Tenants searching for an apartment in New York City have long been forced to pay thousands of dollars to real estate brokers.

Thanksgiving hasn’t even passed, but the City of Houston is already excited to announce plans for its annual holiday tradition.

38-year-old Yesenia Mendez is charged with 1st degree arson in East End warehouse fire that killed one Houston firefighter.

38-year-old Yesenia Mendez is charged with 1st degree arson in East End warehouse fire that killed one Houston firefighter.

Concerned residents in Conroe are expected to speak at City Hall this afternoon to ask the city to move forward with a bid from animal welfare nonprofit, Texas Litter Control.

In the aftermath of Mayor John Whitmire calling out City Controller Chris Hollins over alleged “pay to play” conflicts for an upcoming conference, KPRC 2 is looking into how the City will hold its chief financial officer accountable.

City Controller, Chris Hollins is sharing his side of the story after Houston Mayor John Whitmire held a news conference Thursday morning calling out suspected “pay to pay” conflicts for an upcoming investors conference.

The news conference is expected to be held at 11 a.m. on Thursday, where Mayor Whitmire will address the allegations and his plan to ensure "transparency and accountability."

Paris is getting a colorful splash of Olympic creative spirit with nearly 30 vibrant street art pieces, popping up at bustling metro stations and airports and in front of city hall.

"To the residents of Houston, I leave with a full heart of gratitude for the memories and experiences we have shared," Peña wrote on social media. "It has been an honor and privilege, and I thank you for entrusting me with the responsibility of serving as your Fire Chief."

Houston area residents are remembering longtime U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee of Texas as an advocate for human rights and for her community.

Family, friends, and community members will gather for celebrations held in honor of Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee.

In a June 18 report, Mayor Whitmire told KPRC 2 Investigates Mario Diaz the Internal Investigation would be completed July 1. However, in a phone call this morning, the mayor said it would be "a few more days."

Same-sex spouses were typically younger and were more likely to be employed than those in opposite-sex marriages, although many of those differences disappeared after the legalization of gay marriage in 2015.

For the second time in three seasons Real Madrid has been celebrating a Champions League title with its fans on the streets of the Spanish capital.

New York City’s rat-hating mayor has once again been ticketed for a rat infestation at his Brooklyn property.

In Kennard, City Council members have been appointed after previous members retired or died.

Black immigrants have turned out in the hundreds across from a City Hall, drawing attention to racial inequities in the city’s shelter and immigrant support systems.

Representatives of two armed groups in Congo signed solemn pledges this week to both their violence-wracked country and the wider world: We will do better to respect and protect civilians.

Supervisors in San Francisco have formally apologized to African Americans and their descendants for the city’s role in perpetuating racism and discrimination.

Parisians have voted to muscle SUVs off the French capital’s streets by making them much more expensive to park starting next September.

Black lawmakers in California are proposing ways to remedy the long-lasting effects of slavery.

New York City’s mayor has vetoed bills aimed at banning solitary confinement in city jails and requiring more transparency in police encounters with civilians.

New York City is suing more than a dozen charter bus companies for their role in Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s operation to send tens of thousands of migrants to urban areas.

As the clock struck midnight, Houston ushered in both a new year and a new mayor.

The forecourt of Paris City Hall sparkles with activity this holiday season, including a Christmas market and huge signs advertising the 2024 Olympics.

Migrant families and their advocates marched outside New York City Hall on Tuesday to demand Mayor Eric Adams end his plan to limit the number of days newly arrived immigrants can remain in city-run shelters.

Houstonians have decided who will lead the city in the years ahead following Saturday’s runoff elections.

Expect heavy traffic and closures this Saturday as the city of Houston gears up for live performances and the big tree lighting.

The lighting of Christmas trees at ceremonies across the Houston area will commence the most wonderful time of the year.

By now, Houstonians know the name William-Paul Thomas. He is the federally convicted former City of Houston Director of City Council Relations.

Environmental activist Jill Stein is launching another long-shot Green Party bid for the presidency.

New York City is intensifying efforts to transport migrants out of the city as its shelter system reaches capacity.

The lighting of the Christmas tree at City Hall returns in December to commence the most wonderful time of the year.

