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HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
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WHEREAS, The Denver Harbor neighborhood, in northeast |
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Houston, is one of the oldest communities in the Bayou City; and |
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WHEREAS, Bounded on the north by Wallisville Road, on the |
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west by the Houston Belt and Terminal Railroad, on the south by the |
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Southern Pacific Railroad, and on the east by the Port Authority |
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Railroad, the area was first settled in the 1890s; platting in 1911 |
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and again in 1913 created what were originally four distinct |
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subdivisions: Denver, Harbor, Harbordale, and Liberty Heights; and |
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WHEREAS, Many early residents were Texans who had left |
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hardscrabble farms for the city in hopes of making a better life for |
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themselves and their families; these citizens found work on the |
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railroads and at various industrial companies that sprang up along |
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the Houston Ship Channel; and |
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WHEREAS, Those who put down roots in Denver Harbor found it a |
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good place to raise a family; among the neighborhood's amenities |
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were Charles Eliot Elementary School, churches, drug stores, and |
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the Globe Theater, where children could watch the latest Hollywood |
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westerns for the sum of nine cents; and |
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WHEREAS, The Great Depression hit Denver Harbor hard, and |
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many families in the neighborhood lost their homes; as the 1930s |
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drew to an end, however, a curious occurrence did much to lift the |
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spirits of the beleaguered community: on June 1, 1939, the morning |
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sun revealed the word "Podunk" emblazoned on the formerly blank |
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side of the local water tower; though the city tried repeatedly to |
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cover over the word, the name would always reappear within a few |
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days; and |
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WHEREAS, Inspired by the spunky defiance of the sign's |
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unknown painter, area residents soon began asserting their identity |
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as Podunkers, and the name was even adopted by a youth basketball |
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team, the Podunk Skunks; and |
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WHEREAS, Today, Denver Harbor reflects the ethnic diversity |
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of Houston itself, with Hispanics forming the core of its |
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population; the community is currently undergoing revitalization, |
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especially along Lyons Avenue, where a new fire station has opened |
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and a number of new businesses have set up shop; residents are also |
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served by four elementary schools, a middle school, and a private |
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school; and |
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WHEREAS, The story of this resilient neighborhood is told in |
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the book Where the Hell Is Podunk, Texas?, which won an honorable |
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mention at the 2006 Independent Publisher Book Awards; Dr. Jay |
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Grady, the volume's author, grew up in Denver Harbor; following the |
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publication of his historical account, a Podunk reunion brought |
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together many present and former residents aged 80 and older; and |
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WHEREAS, Notable Houstonians who have resided in Denver |
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Harbor include Richard Vara, Harris County justice of the peace, |
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Tina Reyes, member of the board of the Houston Independent School |
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District, Raul Martinez, the first Mexican American constable in |
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Harris County, and Elias C. "Ace" Martinez, the first Mexican |
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American firefighter in Houston; assigned to Station 27, in Denver |
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Harbor, Mr. Martinez spent 36 years with the department and |
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achieved the rank of sergeant before his retirement; in December |
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2005, the department dedicated Fire Engine No. 27 to his memory; |
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other prominent residents of the neighborhood have included the |
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late Joe E. Moreno, who represented District 143 in the Texas |
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Legislature, and his predecessors in that office, Ben T. Reyes, who |
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also served on the Houston City Council, and Al Luna; and |
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WHEREAS, The citizens of Denver Harbor take great pride in |
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the heritage of their community and in the unpretentious name that |
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earlier residents made their own; it is the wish of the |
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neighborhood, with the expressed support of the Denver Harbor Civic |
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Club and Bill White, mayor of Houston, that this community's |
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identification with that simple but enduring locale of the |
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imagination be appropriately recognized, and a declaration to that |
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effect is indeed appropriate; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the 80th Legislature of the State of Texas |
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hereby designate Denver Harbor, aka Podunk, as the official |
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Mythical Town of Texas. |