INSIDER
‘I will be issuing an executive order’: Gov. Abbott examines CenterPoint’s future in Texas after Beryl response
Read full article: ‘I will be issuing an executive order’: Gov. Abbott examines CenterPoint’s future in Texas after Beryl responseTexas Governor Greg Abbott did not pull any punches Sunday afternoon in going after CenterPoint for their failures in getting the lights back on for Houstonians as well as hundreds of thousands of others in the area.
Houston’s largest-ever naturalization ceremony swears in more than 3,300 new citizens
Read full article: Houston’s largest-ever naturalization ceremony swears in more than 3,300 new citizensOn July 10th at NRG Arena, 3,360 people from 121 countries were sworn in as new U.S. citizens. It was Houston's largest-ever naturalization ceremony and took place despite the massive heatwave and power outages affecting the region after Hurricane Beryl.
Debbie Allen and Blair Underwood in Houston for World AIDS Day event at NRG Arena
Read full article: Debbie Allen and Blair Underwood in Houston for World AIDS Day event at NRG ArenaEmmy, Grammy, and Golden Globe winning choreographer, director, and producer – Houston’s own, Debbie Allen will speak at the event, and AIDS Healthcare Foundation will present its Lifetime Achievement Award to Emmy Award winning actor and activist Blair Underwood.
From super-cute rabbits to super dogs -- At Houston Rodeo, these are the adorable, amazing events you really shouldn’t miss
Read full article: From super-cute rabbits to super dogs -- At Houston Rodeo, these are the adorable, amazing events you really shouldn’t missSome of the sweetest, strangest and wildest shows you can see during the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo -- and when and where to watch them.
‘Rodeo all day. Dance all night’: HLSR announces entertainment lineup for The Hideout presented by Jim Beam
Read full article: ‘Rodeo all day. Dance all night’: HLSR announces entertainment lineup for The Hideout presented by Jim BeamThe Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo™ has announced the live entertainment for The Hideout presented by Jim Beam.
Harris County jury selection to move from NRG back to newly renovated Jury Assembly Plaza downtown
Read full article: Harris County jury selection to move from NRG back to newly renovated Jury Assembly Plaza downtownFor the first time in the past two years, the Harris County jury selections process will be moving back to downtown Houston.
No decision made on Harris County jury selection amid lease with NRG Arena ending soon
Read full article: No decision made on Harris County jury selection amid lease with NRG Arena ending soonHarris County Commissioners met briefly during an executive session Tuesday to discuss possible future locations to hold jury selections but stopped short of deciding.
Commissioners grapple with potential pause in jury selection, case backlog
Read full article: Commissioners grapple with potential pause in jury selection, case backlogHarris County commissioners recently approved spending $3.8 million to extend a lease agreement with the Harris County Sports and Convention Corporation.
Astroworld Festival attendee on madness: ‘If you fall, you have split second to get up. Your chance of getting stomped on is very high’
Read full article: Astroworld Festival attendee on madness: ‘If you fall, you have split second to get up. Your chance of getting stomped on is very high’Two concertgoers who were directly in front of the concert stage explained to KPRC 2 Investigates' Mario Diaz what it was like from inside.
Concertgoers create ‘chaotic’ scene at NRG Arena after rapper Playboi Carti cancels Houston show
Read full article: Concertgoers create ‘chaotic’ scene at NRG Arena after rapper Playboi Carti cancels Houston showA mob of concertgoers created a “chaotic” scene at NRG Arena after a concert held by rapper Playboi Carti was quietly canceled.
A handful of battleground races in Texas remain unsettled days after Election Day
Read full article: A handful of battleground races in Texas remain unsettled days after Election DayIn Texas, Monday is the last day for counties to receive overseas and military mail-in ballots. Valenzuela and Van Duyne were competing to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Kenny Marchant, R-Coppell, in what national Democrats saw as one of their best pickup opportunities in Texas. 1 finisher, Van Duyne, has called on the current runner-up to accept defeat. Neither Decision Desk HQ, which is powering The Texas Tribune's results, nor the Associated Press have called the race for Van Duyne. “Once again, I will repeat, Beth Van Duyne will be the Congresswoman for Texas’ 24th District,” Van Duyne’s campaign manager, Donald Rickard, said in a statement Thursday.
Voters: Harris County setting example on what making voting accessible to everyone should look like
Read full article: Voters: Harris County setting example on what making voting accessible to everyone should look likeHOUSTON – Friday is the last day of early voting in Harris County. As of midnight, the county clerk tweeted that 1.3 million people in Harris County had cast their ballots early. Eight locations in Harris County will be open 24 hours, including at the Victory Worship Center in North Harris County, where the county clerk shared a video of people waiting in line at midnight. #HarrisVotes pic.twitter.com/xuGnZet1ou — Harris County Clerk (@HarrisVotes) October 30, 2020NRG Arena is also a 24-hour polling location, where there was a drive-in concert Thursday night. All polling locations in Harris County were open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Friday.
