Yesterday Texas Watchdog released 99 pages of emails and correspondence it received as the result of a public information request it sent to the mayor’s office in January. The collection documents communications sent and received by Mayor White concerning Discovery Green, and includes messages from and to Marvy Finger, developer of the adjacent One Park Place apartment tower.
One tidbit from that stash was yesterday’s revelation that the mayor had apparently rejected a tax abatement request from Finger Properties — and that the letter he sent out promoting the Downtown residential development was offered in part as consolation for that refusal.
Texas Watchdog is asking for help from its readers in combing the documents for other interesting leads. “If you see anything interesting that you think deserves more digging, let us know,” a reporter for the independent nonpartisan organization writes.
If you enjoy snooping through other people’s emails and memos, we hope you’ll lend Texas Watchdog a hand with that effort. But if you do, please keep Swamplot in mind. Swamplot has no use for stories that “deserve more digging,” because this website isn’t properly armed with shovels. But we do love hearing entertaining details that help expose the machinations behind Houston real estate developments.
The documents are divided into five sections, all linked at the bottom of this Texas Watchdog story. If you find any particular goodies in there that you think other Swamplot readers would enjoy reading, please send us a note with the relevant quotes. Also: please tell us where you found them, and why you think they’re noteworthy.
- ‘Images are precious’ and other tidbits from reams of Mayor Bill White’s e-mails with downtown developer [Texas Watchdog]
- Take a gander at Mayor Bill White’s e-mails; if you see anything that deserves looking into further, e-mail us [Texas Watchdog]
- One Park Place Rejection Letter [Swamplot]
- Maybe He Just Liked the Party Hat on Top? [Swamplot]
Photo: Serendipity Photography LLC
