendrick, executive director of the sports corporation, said in a statement. “To ensure NRG Park continues to serve the community effectively, we will need investments that match the high level of activity the park supports.” 

“At the same time, we must balance our responsibility to the public as responsible stewards of this county-owned asset,” Kendrick said.

County leaders have for years called for upgrades to NRG Park.

Former Harris County Sports and Convention Corporation CEO Ryan Walsh last year said the complex generates roughly $60 to 65 million per year hosting the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, Texans home games and other sporting events, and concerts, but that’s not including all of the overhead and all of the costs of operating the facility.

RELATED: Harris County leaders seek to upgrade NRG Park

Key tenants of NRG Park say the assessment highlights challenges that need to be address in the near, and long term. 

“Our goal remains to provide the best possible gameday experience for our fans and also recognize the importance of NRG Park and NRG Stadium to our entire community,” Houston Texans President Greg Grissom said in a statement. “Together, with the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, we look forward to supporting Harris County and HCSCC to identify the best solutions to address these challenges.” 

Since its opening in 2002, the park has seen more than 100 million visitors, bringing in more than 5.5 million visitors every year. 

Planning for the park’s next master plan is underway, including a multi-year capital improvement plan. More than $35 million worth of projects have already been planned and budgeted, , according to the sports corporation. 

The facility assessment did not include an analysis of NRG Arena or the Astrodome.

CVS knowingly dispensed ‘massive’ amount of invalid opioid prescriptions: DOJ lawsuit

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CVS knowingly dispensed ‘massive’ amount of invalid opioid prescriptions: DOJ lawsuit

The largest pharmacy chain in America is accused of “unlawfully dispensing massive quantities of opioids and other controlled substances to fuel its own profits at the expense of public health and safety,” according to a civil lawsuit filed by the Justice Department, which was unsealed Wednesday.

The DOJ lawsuit alleges that CVS has, for more than a decade, knowingly filled sometimes-dubious prescriptions for controlled substances that lacked a legitimate medical purpose, or were not valid.

Those prescriptions included “dangerous and excessive quantities of opioids” and “trinity cocktails” — a blend of “especially dangerous and abused combination of drugs made up of an opioid, a benzodiazepine and a muscle relaxant,” the suit stated.

MORE: Overdose deaths have continued to drop, now at their lowest level in 3 years, data shows 

The suit also accuses the company of filling “at least thousands of controlled substance prescriptions” penned by “known ‘pill mills.'”

In a statement to ABC News, CVS spokesperson Amy Thibault called the suit “misguided” and said company officials “strongly disagree with the allegations and false narrative” described in the DOJ suit and will “defend ourselves vigorously.”

DOJ’s lawsuit says CVS “contributed to the opioid crisis, a national public health emergency with devastating effects in the United States.” The suit went on to say: “These included illegitimate prescriptions for extremely high doses and excessive quantities of potent opioids that fed dependence and addiction, as well as illegitimate prescriptions for dangerous combinations of opioids and other drugs.”

The suit accuses CVS of ignoring sometimes “egregious red flags” about prescriptions “bearing the hallmarks of abuse and diversion.” The lawsuit points to performance metrics and incentive compensation policies that allegedly pressured pharmacists to “fill prescriptions as quickly as possible, without assessing their legitimacy” and corporate policies that allegedly prioritized speed over safety.

MORE: McKinsey to pay $650 million over role in OxyContin epidemic

The suit claims CVS refused to implement compliance measures recommended by its own experts to reduce the number of invalid prescriptions with red flags “primarily due to fear that they would slow the speed of prescription filling and increase labor costs,” according to the suit.

The government is seeking civil penalties, injunctive relief and damages to address what it called CVS’ unlawful practices and to prevent future violations.

In her statement, Thibault, the CVS spokesperson, said the company has been an industry leader in fighting opioid misuse.

“Each of the prescriptions in question was for an FDA-approved opioid medication prescribed by a practitioner who the government itself licensed, authorized, and empowered to write controlled-substance prescriptions,” Thibault’s statement said.

She said the DOJ lawsuit “intensifies a serious dilemma for pharmacists, who are simultaneously second-guessed for dispensing too many opioids, and too few.”

Amazon workers strike at multiple facilities as Teamsters seek labor contract

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Amazon workers strike at multiple facilities as Teamsters seek labor contract

Workers at seven Amazon facilities went on strike Thursday, an effort by the Teamsters union to pressure the e-commerce company for a labor agreement during a key shopping period.

The Teamsters said the workers, who voted to authorize strikes in recent days, joined picket lines after Amazon ignored a Sunday deadline the union set for contract negotiations. The union called it the largest strike against the company in U.S. history, although Amazon said it did not expect the labor action to impact its operations.

