Houston Council Candidate Melissa Noriega Has Willingness To Listen & Capacity For Imagination

Houston City Council Candidate Melissa Noriega offers the prospect of real change for Houston. Ms. Noriega is someone willing to listen and someone with a genuine capacity for imagination.

Given the huge problems Houston has and given the failure of both Democrats and Republicans over the years to address these problems, this capacity for imagination is the greatest strength Ms. Noriega can offer our city.

I’ve written two blog posts suggesting a measure of hesitancy over Ms. Noriega’s candidacy. I was put off by the lack of specifics on her web page—Which is for most people the most accessible way to learn about her— and I have a longstanding disappointment with the silence of many Houston City Hall Democrats over the borderline third-world conditions we have here in Houston.

At the suggestion of the blogger who writes Greg’s Opinion, I called Ms. Noriega to get what I was told would be a more accurate picture of who she really was.

Ms. Noriega and I spoke for nearly half-an-hour. She listened to me and I listened to her. After speaking to her, I believe Ms. Noriega has the potential to be a leader on council and in Houston. Ms. Noriega and I have also had an e-mail exchange since then and again she was gracious and open-minded.

I believe Ms. Noriega has the ability to see that as an elected official, she has the prerogative to define her office as she sees fit in order to help her constituents. Political office is at heart an act of imagination. I believe she will give serious thought to creative solutions to tough problems and that she will speak on issues others leave alone.

It is good that Ms. Noriega is the strong favorite to win the Houston City Council run-off election next month and I look forward to her service on council.