I must say though that I'm a little concerned about the hype with respect to how great Texas is for these folks. Their experience isn't normal circumstances. The glee with regards to Texas' "hospitality" is setting expectations. The hurricane victims want to move there b/c they are getting taken care of. I'm afraid that won't / can't be a permanent thing. The ability to rely on others (government) to meet your basic needs is not a good basis for people's desire to move there.
But this isn't totally the government. There are hundreds of volunteers going and helping these people from all over the United States.
From doctors and architects to retirees and gang members, more than 150,000 Louisiana residents have landed on this city's doorstep. Some will be here for days and months, but many will simply stay.
They will be looking for jobs and apartments. They will put their children in schools. They will figure out how to navigate the city in a bus.
These are not just the poor, dazed people seen in pictures of the shelters — many of whom are finding family and moving out.
They are professionals searching for nice houses and leasing them for the entire school year, said Terry Cominsky with Karpas Properties, who has helped six such families in the past week.
None has a clue whether they will ultimately buy a home and stay here, she said. Dozens of important questions come first, like how to collect insurance money and what happens to the mortgage back home.
But they might stay. And the effect on Houston could be "profound," said Mayor Bill White, without offering specifics. Certainly the city's budget will go up, as will tax revenue. Which will rise higher is anyone's guess, he said.
Other changes are happening fast.
The 70,000-unit apartment glut is disappearing overnight. The Port of Houston is speeding up a dredging project because many weighted-down boats that normally offload in New Orleans first will dock here.
State professional boards are working with licensing issues for Louisiana doctors and nurses.
Eventually, someone will point out discreetly that most of our potential new residents vote Democratic.
As Houston City Council authorized spending up to $10 million for Katrina-related costs Monday, expecting it would be federally reimbursed, members posed questions and some concerns for the mayor.........................***
DG tell your fellow Californian about Texas hospitality.
There are some who are planning to stay. Certainly thousands can't continue to live in the shelters.