Russia says its air defenses shot down 31 Ukrainian drones in a nighttime attack on border regions.

More than 200 people rallied outside San Francisco's City Hall to urge supervisors to act on reparations for Black residents.

Belgium has a century-old fling with surrealism and is always proud to flaunt it.

With thousands of migrants still arriving in New York City, Mayor Eric Adams is renewing his appeal to the federal government to help the city avert a budgetary crisis as expenses mount.

The family and friends of Milton Powell, also known as Houston rap legend Big Pokey, joined to celebrate his life on Sunday.

The Atlanta City Council has approved funding for the construction of a proposed police and firefighter training center, rejecting the pleas of hundreds of activists who packed City Hall and spoke for hours in fierce opposition to the project they decry as “Cop City.”.

Hundreds of activists are at Atlanta’s City Hall ahead of a council vote over whether to approve tens of millions in public funding for a police and firefighter training center.

A rally involving Democratic state lawmakers was interrupted Saturday by a group calling for justice for a man killed by Houston police last April. It lead to heated moments on the steps of city hall, but ended with a common goal.

Tyra Banks, MOVE OVER! This ‘Houston’s Next Top Model’ traded in his business suits for a 100% upcycled boilersuit in honor of Earth Day.

It's one of the coolest, funkiest, most popular events in Houston and it's happening at the Orange Show World Headquarters.

The highly publicized fight over a lucrative concessions contract at Hobby Airport was tagged by multiple council members who indicated they want more time to come to a decision.

A contract worth hundreds of millions of dollars is up for debate at Houston’s City Hall.

The International Olympic Committee has stepped up efforts to explain its position on trying to help Russian athletes qualify for the Paris Games.

Mayor Sylvester Turner and Apache Corporation announced plans for the city’s annual bike ride, Tour de Houston presented by Apache Corporation, on Wednesday at City Hall.

California's first-in-the-nation task force studying reparations for Black residents is meeting in Oakland to discuss potential eligibility requirements and what form reparations could take.

San Francisco supervisors have voted to put the brakes on a controversial policy to let police use robots for deadly force.

A man already in custody in last month’s attack on the husband of U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of assault and attempted kidnapping.

The Texas A&M on-campus early-voting location had the second-highest voter turnout in the county during the 2018 and 2020 presidential elections.

The man accused of breaking into House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s home and severely beating her husband with a hammer appears to have made racist and often rambling posts online, including some that questioned the results of the 2020 election, defended Donald Trump and echoed QAnon conspiracy theories.

Outside of Mayor Sylvester Turner’s office on the steps of Houston City Hall, two dozen individuals stood with a clear message on shirts across their chests, “End Corruption in Houston.”

Russell Crowe, who won a best actor Academy Award for portraying a gladiator in the 2000 film of the same name, is being feted by the city of Rome, home to the Colosseum where real gladiators clashed before thousands of spectators through the time of the Roman Empire.

Mayor Turner welcomed the Netherlands Dutch Royal House to Houston City Hall Friday morning.

Houstonians are donating water at City Hall Friday to residents experiencing a water system failure in Jackson, Mississippi.

On Saturday, Houston’s City Hall was packed with hundreds of people for the “March for Our Lives” event.

Mayor Sylvester Turner was joined by various community leaders and sponsors at City Hall Tuesday to announce details for the in-person return of Houston’s official Fourth of July celebration, “Freedom Over Texas.”

KPRC 2 has learned the International Festival is moving locations.

A unanimous Supreme Court has ruled that Boston violated the free speech rights of a conservative activist when it refused his request to fly a Christian flag on a flagpole outside City Hall.

Starting Wednesday night, Rio de Janeiro samba schools’ elaborate floats and feather-festooned dancers will parade between packed bleachers.

The Mayor’s Office of Veterans & Military Affairs (MOVMA) and Mayor Pro-Tem Dave Martin hosted the Vietnam War Veterans Day ceremony Tuesday at City Hall.

San Francisco's police department has released preliminary figures showing a 567% increase in reported hate crimes against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders from the previous year.

Supreme Court justices seem to have little doubt that Boston was wrong to refuse to fly a banner described as a Christian flag outside City Hall.

