[Press Conference: "HFD Station 101 Ribbon Cutting"]
[00:00:18]
I WAS HERE DURING THE KINGWOOD FLOODS.
APRIL CAME TO THIS STATION AND COULD NOT BELIEVE THE LIVING CONDITIONS OF OUR FIRST RESPONDERS, THE PEOPLE THAT WERE JUST UP THE ROAD SAVING LIVES.
I CAME BACK AND THEIR HOUSING HAD MOLD, HAD HOLES IN THE FLOOR, THE CEILINGS, AND I KNEW SOMETHING WAS CERTAINLY BROKEN.
SO PUTTING A TEAM TOGETHER, THE FIRE DEPARTMENT, TWO OF THE BEST CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS THAT HAVE BEEN ELECTED IN RECENT YEARS, AND WE DECIDED WE WOULD DO BETTER.
SO THIS IS, THIS IS THE RIBBON CUTTING OF A FACILITY THAT FIREFIGHTERS CAN LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING OUT OF.
THEY'RE STATIONED THEIR HOUSING.
THEY'VE GOT THE GREAT DIRECTION COMING FROM OUR CHIEF.
I'M JUST EXCITED TO BE HERE TODAY.
AND I WANTED TO COME FROM ACROSS HOUSTON TO GET HERE IN KINGWOOD TO LET EVERYONE KNOW THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING.
KINGWOOD HASS BEEN IGNORED FOR YEARS AND YEARS.
THESE FACILITIES, THIS HOUSING, WHICH WAS FOR A VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT IN 1997 HAS NOT BEEN TOUCHED.
THE THE UPGRADE, THANK YOU TO CJ AND THE GENERAL SERVICES, BUT ALSO NOT ONLY WE HAVE BETTER HOUSING FACILITIES, WE GOT BETTER MORALE.
UH, THE FIREFIGHTERS KNOW WE CARE.
THANK YOU TO THE RANK AND FILE AND THE LEADERSHIP, THE UNION.
THIS IS WHAT IT'S SUPPOSED, THIS IS THE WAY IT'S SUPPOSED TO WORK.
WE DON'T WAIT TILL THERE'S A TRAGEDY TO THANK OUR FIREFIGHTERS.
WE DO IT ON A DAILY BASIS BECAUSE THEY HAVE OUR BACKS COVERED.
SO WITH THAT SAID, I THINK I'M SUPPOSED TO YIELD TO OUR CHIEF.
AND UH, MAN, I'M GLAD YOU'RE THE POLICE.
I'M GLAD THE FIRE CHIEF
CAN I GET A SECOND ON THAT? AN AMEN.
FIRST OF ALL, I WANT TO THANK THE FIREFIGHTERS FOR WHAT THEY DO EACH AND EVERY DAY, EVERY RANK AND FOUL.
YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS THAT WHEN I WAS BLESSED TO BE APPOINTED HERE, THE MAYOR WAS VERY CLEAR ALONG WITH MARTY LANGTON, WE TAKE CARE OF OUR OWN.
THE TOP THREE PRIORITIES WE HAVE IS STAFFING STATIONS AND APPARATUS IS, AND WHEN THE MAYOR MADE IT VERY CLEAR, ALONG WITH COUNCILMAN THE COUNCIL MEMBERS, FLICKINGER AND CARTER, YOU KNOW, JUST AS AN EXAMPLE, THIS BUILDING HADN'T BEEN TOUCHED IN 27 YEARS.
AND I REMEMBER THAT DAY AND, AND, AND, AND THANK YOU CJ FROM, UH, MESSIAH, FROM GSD.
SO NOW WE HAVE, THIS IS A NEW OPPORTUNITY, A NEW BEGINNING FOR US.
SO I WANT TO THANK EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU, MAYOR, THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT TO THE MEMBERS OUT THERE.
THANK YOU FOR WHAT YOU DO EACH AND EVERY DAY.
AND AS WE ALWAYS SAY, WE GOT YOU.
AND I'LL BE HONEST, UH, I DON'T KNOW.
