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Council votes down one-year lease extension for day-labor site; to revisit with data
Summary
Council rejected a one-year extension of the city day-labor site lease with Frank and Russell Denina. Councilmembers cited service costs, occasional public-safety calls and uncertainty about future need; several members recommended monitoring for six months and revisiting.
Tomball — The City Council on Feb. 17 voted against a proposed one-year lease extension with Frank and Russell Denina for a 3.5-acre parcel off Mechanic Street used as the city's day-labor site; the motion to extend failed.
City staff had proposed a one-year amendment that would cap the city’s annual payment at $7,000 to cover taxes; the 2024 tax total for the parcel was reported at $7,660, meaning the cap would not fully cover taxes. The proposed amendment shortened a previously typical two-year extension to a single year to allow near-term reassessment.
Public-safety staff described occasional incidents at the site but said it is not a major call-for-service location. Detective Bryce Smith of the Tomball Police Department told council the site has seen some drinking and isolated incidents over the past years but “we don't have a lot of calls for service over there.” He said the number of day laborers present on any given day varies by time and demand.
Why council declined the extension: Several council members said they were reluctant to continue paying city resources for a site with uncertain future demand and movable populations. Council members and staff noted the city provides porta‑potties, tables and cleanup responsibilities; police said the site has triggered periodic calls for service. Several members suggested a shorter monitoring period and returning to the council in six months with collected data on usage and calls before considering a new lease.
Next steps: Council members discussed options for monitoring and managing displacement if the lease is not renewed, including outreach to the parcel owner and tracking whether the day-labor population moves to other public locations. The staff motion to approve the one-year extension failed on the vote recorded in the meeting minutes; council indicated they will revisit the topic after a data-driven review period.
