Rebecca Schuetz

Houston has just started enforcing a decade-old ban on feeding the homeless. A group of volunteers who have been providing free meals in front of the downtown library for two decades has racked up 40 tickets seeking over $10k in fines. houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-t…

BREAKING: @houmayor @whitmire_john announces city will be asking @HUDgov to put $50M of its $315M in disaster recovery dollars toward housing after residents and advocates expressed concerns about an initial $0 allocation. houstonchronicle.com/politics/houst… via @HoustonChron

Hurricane season is just around the corner, and it’s never too soon to start preparing. Sign up for our Texas Hurricane [Simplified] texting course, where reporter @RASchuetz will walk you through the steps and get you ready. trib.al/58XfBnT

🚨 If you want to join the waiting list for a specific affordable property, the Houston Housing Authority has them open until Friday! 🚨 And if you're waiting for a Housing Choice Voucher, you need to act to save your spot or you'll be kicked off the list houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-t…

NEW: Houston is one of the few Texas metros that hasn't opened warming centers during this recent cold snap. ❄️ The reason? Houston has the most stringent warming facility opening threshold of all the major cities. houstonchronicle.com/politics/houst… @HoustonChron

Houston Housing Authority employees were kicking people out of the voucher program without sending letters that would inform them of the decision, the reason why and what they could do if they disagreed, an investigation found: houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-t…

Then NestQuest received a letter from the Houston Housing Authority that threatened its existence. @RASchuetz obtained exclusive details about the death of this popular program. Her story is worth your time: houstonchronicle.com/projects/2024/… #hounews #houston

Highly recommend this essay by a journalist who lost his home in 2023: esquire.com/news-politics/…

One response to Houston's new homelessness strategy. The mayor's $70M/yr plan focuses on removing those without homes from public spaces. The funding+details are still in the works -- while he said everyone would have a safe place to stay, that would involve more shelters+housing

Mayor Whitmire said he will make sure everyone has a place to stay off the street so that they are not in public spaces. His press conference was a vision statement, a fundraising pitch and a call for legislation that could make it easier to commit the mentally ill living outside

Change is being driven by two things. Federal COVID-related funds have dried up. And Houstonians are frustrated by individuals that appear to be homeless in public spaces.

Houston's ability to bring its annual homelessness count down at a time when it has soared in other cities has brought officials from around the country to study its success. That strategy is now changing. Here's how. houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-t…

From @RASchuetz: Houston will not build a "city-sponsored encampment" as suggested by Mayor Whitmire. "When the mayor got frustrated last week, he spoke about something like that,” housing director Mike Nichols said. “That’s not where we’re going.” houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-t…

The embattled president of the Houston Housing Authority, David A. Northern, Sr., has resigned from his position during an investigation into whether he complied with his contractual and fiduciary duties. houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-t…

When I was speaking to Kelly Courts residents about how the Houston Housing Authority's multi-million-dollar AC installation panned out, pretty much everyone I spoke to had another complaint: the rats. Multiple people said they'd actually been bitten. houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-t…

Your experience in courts that handle evictions and credit-card debt can vary dramatically in Harris County, depending on where you live. Some courts have crushing caseloads. Others have no lines at all. “It’s such a vast disparity. It’s mind-boggling.” houstonchronicle.com/projects/2024/…

The Houston Housing Authority has fallen victim to a ransomware attack, according to the agency: houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-t…

The last time Harris County precincts were drawn was 1973. Are they out of date? Several justices of the peace think so. @RASchuetz, @mmorris011 and @carolineghisolf explain. houstonchronicle.com/projects/2024/…

Federal agents executed a search warrant this week at a property owned by the Houston Housing Authority and took soil samples near a new housing complex. What led up to the investigation? Read our timeline: houstonchronicle.com/projects/2024/… via @RebekahFWard and @RASchuetz #hounews

@ThomasDTiffany We've included developments that have been awarded either 9% or 4% low-income housing tax credits! If there are any that we missed, please let us know.

@RASchuetz Are you including the developments that come online this year? (9%, 4%)?

Looking for affordable housing in Houston? @ameliawinger and I did our best to pull together different affordable housing projects in Houston in an easy-to-search map: houstonchronicle.com/projects/2024/…

@RebekahFWard @Thelastlomax The EPA and HUD offices of inspector general and FBI are among those helping with the investigation. For more on how we got here, see here: houstonchronicle.com/projects/2024/…

Crazy timing: Now federal agents are executing a warrant on the Houston Housing Authority property. They've been collecting soil samples from the area north of the Pointe at Bayou Bend (800 Middle). w/@RebekahFWard and @Thelastlomax: houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-t…