Houston mayor John Whitmire is pulling the plug on $2.6 million of funding that was approved to finish the Montrose bridge lights. The mayor wants to use the money for his new homelessness initiative, which starts with an annual cost of $70 million.
So where is the mayor going to get the rest of the money?
"I think there are a lot of areas in which the money can be asked or requested" said Charles Blain, president of Urban Reform here in Houston, "Now, if they come through that's a whole other story."
A story that is still missing a lot of details.
"Every entity in the city needs to kind of look to what they can be doing to address it" Blain told KTRH, "So, I'm hoping that this is a good start. My question remains though, we're starting with this $2.6 million and other funding from other areas, how much is this going to cost on an on-going basis?"
The mayor has yet to release the finalized plan for financing, but it's clear that more cuts are likely coming.
"If we do this, if this is a recurring expense that we're looking at every year, are they going to be committed to doing it every year?" noted Blain, "I think those are big questions to be asked, because we don't want to end up in the same situation that we find ourselves in today."
Unfortunately, Houston now has a homeless problem.