THERE'S NO PECKING ORDER IN OUR, IN OUR SHOP, UH,
I GUESS WE, WE WILL STILL REPRESENT OUR, OUR LADY FOLKS AND OUR LEADERS IF YOU'LL COME FORWARD.
UM, I GOT INTRODUCED TO KINGWOOD THROUGH THESE TWO OUTSTANDING PUBLIC SERVANTS.
THEY REALLY LOOK OUT FOR KINGWOOD AND, UM, SHOWED ME AROUND, SHOWED THE NEEDS OF KINGWOOD.
AND LIKE I SAID, I'M GO, WE'RE JUST GETTING STARTED.
UH, COUNCILMAN CARTER, LET ME RECOGNIZE YOU.
WELL, THANK YOU MAYOR, AND THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE.
I, I CAN TELL YOU, BEING A LONG, LONGTIME MEMBER OF THIS COMMUNITY, UH, WE ARE SO GRATEFUL FOR YOUR WORK AND FOR YOUR FOCUS ON WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE, NOT ONLY IN OUR COMMUNITY, BUT IN THE ENTIRE CITY.
THANK I, YOU KNOW, ALWAYS A HEARTFELT THANKS TO THE FIREFIGHTERS, THE MEN AND THE WOMEN WHO ARE OUT THERE SERVING ON THE FRONT LINES.
AND I ALWAYS SAY, WE HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF THOSE WHO TAKE CARE OF US.
I HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO TAKE A LOOK IN THERE AND I'M LIKE, WOW.
IT'S LIKE, COMPARED TO WHAT IT WAS, IT'S THE TAJ MAHAL.
AND I KNOW THIS IS THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG, AND I APPRECIATE YOU MAYOR, FOR GETTING THIS GOING.
AND COUNCIL MEMBER FLICKINGER, THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU DO FOR OUR COMMUNITY.
YEAH, FRED ER, AN OUTSTANDING COUNCIL MEMBER, HAS SPREAD SO THIN.
I WAS AROUND AND WATCHED THE GERRYMANDERING WHERE THEY TRIED TO STRETCH HIS POSITION BETWEEN HERE AND CLEAR LAKE, WHICH MEANS YOU'VE GOTTA HAVE A DEDICATED COUNCIL MEMBER TO COVER ALL THE TERRITORY.
AND, UH, THANK YOU FOR BRINGING US INTO KINGWOOD AND THE JOB YOU'RE DOING.
[00:05:01]
OF THIS HOUSE, UH, YEAR AND A HALF AGO, AND WAS SHOCKED IT JUST HOW BAD IT WAS.UH, EVERYBODY I'VE SPOKEN TO IN KINGWOOD WAS SHOCKED AS WELL.
WOULDN'T HAVE THOUGHT THAT IT'D BEEN LIKE THIS.
SO GETTING THIS NEW BUILDING OUT HERE IS REALLY GOOD THING.
I MEAN, AT THE TIME, A YEAR AND A HALF AGO, OBVIOUSLY THE MAYOR THEN AND THE UNION WERE AT AN IMPASSE ON THE CONTRACT.
BUT YOU CAN EXPECT PEOPLE TO COME TO WORK IN THE CONDITIONS THAT THEY WERE THERE.
AND WE'RE GETTING SOMETHING DONE ON THIS NOW, UH, AND OBVIOUSLY THIS ISN'T THE FINAL SOLUTION.
WE'RE ACTUALLY LOOKING AT BUILDING ANOTHER STATION OUT HERE.
UM, HAD SOME ISSUES PROCURING A PIECE OF PROPERTY, UH, THAT ACTUALLY WORKS, WHAT THE FIRE DEPARTMENT NEEDS.
AND, UH, HOPEFULLY LONG BEFORE THIS ONE GETS WORN OUT, WE'LL HAVE THAT NEW FIRE STATION AND EVERYBODY WILL REALLY BE HAPPY.
COUNCIL MEMBER MENTIONED A, A DISPUTE BETWEEN THE PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATION AND, AND THE FIRE DEPARTMENT.
