HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — One of Houston’s more glitzy shopping centers will soon have more police presence after a public safety contract between the Precinct 1 Constable’s Office and Fertitta Entertainment was approved.
The River Oaks District will now have nine Harris County Precinct 1 deputies, fully dedicated to patrolling the shopping area alongside private security and HPD.
The contract between the constables and Fertitta Entertainment, which owns the district, was unanimously approved by Harris County Commissioners. The vote was only a formality because commissioners have no authority over whether it moves forward.
“That was the question I was asking. Why is this even on the agenda? Why am I even voting for this, but it’s just simply because of the positions being asked for?” Commissioner Adrian Garcia said.
Commissioner Garcia points out that the contract isn’t requesting nine existing deputies, but rather nine new positions to be created to meet the contract’s needs.
The contract will run from July 25 through September of this year and says Fertitta Entertainment will cover 100% of the $227,000 price tag. But Garcia warns that it is misleading, because if the contract isn’t renewed, he believes taxpayers will be on the hook for nine new deputy salaries and the costs associated with that.
“If this contract is not renewed when we believe it is supposed to be, then the residents of Harris County have just been taken advantage of for the cost of this contract, because now we will have to absorb it,” Garcia said.
If the contract isn’t renewed, the positions can’t easily be cut either, according to Garcia. A bill passed in 2021 says that in counties with populations over one million, there cannot be a cut in law enforcement funding or positions without county-wide voter approval.
One public commenter also expressed concern that hidden fees could still impact taxpayers in other ways.
“County deputies are not mall cops. They carry public authority; if something goes wrong, Harris County may be pulled into a lawsuit. County lawyers and public resources may be used to defend the case,” public commenter Hai Bui said.
Garcia said commissioners can’t properly plan a budget when they don’t have a handle on how or when tax dollars are being invested.
ABC13 reached out to Precinct One’s office, which reissued a statement it provided last week, calling the contract “nothing new” and saying the department has many other contracts in different communities.
Executive Director of Security and Public Safety for Fertitta Entertainment, Josh Barry, provided that read in part:
“The state of Texas has enacted legislation authorizing a Harris County Constable program whereby private businesses may contract with a Constable’s office to provide security for the general public while visiting their venue. Based on the quality of service constables have routinely provided at NRG Stadium and other high- profile locations under the same Harris County Constable program and given the upcoming World Cup, influx of tourists and the high- profile nature of River Oaks District, we decided to elevate our security at River Oaks District by using the Harris County Constable program, not as a replacement for our current service, but rather as complementary deployment layered on top of our private security operations. In addition, unlike a lot of neighborhood communities or other participating businesses, we did not seek any discount for their services; rather, our contracted cost is at 100% of the standard rate.”
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Lileana Pearson
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