East End Stories

On November 13, Houston City Council approved $24 million in federal funding to develop a new high-tech maker hub in East End Houston. The long-awaited project will be a hub for education, job training and manufacturing opportunities aimed at supporting and scaling small batch manufacturing in Houston's historic East End community.

Beginning in November, Navarro Middle School will begin hosting a twice-a-month school market program on the first and third Tuesday of each month. The Leading Leopard Market, backed by the Houston Food Bank, will be open from 4pm to 7pm. Community members will also be able to visit the market on non-distribution days in the event of an emergency.

The City of Houston recently announced that the Valero Energy Foundation has committed over $600,000 in grants and in-kind services to be a founding member of the 50/50 Park Partners initiative, a public-private partnership of the Office of the Mayor, Houston Parks and Recreation Department (HPARD), Houston Parks Board, and the Greater Houston Partnership. Hartman Park, which serves the Manchester community in Houston's East End, is a key community gathering place. Valero, as part of an ongoing assessment of needs in the area, has been working with the City to develop a plan to completely replace park equipment, and add additional trees to the park. In addition to the financial support, Valero is also committing to additional park improvements through volunteer resources and in-kind support.