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Profile: Tony Emmanuel

CIty code enforcement officer Tony Emmanuel
 

City code enforcement officers hunt down code violations that blight Houston, like abandoned cars, illegal dumping and overgrown vacant lots.

On his current special project, Tony Emmanuel works with probationers who have been sentenced to community service to paint over graffiti tainting Houston neighborhoods. As part of their rehabilitation, they use recycled paint to cover over gang-related "tags."

"I take pride in helping people and making Houston a safer place to live," says Emmanuel. "But we can’t keep up with the need. It seems as fast as our paint dries, new markings appear."

Emmanuel and other city employees have proposed creating a Community Action Pool, where city employees could donate some of their vacation time, matched by additional paid-time off granted by the city, to help tackle Houston's nagging problems, like graffiti.

"Houston's front-line city employees know how to fix Houston's problems," said Emmanuel. "This would give them the opportunity."