Authorities in France want to accelerate vaccinations against the coronavirus before Christmas as infections surge and more people with COVID-19 seek medical attention.

An 1833 statue of Thomas Jefferson will be removed from New York’s City Council chamber by the end of the year.

Miami city commissioners have unanimously voted to fire Police Chief Art Acevedo after a short and stormy tenure in which he clashed with city officials and members of his own police force.

A sculpture symbolizing Britain’s complex colonial ties and an artwork featuring the faces of 850 transgender people are set to go on display in Trafalgar Square, one of London’s highest-profile venues for public art.

San Jose officials have passed the first law in the country that requires gun owners to carry liability insurance and pay a fee to cover taxpayers’ costs associated with gun violence.

Faith leaders, celebrities and lawmakers across the political spectrum are condemning a rise in antisemitic incidents around the world triggered by the recent conflict between Israel and Gaza’s militant Hamas rulers.

On a warm October day in 2018, George and Mary Smith drove to police headquarters, where they had a 2 p.m. appointment to watch video of the death of their son Marcus.

Los Angeles police have announced the arrest of a suspect in an alleged attack by a pro-Palestinian group on Jewish men outside a restaurant earlier in the week.

Republicans in Florida, Georgia and other states have seized on former President Donald Trump's false claims of election fraud to push ID requirements for voters to request or return mailed ballots.

Brexit and the coronavirus pandemic have hit London in a perfect storm.

HOUSTON – Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said he will announce the future of leadership at the city’s Police Department later this week. Turner spoke at City Hall on Monday morning after news broke Sunday night that Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo is leaving to take the same job in Miami. “I hate to see him leave the city of Houston,” Turner said as he congratulated Acevedo on his next chapter. Turner said Acevedo, who took the job as chief of the Houston Police Department in 2016, is leaving the department in better shape than he found it. Ad“Art was the right person at the right time,” Turner said.

(AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer, File)PORTLAND, Ore. – The mayor of Portland, Oregon, announced Thursday he would seek $2 million in one-time funding for police, other agencies and outreach programs to try to stem rampant gun violence in the city. The move by Mayor Ted Wheeler represents an about-face after city leaders in June voted to cut nearly $16 million from the police budget, reductions that included the elimination of a gun violence reduction unit. During an hour-long news conference Thursday, Wheeler, activists, faith leaders and community members reiterated that in order to solve the problem of gun violence, the community must work together. Wheeler said the tactic is not the same as the now-eliminated Gun Violence Reduction Team and would be more transparent. Wheeler said he supports the ideas, beginning with asking City Council to appropriate $2 million in one-time fiuds from the city’s reserve stability contingency account created last fall, to address gun violence.

Turner encouraged all Houston-area business to continue to enforce the mask policy, despite Abbott’s order. — Sylvester Turner (@SylvesterTurner) March 8, 2021The Houston Health Department announced that the city’s COVID-19 positivity rate is 13.1%, which is up from last week. During the news conference, the Houston Health Department said the U.K. COVID-19 variant was growing in Houston’s wastewater. On Feb. 8, the U.K. COVID-19 strand was found in 21 of the 39 wastewater plants in the city, according the Health Department. The Brazilian and the South African variant was also found in the city’s wastewater, but the Health Department was not able to release the exact measurements just yet.

HOUSTON – Nearly a quarter-million first vaccine doses are headed to the nine-county Houston area this week, including the first Johnson & Johnson shipment, according to state data and Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner. Finally, 42,120 Pfizer doses and 12,000 J & J doses will go directly to the FEMA site at NRG Park where residents on the Harris County and Houston waitlists will be vaccinated. Joining a waitlistThere are 13 vaccine hubs in the Houston area and there are waitlists for each of them. Go to vacstrac.hctx.net or call 832-927-8787 to join the Harris County version of the waitlist. To find information about all of the waitlists for the 13 vaccine hubs in the Houston area, go to dshs.texas.gov.