The International Brotherhood of Teamsters claims it represents nearly 10,000 workers at 10 Amazon facilities, a small portion of the 800,000 workers employed in the company’s U.S. warehouses. The union hasn’t said how many workers would participate in the strike or how long the walkout would last. 

“Amazon is pushing its workers closer to the picket line by failing to show them the respect they have earned,” Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien said in a statement. 

The strikes happening Thursday are taking place at seven delivery stations, which are run by contractors who drop off of packages to customers everyday. They include three locations in Southern California, and one each in New York City, Atlanta, Georgia, and Skokie, Illinois, according to the union’s announcement. 

The biggest warehouse affiliated with the Teamsters is located in the New York City borough of Staten Island. In 2022, thousands of workers at the warehouse, known as JFK8, voted to be represented by the nascent Amazon Labor Union. Workers then choose to affiliate with the Teamsters this past summer. 

The National Labor Relations Board certified that election to unionize, but Amazon has refused to bargain on a contract. In the process, the company has filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionalityof the labor board.

At the other six facilities, employees – including many delivery drivers – unionized with the Teamsters by demonstrating majority support but without holding government-administered elections. Under labor law, companies can recognize unions without elections being held, but the practice is rare, said John Logan, director of labor and employment studies at San Francisco State University. 

Amazon workers in more locations are “prepared to join” the fight, the Teamsters said, noting that employees at the Staten Island warehouse and at a company air hub in California also have authorized strikes. 

When asked about the strike Thursday, Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel said: “What you see here are almost entirely outsiders, not Amazon employees or partners, and the suggestion otherwise is just another lie from the Teamsters.”

“The truth is that they were unable to get enough support from our employees and partners and have brought in outsiders to come and harass and intimidate our team, which is inappropriate and dangerous,” Nantel said. 

Amazon has said it does not consider delivery drivers like the ones on strike to be its employees. Under the company’s business model, the drivers work for third-party businesses, called Delivery Service Partners, who deliver millions of packages daily. Amazon has accused the union, which says it represents some of the drivers, of “intentionally” misleading the public. 

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“This is another attempt to push a false narrative,” Nantel said. 

But the Teamsters have argued Amazon essentially controls everything the drivers do and should be classified as an employer. Some U.S. labor regulators have sided with the unionin filings made before the NLRB. In September, Amazon boosted pay for the drivers amid the growing pressure.

Shares of Amazon.com Inc. rose more than 2.4% by midday Thursday.

University of Houston to Ban TikTok on Campus Network in 2025

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University of Houston to Ban TikTok on Campus Network in 2025

That’s right, the University of Houston has announced that they will be banning the hit social media platform from their campus network starting in 2025.

No TikTok in Houston

I should start with saying that it is unclear if the TikTok app will be available on all personal devices. What IS known is that, according to a security memo from University of Houston System, they will be begin blocking the popular site on January 3, 2025.

Starting this date, TikTok will be “unavailable on the UH network.” This includes the immediate removal of the platform on UH owned computers and mobile devices.

UH urges all students, faculty, and staff who are currently using university-issued devices to remove the app immediately. Additional controls will be applied where these apps can no longer be installed once removed.

Texas Gov. Abbott’s TikTok Ban

The decision comes from Gov. Abbott’s efforts in 2022 to limit China’s potential influence on American citizens.

In a letter to State Agency Heads in December 2022, Abbott revealed the threat of having a widely accessed social platform partially owned by the Chinese Communist Party.

The governor also included that TikTok harvests large amount of personal data from its users. This information could be accessed and sent to the Chinese government, posing a severe threat to American security.

The ban issued on TikTok only applied to government and/or state-issued devices like cell phones, laptops, tablets, and desktop computers.

The University of Houston is just the latest in public universities applying a ban to the China-based social media platform, as others like UT in Austin have been prohibiting TikTok since February 2023, according to Chron.

South Texas groups sue TCEQ for temporarily allowing SpaceX to discharge industrial water without a permit

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South Texas groups sue TCEQ for temporarily allowing SpaceX to discharge industrial water without a permit

McALLEN — Rio Grande Valley groups are suing the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, accusing the agency of bypassing state regulations by allowing SpaceX to temporarily discharge industrial water at its South Texas launch site without a proper permit.

The groups — the South Texas Environmental Justice Network, along with the Carrizo/Comecrudo Nation of Texas, and Save RGV — filed the lawsuit Monday after the agency decided last month to allow SpaceX to continue its operations for 300 days or until the company obtained the appropriate permit.

It is the latest in a string of lawsuits filed by environmental groups aimed at curbing the possible environmental impacts of SpaceX’s operations at Boca Chica on the southern tip of Texas.

Earlier this year, TCEQ cited SpaceX for discharging water into nearby waterways after it was used to protect the launchpad from heat damage during Starship launches four times this year.

SpaceX did not admit to any violation but agreed to pay a $3,750 penalty. Part of the penalty was deferred until SpaceX obtains the proper permit and on the condition that future water discharges meet pollution restrictions.