UH, OBVIOUSLY THOSE CONDITIONS DON'T EXIST.
AND, UH, THANK YOU MARTY, FOR YOUR LEADERSHIP AND I WILL YIELD TO YOU.
BUT THE, THE REAL GREAT EXPERIENCE IN CITY HALL RIGHT NOW IS THERE'S NOT TEAMS, NOT THIS TEAM, NOT THAT TEAM.
I AM A STRONG BELIEVER WE'RE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER AND THERE'S TIME TO POLITIC AND THERE'S TIME TO HAVE DISPUTES.
BUT WHEN IT GETS DOWN TO GOVERN THE CITY, WE'RE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER.
UH, TODAY IS A GOOD DAY FOR KINGWOOD.
IT'S A GOOD DAY FOR KINGWOOD RESIDENTS.
UH, IT'S A GOOD DAY FOR HOUSTON LEADERSHIP FOR THE MEN AND WOMEN ON THE GROUND THAT ARE SERVING THIS CITY EVERY DAY SO SELFLESSLY.
UH, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT COUNCIL MEMBER CARTER MENTIONED WHILE SHE WAS LOOKING AT THE FACILITY IS THIS IS A BIG DEAL, BUT IT SHOULDN'T BE A BIG DEAL.
AND THAT'S WHAT THE MEN AND WOMEN OF THE HOUSTON FIRE DEPARTMENT HAVE HAD TO DEAL WITH FOR SO LONG.
AND THE CREDIT GOES TO MAYOR WHITMEYER, HIS TEAM, THE COUNCIL MEMBERS, THE FIRE CHIEF, BECAUSE THEY'VE RECOGNIZED THAT THERE IS A PROBLEM.
YOU CANNOT ASK MEN AND WOMEN TO PUT THEIR LIVES ON THE LINE AND NOT TAKE CARE OF THEIR BASIC CONDITIONS.
AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I'VE ADVOCATED FOR, FOR SO LONG THROUGH THE MEDIA, AND THE MEDIA IS WELL AWARE OF THE CONDITIONS OF THE FIRE DEPARTMENT PRIOR TO MAYOR WHITMEYER GETTING HERE, IS THAT IF THERE'S A PROBLEM, WE HAVE TO SOLVE IT.
IGNORING A PROBLEM ONLY GETS WORSE.
SO AS THE COUNCIL MEMBERS AND THE MAYOR HAVE STATED, THIS IS JUST THE FIRST STEP.
WE LOOK FORWARD TO HAVING AN HONEST DIALOGUE WITH THE CITIZENS ABOUT GETTING THE RESOURCES THAT THE CITIZENS OF KINGWOOD, BUT ALSO THE CITIZENS OF HOUSTON DESERVE.
AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, TO TAKE CARE OF THE WELLBEING OF OUR GREATEST ASSET, WHICH IS THE MEN AND WOMEN ON THE STREETS EVERY DAY, RESPONDING TO PEOPLE ON THEIR WORST DAY AS WE JUST SAW ONE GO BY.
SO I WANT TO TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO SHOW YOU AND TO TELL ALL OF HOUSTON, THIS IS WHAT LEADERSHIP AND COLLABORATION LOOKS LIKE.
THIS IS WHAT WE SHOULD BE DOING TO SOLVE HOUSTON'S PROBLEMS. THANK YOU, MAYOR.
ANY QUESTIONS FROM OUR FRIENDS IN THE PRESS? IF NOT, I THINK WE'RE READY TO GO TO WORK.
SO NEXT, WHAT WE'LL DO IS WE'LL DO THE, UH, INSTEAD OF A, SORRY, INSTEAD OF A RIBBON CUTTING, IT'S GONNA BE A HOSE UNCOUPLING.
SO, UH, CHIEF MUNOZ WILL BE ON THE LEFT SIDE.
MAYOR, IF YOU'LL BE ON THE RIGHT SIDE THERE.
EVERYBODY READY ON THIS SIDE? I WAS LIKE, CAME UP WITH THAT.