Lyft to offer free rides to NRG to drop off mail-in ballots
Read full article: Lyft to offer free rides to NRG to drop off mail-in ballotsHOUSTON – Ridesharing service Lyft is teaming up with the ‘More Than A Vote' Coalition to offer free rides to NRG to drop off mail-in ballots in response to Gov. In a tweet posted Oct. 6, Lyft riders in Harris County can get a free ride to NRG Arena using promo code HOUVOTE on their Lyft app to drop off their ballot. “Harris County, we see you, we got you,” The coalition said in the tweet. In Harris County, home to 2.4 million voters, Texas shut down 11 of 12 ballot drop off locations. Get a free @Lyft (up to $15) in Harris County to drop off your ballot at NRG Arena using code HOUVOTE.
‘This is intentional’: Harris County Clerk addresses Abbott’s order, calls it ‘haphazard’ and voter suppression
Read full article: ‘This is intentional’: Harris County Clerk addresses Abbott’s order, calls it ‘haphazard’ and voter suppressionHOUSTON – The Harris County Clerk, Chris Hollins expresses outrage at Gov. Greg Abbott’s order that limits the number of places voters can drop-off their mail-in ballots to one per county. According to the order, mail ballots can be dropped off in-person at only one place that is designated by each county’s early-voting clerk. For Harris County, that is NRG Arena. People can find voting locations in Harris County at Harrisvotes.com/locations.
LIVE: Harris County clerk provides update on election preparations
Read full article: LIVE: Harris County clerk provides update on election preparationsPublished: September 10, 2020, 7:57 am Updated: September 10, 2020, 8:27 amHOUSTON Harris County Clerk Chris Hollins is set to provide an update Thursday on preparations underway for the November election. Hollins is scheduled to speak at NRG Arena after giving the media a tour of the countys election headquarters. The tour is scheduled to begin at 8:30 a.m. Click2Houston.com plans to offer a livestream of Hollins' news conference when it begins. Election Day is Nov. 3. This story will be updated.
Here’s why Houston’s NRG Park will be a significant spot in 2020 November presidential election
Read full article: Here’s why Houston’s NRG Park will be a significant spot in 2020 November presidential electionHOUSTON – NRG Arena has been designated as the election headquarters for the Harris County Clerk’s Office for the upcoming 2020 presidential election, NRG Park officials announced Monday. In addition to in-person voting, NRG Park will also serve as a drive-thru voting location, something Hollins likens to pulling up at your favorite fast-food restaurant. In-person Election Day voting will be held Nov. 3 at NRG Arena Proper. “We are proud to provide this facility for Harris County voters to participate in one of the most important rights and responsibilities that we as citizens have,” Executive Director of the Harris County Sports and Convention Corporation Ryan Walsh said. NRG Park has pledged to maintain the highest standards of public safety and health for the community as proud participants of Houston Clean and ASM Global’s Venue Shield.
Harris County clerk encourages vote by mail, despite USPS slowdown
Read full article: Harris County clerk encourages vote by mail, despite USPS slowdownHOUSTON As lawmakers in Washington battle over the fate and funding of the United States Postal Service, Harris Countys head election official is trying to reassure voters their local post office is up to the challenge of handling mail-in ballots this fall. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called her members back into session from August recess to vote this weekend on a $25 billion boost to the USPS. Pelosi said cuts made by the Trump administration to the Postal Service, including the removal of sorting machines and mailboxes, are intentionally designed to negatively impact the use of vote-by-mail in November and disenfranchise voters. Hollins said due to the coronavirus pandemic he is expecting unprecedented use of mail-in ballots. Plans are already underway to move Harris Countys election headquarters to NRG Arena, which will also be used as a voting center for in-person and drive-thru voting.
Harris County continues to grapple with a huge backlog of criminal cases
Read full article: Harris County continues to grapple with a huge backlog of criminal casesHOUSTON As Harris County puts the final pieces in place to resume jury assembly and selection, the backlog of felony and misdemeanor cases continues to grow. When you cant have trials, everything else behind that backs up, said Harris County prosecutor JoAnne Musick. The Supreme Court of Texas halted all jury trials and jury selection because of the pandemic, and the court recently extended that order until September 1. The halt in trials is a large part of the reason the Harris County Jails population remains above 8,000 inmates. The Harris County Sheriffs Office even had to create a so-called Zoom Team to help keep cases moving through the courts.
