Growth Spurs Redevelopment in Oak Ridge, Spring, TX

Photo by Jerry Baker / Freelance

Like all of South Montgomery County, Oak Ridge North is experiencing growth. But since the city is mostly built out, the change is primarily in redeveloping retail space and homes built decades ago.

The number of commercial and residential permits issued by the city increased 60 percent in 2014, compared with 2013, said Susan Cates, director of economic development with Oak Ridge North.
"What we are seeing is redevelopment of houses that were built in the 60s, 70s and 80s," Cates said. "As our population gets older, younger families are coming in buying these 2,000 square foot homes and they are renovating and expanding them."

And schools in the area are already feeling the growth. The Oak Ridge region is the fastest growing area for the Conroe Independent School District, said superintendent Don Stockton. The district is responding by preparing for a bond referendum to, in part, pay for a new high school in the area.

"The growth that we anticipate is the young families moving in - and they will be young families with children," Cates said. "We are excited to see CISD be forward thinking about the growth that is coming to the our community and continue providing the great schools that draw businesses into our community."

And Oak Ridge High School is already at capacity. "What is happening is that CISD knows that level is not going to stay flat," she said. "We have seen a sharp spike upward (in population) in South Montgomery County since Exxon announced their campus three years ago."

Business growth
Oak Ridge North is in talks to open a new hotel and conference center at Robinson Road and Interstate 45, Cates said. The hotel will have a 10,000 square foot conference center, she said.
Oak Ridge North officials plan to announce the hotel brand the end of February or beginning of March, Cates said.

In addition, Oak Ridge North is planning retail to open near the hotel. And the city is in talks to build townhomes catering to young urban professionals, Cates said. In the last three years, the city's business park, Oak Ridge North Commerce Park, has grown to 75 acres and is currently 85 percent occupied.

"At this point, all but one lot is sold and almost all of them are already built on," Cates said of the business park. 

Photo by: Jerry Baker / Freelance

And Austin-based iFly Indoor Skydiving is constructing one of two Houston-area facilities at 26860 I-45 North. iFly is an indoor vertical wind tunnel that allows people to enjoy the free-fall portion of skydiving but indoors and without an airplane. "It will be a great amenity," Cates said.

Source: Chron.com
 

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Extension of David Memorial Drive to Hwy 242

The city of Shenandoah is considering extending David Memorial Drive to Hwy. 242. City Administrator Greg Smith said the proposed extension could alleviate traffic congestion on I-45 and the feeder road.  “[The extension] will allow individuals to come into Shenandoah off of Hwy. 242 without having to get on I-45,” he said. 
 

Smith said the cost of the extension, which would be paid for by the city, has yet to be determined because the route has not been established. He said the city may know more about a potential route and cost of the project early next year. “The road has been on the city of Shenandoah’s plan for many years,” Smith said. “This is still very preliminary.”

The city is working on purchasing land in which to build the extension. Smith said the city has already purchased land for the extension from two developers. However, some of the extension’s potential right of way lies outside of the city’s limits and into the city of Conroe’s and Montgomery County’s jurisdiction.
 

“That’s why the timeline is a little bit of a moving target right now because we have not made contact with all of the property owners,” Smith said. “We’ve got the south property owners taken care of and north [owners as well]. So the in-between areas, we’re working on cooperation with the property owners.”
 

One of the jurisdictions—the city of Shenandoah, city of Conroe or Montgomery—rather than all three, would most likely lead the development effort, Smith said. All three entities would provide input in the design of the road as to whether it will be a four-lane median boulevard or a two-lane roadway that can be expanded, he said.
 

“All three of us are going to have a vested interest in how the road is built, the dynamics of the design of the road,” Smith said. Other possible hindrances to the road extension could come from reluctant property owners or wetland issues.
 

“If a private property owner did not want to fund their portion of the road or did not want to donate for providing the right of way, then that would be an obstacle we would have to overcome,” he said. “There are some wetland issues in that area, but there have been some discussions on solutions for the wetlands issue to be resolved.”

Source:Impactnews.com


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TxDOT narrows route option list for proposed high-speed rail system from Houston to Dallas

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The Texas Department of Transportation has narrowed the possible locations for a proposed 240-mile, high-speed rail project between Houston and Dallas to two possible routes. James Maughan, environmental impact statement lead for the Federal Railroad Administration, said the possible routes include the Burlington Northern Santa Fe rail route near Hwy 249 and a utility corridor near Hwy 290.