FILE - In this Jan.18, 2019 file photo, French President Emmanuel Macron meets pupils as he visits a school canteen in Saint-Sozy, southwestern France. With a meatless four-course meal that Lyon City Hall says will be quicker and easier to serve to children who must be kept socially distanced while eating lunch to avoid coronavirus infections. With more local elections expected later this year, the arguing over Lyon's school meals offered a foretaste of broader political battles to come. Lyon City Hall said serving the same meal to all children, instead of offering them their usual meat and meat-free options, would shorten the time they take for lunch. City Hall said it also opted for meat-free meals because they suit all children, including those who habitually don't eat meats for religious, dietary or other reasons.

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner answers a question during a news conference at City Hall on Feb. 1, 2021. During a briefing at 2 p.m. Saturday, Mayor Turner joins other elected officials and community leaders to discuss the state’s vaccination distribution efforts. The officials are slated to discuss “COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and the inequities in the state’s distribution of supplies,” according to the mayor’s office“The lack of resources has created glaring disparities in high-risk, vulnerable, disadvantaged and underserved communities,” a scheduling announcement from the mayor’s office read. KPRC 2 is streaming the briefing live.

HOUSTON – People who are supposed to get their second dose of the coronavirus vaccine will soon be able to schedule that appointment themselves. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said Monday that the city’s Health Department has received nearly 42,000 first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine with nearly 34,000 of them having been administered. He said nearly 12,000 people have appointments to get their second dose this week. Turner said the Houston Health Department is currently contacting people directly to schedule their second dose. However, he said the second dose is necessary to get the full benefits of the vaccine.

HOUSTON – Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner and Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo participated in the national Memorial to Lives Lost to COVID-19 Tuesday afternoon. The combined Honor Guard from the Houston Police Department and Houston Fire Department also participated in the memorial. This was the nation’s first nationwide COVID-19 Memorial to Lives Lost, which was part of the Inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris. The event emphasized the importance of the past and remembers the lives lost to the coronavirus and gives hope to the future. I encourage everyone to join us by illuminating your building, ringing a bell, and watching the virtual program,” Turner said.

HOUSTON – Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said Monday that future coronavirus vaccine megasites will be dependent on the supply of doses that is received by the city. Turner said demand for the vaccine is far outpacing the amount of vaccine that is available. Turner said that as soon as more doses of the vaccine are received, the city will start opening up additional appointment slots. Williams said the Houston Health Department is expecting to get more vaccine doses from the state this week. ‘Middle of the storm’The Houston Health Department reported an additional 1,460 cases Monday, bringing the total number of cases to more than 131,000.

HOUSTON – The city of Houston will light the public menorah Sunday night in front of City Hall at Hermann Square. The program will feature addresses by dignitaries Houston City Council Member Abbie Kamin, Jewish community leader and chair of the Jewish Federation Robert Lapin, and Mayor Sylvester Turner. The symbol of the public menorah reflects the very principles upon which America was founded: freedom of religious observance from religious oppression, the power of light pushing away darkness, and the victory of righteousness over wickedness, according to the city. “This is symbolized by kindling the Menorah. By adding another candle each night, we learn the lesson of increasing in goodness and kindness.

With some Americans now paying the price for what they did over Thanksgiving, health officials are warning people begging them, even not to make the same mistake during the Christmas and New Year's season. Andrew Cuomo has ended indoor dining indefinitely in New York City as coronavirus cases and hospitalizations climb. As of Monday, only takeout orders and outdoor dining will be allowed in one of the world’s great cuisine capitals. THE NUMBERS: Deaths in the U.S. have climbed to almost 2,260 per day on average, about equal to the peak seen in mid-April. ___Find AP’s full coverage of the coronavirus pandemic at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic

Public schools reopened for in-school learning Monday after being closed since mid-November. Public school doors reopened for preschool students and children in kindergarten through fifth grade whose parents chose a mix of in-school and remote learning. Overall, the city counts about 1 million public school students; most have opted to learn from home this fall. Masks and social distancing are required at all city schools. About 190,000 students were eligible to return to school buildings starting Monday.