What you need to know now that jury duty is set to resume in Harris County
Read full article: What you need to know now that jury duty is set to resume in Harris CountyHOUSTON The Harris County District Clerk announced Wednesday that it will resume sending out jury summons. Since the Texan Supreme Court will not be holding jury trials prior to August, the NRG Arena will be used for Grand Jury trial selection. Exceptions include calling for Grand Juries for five District Courts and for the Arkema trial, (which is) tentatively scheduled to resume at NRG Arena on July 13, according to the release. The district clerk anticipates sending enough summons to get 500 prospective jurors in order to narrow it down to 16 individuals needed for each of the five panels. For more information, you can visit the Harris County District Clerks Office website.
Harris County replaces unused NRG Arena tent hospital with new facility for potential COVID-19 surge
Read full article: Harris County replaces unused NRG Arena tent hospital with new facility for potential COVID-19 surgeHOUSTON – The controversial ‘Tent Hospital’ that was assembled, sat unused and then deconstructed, is being replaced with another facility inside NRG Arena. The price tag is to keep the makeshift 150-bed facility in a state of readiness, Hidalgo said. Air filtration in the section of NRG Arena, where the facility is located, has been upgraded to accommodate patients. Hidalgo said that the new facility is more cost-effective than the old temporary hospital and will be managed by Harris County instead of a third-party contractor. When I hear people talk about ‘in case there’s a second surge,’ last time I checked, we didn’t have the first surge,” KPRC2 Analyst Ed Emmett said.
Here’s Tuesday’s schedule at the Houston Rodeo
Read full article: Here’s Tuesday’s schedule at the Houston RodeoThe Houston Rodeo kicks off on Tuesday and there’s a full slate of things to do. Here’s a rundown:8 a.m.NCHA Cutting: $5,000 Novice Horse - NRG ArenaNCHA Cutting: $35,000 Non-Pro - NRG ArenaNCHA Cutting: $50,000 Amateur - NRG Arena10 a.m.Ranching & Wildlife Expo (closes at 7 p.m.) - NRG Center, East End 2nd Floor11 a.m.Family Entertainment (hourly, ends at 6 p.m.) - The JunctionThe Junction Carnival (closes at midnight) - The Junction1 p.m. Youth Cattle Show: American Aberdeen NRG Center – Main Arena (East Side)Youth Steer Show: Wagyu NRG Center – Main Arena (West Side)2:30 p.m.Open Cattle Show: American Red Brangus NRG Center – Main Arena (West Side)4 p.m.Live Music: Keith Hickle - Champion Wine Garden Carruth Plaza, Acoustic Stage4:30 p.m.Open Cattle Show: Red Angus NRG Center – Main Arena (East Side)5 p.m.Open Cattle Show: Hereford/Polled Hereford NRG Center – Main Arena (West Side)5:30 p.m.Cattle Sale: United Braford Breeders NRG Center – East Arena6:30 p.m.Live Music: Trent Cowie Band - Champion Wine Garden Carruth Plaza, Main Stage6:45 p.m.Super Series I Round 1, followed by Midland in concert - NRG Stadium10:15 p.m.Live Music: Josh Grider - The Hideout, NRG Park
Here are all of the dates you need to know for the 2020 Houston Rodeo
Read full article: Here are all of the dates you need to know for the 2020 Houston RodeoThese are all of the dates you need to know about for the 2020 Houston Rodeo. Cowboy Church NRG Center – Café on the ParkOpen Goat Show: Dairy - NRG Center, East Arena (South Side)Open Goat Show: Boer - NRG Center, East Arena (North Side)Youth Rabbit Show: Breeding - NRG Arena, Hall BContest: Intercollegiate Meat Judging Awards - NRG Arena, Rooms 2-3Contest: 4-H & FFA Meat Judging - Martin Preferred Foods9 a.m.Open Cattle Show: Limousin - NRG Center, Main ArenaContest: Agriculture Science Fair - NRG Center, Rooms 600-60210 a.m. Junior Lamb Show: Market - NRG Center, East Arena (East Side)Junior Goat Show: Market - NRG Center, East Arena (West Side)11 a.m.Family Entertainment (hourly, ends 6 p.m.) - The Junction1 p.m. Contest: Public Speaking, Preliminary Round - Michael E. Debakey High School9:30 a.m.Open Rabbit Show: Breeding - NRG Arena, Hall BOpen Rabbit Show: Results & Awards NRG Arena, Hall B10 a.m. Agricultural Mechanics: Career Fair - NRG Center, Rooms 201-203Agricultural Mechanics: Judging - NRG Center, East ArenaOpen Llama & Alpaca Show: Showmanship - NRG Arena, Hall ALlama & Alpaca Show: Halter - NRG Arena, Hall ADonkey & Mule Show: Trail, Ranch Riding & Western Performance - NRG Arena9 a.m.