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Growing pains: Conroe IDC approves study for long-term projects
  
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By Nancy Flake
A comprehensive transportation plan for Conroe aims to encourage industrial growth in the city’s northeast area while giving the entire city more “liveability.”
Officials with the company that will identify projects to be completed over a 10-year period will look primarily at using federal funds, which may not be as plentiful at a time when the federal budget faces a major deficit and the United States endures an uncertain economic situation.
The Goodman Corporation, which developed the planning and financial strategy that resulted in The Woodlands Waterway’s pedestrian and transit corridor, will look at short-term and long-term transportation projects in Conroe that can be created over 10 years, Senior Associate Lynn Spencer said. The Conroe Industrial Development Corporation recently approved a $123,000 contract with Goodman for the study, paid for through the city’s half-cent 4B sales tax.
High on the priority list are improving access to the Lone Star Executive Airport, the city’s industrial park at Conroe Park North and access to both from Interstate 45 via FM 3083, said CIDC Chairman R.A. “Mickey” Deison, who also serves as vice chairman for the airport’s advisory board.
Goodman, which will have an initial list of projects in six to eight months, Spencer said, will look at local, state and federal funding for projects, including roadways.
“What we’re focusing on is a fiscally constrained plan, identifying and securing federal funds,” she said. “We’re going to be working with local representatives, the Houston-Galveston Area Council and looking at federal Community Development Block Grant funds.”
Limited funds are available from the Texas Department of Transportation, while Montgomery County has no funding available for the roads identified by Goodman, Deison said. The city wants to identify projects in time to make a federal funding request, or earmark, for the 2010 budget cycle.
But the federal Highway Trust Fund is “broke,” U.S. Rep. Kevin Brady, R-The Woodlands, said, and is in fact in deficit, unable to keep pace with local and state requests.
“Next year is fairly critical for transportation,” he said. “But if it improves mobility to Montgomery County, I’m open to it (funding requests).”
Brady made no earmark requests for the current budget year and will not make any for the coming year, he said.
“I’m not anticipating making any more requests until Congress can reform the (earmark) system,” he said. “Right now, earmarks are out of control. We need a one-year moratorium.
“Earmarks are not the way to fund long-term transportation projects.”
Brady introduced legislation, the Spending Reform Act of 2008, that calls for placing an annual spending cap – adjusted only for inflation – on the federal budget. It would create a bipartisan Sunset Commission to identify waste and duplicate programs and eliminate those that don’t work, establishing the bipartisan SAVE Commission to identify ways to sustain Social Security and Medicare and imposing the one-year moratorium on all earmarks and appointing a commission to study and make recommendations to prevent wasteful spending.
But, he said, “We would like to be part of any solutions on long-term mobility.”
Ultimately, Deison said, “We think we will be successful” in getting funding.
“This is not an immediate issue,” he said. “The actual construction money won’t be needed for five to six years.”
Once the new aircraft control tower is complete early next year and extension of one of the airport’s runways is finished by 2010, access to the airport for corporate users will be a “big issue,” Deison said.
“Access off 3083 from 45 and off (North) Loop 336 into the airport would open up additional areas for development,” he said. “There’s other development in the industrial park, and we have sizeable companies looking at the park.”
Other projects the Goodman Corporation will look at will be the identification of “livable center areas,” or locations for economic development opportunities that include beautification, bicycle and pedestrian enhancements, transit connections and entertainment and recreational facilities.
The first step, Spencer said, is to put together a task force of local leaders to help develop projects to benefit the city.
“We have to make a case for it,” Deison said of requesting funding. “Can we be successful? Yes. In the long term, I think we can.”
Officials with the company that will identify projects to be completed over a 10-year period will look primarily at using federal funds, which may not be as plentiful at a time when the federal budget faces a major deficit and the United States endures an uncertain economic situation.
The Goodman Corporation, which developed the planning and financial strategy that resulted in The Woodlands Waterway’s pedestrian and transit corridor, will look at short-term and long-term transportation projects in Conroe that can be created over 10 years, Senior Associate Lynn Spencer said. The Conroe Industrial Development Corporation recently approved a $123,000 contract with Goodman for the study, paid for through the city’s half-cent 4B sales tax.
High on the priority list are improving access to the Lone Star Executive Airport, the city’s industrial park at Conroe Park North and access to both from Interstate 45 via FM 3083, said CIDC Chairman R.A. “Mickey” Deison, who also serves as vice chairman for the airport’s advisory board.
Goodman, which will have an initial list of projects in six to eight months, Spencer said, will look at local, state and federal funding for projects, including roadways.
“What we’re focusing on is a fiscally constrained plan, identifying and securing federal funds,” she said. “We’re going to be working with local representatives, the Houston-Galveston Area Council and looking at federal Community Development Block Grant funds.”
Limited funds are available from the Texas Department of Transportation, while Montgomery County has no funding available for the roads identified by Goodman, Deison said. The city wants to identify projects in time to make a federal funding request, or earmark, for the 2010 budget cycle.
But the federal Highway Trust Fund is “broke,” U.S. Rep. Kevin Brady, R-The Woodlands, said, and is in fact in deficit, unable to keep pace with local and state requests.
“Next year is fairly critical for transportation,” he said. “But if it improves mobility to Montgomery County, I’m open to it (funding requests).”
Brady made no earmark requests for the current budget year and will not make any for the coming year, he said.
“I’m not anticipating making any more requests until Congress can reform the (earmark) system,” he said. “Right now, earmarks are out of control. We need a one-year moratorium.
“Earmarks are not the way to fund long-term transportation projects.”
Brady introduced legislation, the Spending Reform Act of 2008, that calls for placing an annual spending cap – adjusted only for inflation – on the federal budget. It would create a bipartisan Sunset Commission to identify waste and duplicate programs and eliminate those that don’t work, establishing the bipartisan SAVE Commission to identify ways to sustain Social Security and Medicare and imposing the one-year moratorium on all earmarks and appointing a commission to study and make recommendations to prevent wasteful spending.
But, he said, “We would like to be part of any solutions on long-term mobility.”
Ultimately, Deison said, “We think we will be successful” in getting funding.
“This is not an immediate issue,” he said. “The actual construction money won’t be needed for five to six years.”
Once the new aircraft control tower is complete early next year and extension of one of the airport’s runways is finished by 2010, access to the airport for corporate users will be a “big issue,” Deison said.
“Access off 3083 from 45 and off (North) Loop 336 into the airport would open up additional areas for development,” he said. “There’s other development in the industrial park, and we have sizeable companies looking at the park.”
Other projects the Goodman Corporation will look at will be the identification of “livable center areas,” or locations for economic development opportunities that include beautification, bicycle and pedestrian enhancements, transit connections and entertainment and recreational facilities.
The first step, Spencer said, is to put together a task force of local leaders to help develop projects to benefit the city.
“We have to make a case for it,” Deison said of requesting funding. “Can we be successful? Yes. In the long term, I think we can.”
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mrs. do gooder wrote on Dec 5, 2008 10:26 AM:
But the federal Highway Trust Fund is “broke,” U.S. Rep. Kevin Brady, R-The Woodlands, said, and is in fact in deficit, unable to keep pace with local and state requests.
“Next year is fairly critical for transportation,” he said. “But if it improves mobility to Montgomery County, I’m open to it (funding requests).”
Brady made no earmark requests for the current budget year and will not make any for the coming year, he said. "