FILE - In this Nov. 3, 2020, file photo, a long line of people waiting to vote stretches around City Hall on Election Day, in Honolulu. Voter advocates say Hawaii should set up more voter service centers after a last-minute surge of voter interest led to hours-long lines for in-person voting on Election Day even as the state shifted to a vote-by-mail system for casting ballots. Overall, the state’s vote-by-mail election appears to have been a big success, leading to record numbers of voters participating. The law also gives voters the option to vote in person at voter service centers, where people may also register to vote or get help with casting a ballot. Ma said people waited between two to four hours on Tuesday at the two voter centers on Oahu, an island with about 549,000 registered voters.

(NBC via AP)Here’s a collection curated by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists of what’s arriving on TV, streaming services and music platforms this week. MOVIES— Many things will be different about Halloween this year, but the annual rush of horror films is much the same. It stars Sope Dirisu and Wunmi Mosaku as a Sudanese refugee couple finding new horrors in life in England. But Neon, the “Parasite” distributor, last week put a restored version into theaters and on Tuesday brings it to VOD. One is Natalie Margolin “The Party Hop,” which she wrote during quarantine in one week in early April.

Pope Francis lights a candle for peace during an inter-religious ceremony for peace in the square outside Rome's City Hall, Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2020 (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)ROME – A masked Pope Francis welcomed religious leaders to a socially-distanced interfaith peace prayer Tuesday, appealing for a unified international effort to work for peace and an end to the coronavirus pandemic. “The pandemic is reminding us that we are blood brothers and sisters,” they said in a joint appeal issued at the end of the service. For weeks, Francis has shunned facemasks in his public and private audiences despite a surge in COVID-19 cases across Italy and even inside Vatican City. The service was organized by the Rome-based Sant’Egidio Community, which each year organizes an interfaith peace prayer in the spirit of the first one of its kind, celebrated by St. John Paul II in Assisi in 1986. In the past week 11 Swiss Guards and a resident of the hotel where Francis lives have tested positive.

FILE - In this Oct. 10, 2016 file photo, author and filmmaker Sherman Alexie appears at a celebration of Indigenous Peoples' Day at Seattle's City Hall. Alexie is included in a list of authors who wrote books that were among the 100 most subjected to censorship efforts over the past decade, as compiled by the American Library Association. All wrote books that were among the 100 most subjected to censorship efforts over the past decade, as compiled by the American Library Association. The association does not formally count the number of times books are actually removed from a library shelf or from a school reading list. “There are actually two lines of objections to the Anne Frank diary,” Caldwell-Stone says.

HOUSTON – At the steps of Houston’s City Hall, a group of nearly 100 people gathered for a “Police Appreciation Rally,” Thursday evening. “If we don’t have police on our corner, it’s going to be a bad world,” Diggs previously told KPRC 2. Many held signs emblazoned with “Black Lives Matter” and calling for the defunding of the police department. There has to be a level of respect,” said Justin James Jones, who was also demonstrating against the rally. “I didn’t really understand the need for a police lives or a blue lives matter movement in the midst of this black lives matter movement,” Savannah said.

Statues that have stood for years -- and in some cases, decades -- have been top of mind all across the country as protests take place following the deaths of George Floyd and Rayshard Brooks.

HOUSTON – City council members discussed next year’s city budget as protesters demanded change outside City Hall. Dozens gathered for a rally Wednesday, a day after George Floyd was laid to rest. The council members talked about the re-allocation of nearly $12 million in under-utilized funds to be redirected to city programs, as well as enhanced training for HPD. George Floyd died because of the end result.”At the funeral of Floyd, Mayor Turner said he would sign an executive order to ban chokeholds, require officers de-escalate situations and use all options before lethal force. “George Floyd was murdered in Minneapolis after chokeholds have been banned, you can’t keep ordering executive on orders on something that’s not working,” said Woods.

HOUSTON – Hundreds of people attended a Black Lives Matter protest in downtown demanding justice for Houston-native George Floyd, who was killed after an officer kneeled on his neck for more than eight minutes. Throughout the march, protestors chanted: “Hands up, don’t shoot," “I can’t breathe,” and “No justice. She said the black community has been fighting for years against systemic racism. “It can no longer (only) be black people out here stomping the ground for black people,” she said. ‘Enough is enough.’Reporter Hannah Mackenzie gives details on downtown Houston protestReporter Brandon Walker gives inside look at Houston protest for George Floyd