The environmental groups say that allowing SpaceX to continue is a violation of permitting requirements and that TCEQ is acting outside of its authority.

“The Clean Water Act requires the TCEQ to follow certain procedural and technical requirements when issuing discharge permits meant to protect public participation and ensure compliance with Texas surface water quality standards,” Lauren Ice, the attorney for the three Rio Grande Valley organizations, said in a statement.

“By bypassing these requirements, the Commission has put the Boca Chica environment at risk of degradation,” Ice said.

A TCEQ spokesperson said the agency cannot comment on pending litigation.

Some of the Rio Grande Valley groups are also involved in a lawsuit against the Federal Aviation Administration for allegedly failing to conduct an environmental review of SpaceX’s rocket test launch in April. The case remains pending in federal court.

They also sued the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department for agreeing to a land exchange that would give 43 acres of Boca Chica State Park to SpaceX in exchange for 477 acres adjacent to Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge. SpaceX canceled the deal in November.

Reporting in the Rio Grande Valley is supported in part by the Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc.

NASA’s 2 stuck astronauts face more time in space with return delayed until at least late March

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NASA’s 2 stuck astronauts face more time in space with return delayed until at least late March

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA’s two stuck astronauts just got their space mission extended again. That means they won’t be back on Earth until spring, 10 months after rocketing into orbit on Boeing’s Starliner capsule. 

NASA announced the latest delay in Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams’ homecoming on Tuesday. 

The two test pilots planned on being away just a week or so when they blasted off June 5 on Boeing’s first astronaut flight to the International Space Station. Their mission grew from eight days to eight months after NASA decided to send the company’s problem-plagued Starliner capsule back empty in September. 

Now the pair won’t return until the end of March or even April because of a delay in launching their replacements, according to NASA. 

A fresh crew needs to launch before Wilmore and Williams can return and the next mission has been bumped more than a month, according to the space agency. 

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NASA’s next crew of four was supposed to launch in February, followed by Wilmore and Williams’ return home by the end of that month alongside two other astronauts. But SpaceX needs more time to prepare the brand new capsule for liftoff. That launch is now scheduled for no earlier than late March.

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NASA said it considered using a different SpaceX capsule to fly up the replacement crew in order to keep the flights on schedule. But it decided the best option was to wait for the new capsule to transport the next crew. 

NASA prefers to have overlapping crews at the space station for a smoother transition, according to officials.

Most space station missions last six months, with a few reaching a full year.

¡Que Onda! Magazine Houston – edición 1314

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¡Que Onda! Magazine Houston – edición 1314

A Free Cancer Vaccine Developed By Russia

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A Free Cancer Vaccine Developed By Russia

Earlier this summer, Russian Health Minister Mikhail Murashko clued in a Russian news agency that the first results of a preclinical study of an anti-cancer vaccine would be released late 2024, and those results came back with a positive result. The vaccine was developed as a whole by numerous teams of scientists that represented the Gamaleya National Research Center of Epidemiology and Microbiology, Blokhin Cancer Research Center, and Hertsen Moscow Oncology Research Institute. 

Alexander Gintsburg, director of the Gamaleya National Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology exemplified the utilization of AI in advancing and being the catalyst in the vaccine production. Neural network computations powered by artificial intelligence consolidated the necessary time needed into under an hour in creating personalized cancer vaccines.

“Now it takes quite long to build personalized vaccines because computing how a vaccine, or customized mRNA, should look like uses matrix methods, in mathematical terms. We have involved the Ivannikov Institute which will rely on AI in doing this math, namely neural network computing where these procedures should take about half an hour to an hour,” Gintsburg stated.

Russia is not the solo ship in this avenue developing a vaccine for cancer, there are also talks of companies such as Merck, BioNTech, CureVac, and Moderna who are also in the field developing a successful vaccine. Leveraging AI and pre-clinical success, the mRNA cancer vaccine is a success in combating and pacifying tumors and metastases, the rapid spread of cancer cells in the cuerpo. 

Of course there is skepticism about the success of the vaccine, skeptic scientists such as Professor Kingston Mills, a distinguished immunologist at Trinity College Dublin, Ireland who mentions, “There’s nothing in scientific journals that I can see about it. That’s where you usually would start reading, as a scientist, about a breakthrough. I don’t see any paper about this, so I have nothing to go on in terms of what the science is.”

Mills also critiqued the development, with his sceptic with good reason comments stating,

“”I think what doesn’t make sense is a vaccine for cancer—as we all know there are multiple cancers,” examines Mills. “So, is this a universal vaccine for all cancers? I’d be very skeptical of that. I think it couldn’t be. I don’t think even the Russians would claim that they have a vaccine to treat all cancers.”
With good reason, Mills questions, 

“What is the cancer? What is the antigen? Where is the clinical trial data? These are all unanswered questions, and we haven’t seen any of this data to make a proper assessment of it.”

This miracle will be made available to patients free of cost by 2025, now whether citizens of our great country will be eligible to receive this vaccine, is obviously still in question or discussion one should presume.

Houston City Council might name IAH’s Terminal E after the late U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee

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Houston City Council might name IAH’s Terminal E after the late U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee

City Council on Wednesday unanimously approved a resolution to rename a terminal at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in honor of the late U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee.

The late congresswoman, who died in July from pancreatic cancer after representing the 18th Congressional District for almost 30 years, was a frequent flyer between Houston and Washington, D.C., where was remembered as a “fierce advocate” for her adopted city, helping secure millions dollars in federal funds for the airport. 

The resolution kicks off the official renaming process, which next will be considered by the Houston Airport System before returning for City Council committee discussion, public comment and a final vote. 

U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee greets attendees before a forum hosted by the Transportation Advocacy Group – Houston at The Royal Sonesta Houston Galleria, Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2023, in Houston. (Houston landing file photo / Antranik Tavitian)

“Naming Terminal E after (Jackson Lee) is not just a tribute to her work on the federal level but the service she gave to the city and its people,” said District F Councilmember Tiffany Thomas, reading a statement from Jackson Lee’s daughter who could not attend the meeting. Erica Lee Carter won a special election in November to finish her mother’s final term and thanked the council for supporting the proposal.

District J Councilmember Edward Pollard, one of the eight council members to sponsor the resolution under Proposition A, pushed to have Wednesday’s vote serve as final approval. 

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Because the council held availability for public comment Tuesday before the unanimous vote Wednesday, Pollard said the proposal should not have to be further considered. 

The renaming will “keep her legacy alive in a significant way,” Pollard said.

City Attorney, Arturo Michel said he did not know when to expect a response from the airport system, but said the proposal had to go through the entire administrative process.

After weeks of uncertainty, Pinellas County approves Rays deal funding

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After weeks of uncertainty, Pinellas County approves Rays deal funding

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — After a nearly two-month delay, the Pinellas County Commission voted Tuesday in favor of its share of financing for a new $1.3 billion Tampa Bay Rays ballpark, part of a plan to keep the team in St. Petersburg for another 30 years.

The overall plan, with its slogan “Here To Stay,” was approved by the county commission and city of St. Petersburg officials this summer, but votes on the funding for the deal have proven more contentious and were delayed.

Earlier this month, the St. Petersburg City Council voted to approve its share of the bonds necessary to build the new 30,000-seat ballpark. The county vote Tuesday was 5-2 for bonds that would be funded by tourist or “bed” taxes that cannot be spent on things such as hurricane recovery.

Under the agreement, the city and county would put up about half the cost, with the Rays covering the rest, including any cost overruns.

“We’re upholding our part of the bargain,” City Council Chair Deborah Figgs-Sanders said at a meeting earlier this month. “We said we were going to do this. We’re doing it. Now what you got?”

The county’s share of bond financing approved Tuesday is about $312.5 million. Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred met recently with several skeptical commissioners to stress the project’s importance and the league’s desire to keep a team in the Tampa Bay region.

“He is committed to this market. Rob Manfred is the reason I am voting yes on this today,” said Pinellas County Commissioner Chris Latvala.

The proposal caps years of uncertainty about the Rays’ future, including possible moves across the bay to Tampa, or to Nashville, Tennessee, or even to split home games between St. Petersburg and Montreal, an idea Major League Baseball rejected.

Under the stadium deal, the Rays commit to remain in St. Petersburg for another 30 years. But the Rays will play this season in Tampa at the New York Yankees’ spring training site, Steinbrenner Field, because of hurricane damage to Tropicana Field.

The Rays say costs of the new ballpark will inevitably rise because its planned opening will be delayed at least a year, from 2028 to 2029. It’s not clear what those extra costs will be, but cost overruns are the responsibility of the Rays under the agreement.

Matt Silverman, co-president of the Rays, said in a statement after the county vote that the team “cannot absorb this increase alone” and that further negotiations are likely.

“When the county and city wish to engage, we remain ready to solve this funding gap together,” Silverman said.

The proposed stadium is a signature piece of a broader $6.5 billion revitalization project known as the Historic Gas Plant District, which refers to a predominantly Black neighborhood that was forced out by construction of the Trop and an interstate highway spur.

Supporters say the development would transform an 86-acre (34-hectare) tract in the city’s downtown, with plans for a Black history museum, affordable housing, entertainment venues, plus office and retail space — and the promise of thousands of jobs.

“This is much, much bigger than a stadium,” Pinellas County Commission Chair Kathleen Peters said at a November meeting. “It’s about the investment we can make and the return on that investment that can guarantee we can keep our taxes low.”

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