Maughan said nine routes were evaluated from the standpoint of economics, construction costs, travel time, environmental concerns and economic viability to determine how many passengers could be expected to use the line. “We did a comparison based on those factors,” Maughan said. “Two of the nine alignments seemed to be advantageous in all categories.”

Maughan said the BNSF option scored highly as a potential route because it is already a rail corridor. Ticket prices are expected to compare with national airline carrier tickets.

Several of the initial proposed routes traveled along I-45. However, the corridor was eliminated from future consideration due to its design, Maughan said. The I-45 corridor was designed for automobiles to travel up to 100 mph, he said. However, the high-speed train planned for the project would travel 205 mph, so the curves along the route would be problematic.

In a November 13th letter to TxDOT, The Woodlands Township asked the agency to reconsider the I-45 corridor in its environmental impact statement, or EIS. “In Montgomery County alone, the population is projected to increase from 500,000 to 1.1 million by 2040,” the township stated in its letter. “This fact argues for inclusion of the [I-45] corridor in the [environmental impact statement] evaluation.”

Public input sessions

In conjunction with TCR, officials with the FRA and URS Corporation held 12 meetings last fall for city leaders and residents in areas along the proposed high-speed rail routes to gather public input. Comments received by Jan. 9 were included in the project’s scoping report, and any additional input received will be included in the draft environmental impact statement document. The scoping report is expected to be available for the public in early February, Hagy said.
A number of Greater Houston area residents voiced their concerns about the high-speed rail line at a Dec. 3 public meeting in Tomball. Several residents questioned the overall necessity of the railway, and a lack of information conveyed to the public about the routes, and they expressed concerns about possible infringement on their homes and properties.

The two proposed routes include the BNSF railway path projected to travel through the Tomball area, and the other utility route expected to travel through the Cy-Fair area before continuing north to Dallas. Jerry Smiley, transit and rail group manager of the Texas, Gulf and Mountain regions for URS, said rail officials are reviewing a number of pathways to determine exact station placements along the final selected route.

Three stations are proposed, including one in the downtown Houston area, another in the Dallas area and one intermediate stop expected in the Bryan/College Station area, Smiley said.

Environmental impact

Part of the EIS review process includes FRA approval of the final route. TCR must carry out the environmental review on the approved route to ensure it is in accordance with federal law. The draft EIS is expected to be complete in late summer or fall, additional public hearings will be held this fall, and the final EIS document is slated to be assembled in spring 2016, Maughan said.
Following a decision on the final alignment estimated by summer or fall 2016, TCR could break ground by the end of 2016 or early 2017, TCR President Robert Eckels said. TCR officials anticipate a four-year construction period, followed by one year of testing and commissioning before accepting its first paying riders.

A project unique to the U.S., the train would travel from Houston to Dallas in 90 minutes, according to TCR. The rail line would use bullet train technology, a design that has been in use in Japan for 50 years. Eckels said he believes high-speed rail will be a boon to economic development and growth in Texas.

Source: Impactnews.com


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7 Home Improvement Projects to Improve Curb Appeal and Lead to a Sale

Does your home’s exterior make a good or bad first impression on potential homebuyers? The way your home looks from the street can increase its value by thousands and significantly shorten the selling process. Here are seven of the best projects to improve curb appeal and give you the biggest bang for the buck.

• Wash the facade – Remove dust and dirt from the siding with a long-handled soft bristle brush. Power wash the walkway to remove stains and reveal its true color. Wash the windows inside and out. Sweep away spider webs from around the porch. Hose out downspouts. All these steps make your home look more like new.
• Repaint the house – While a little more costly, a new paint job is a priority if the existing coat is peeling away. Your best bet is to stick with the color you already have.
• Address the roof – Professional roof cleaning goes a long way. If your home is a few decades old and still has its original roof, you might need to replace it to improve curb appeal and increase home value.
• Spruce up landscaping – Green up the grass with lawn food and mow it regularly, particularly while on the market. Trim overgrown plants back, surround trees with bark mulch and place a few potted plants on the porch.
• Add glamorous hardware – Replace an old, boring mailbox with an upscale model, select decorative house numbers or add an address plaque by the front door to help your house stand out.
• Add a fence – The classic look of a white picket fence adds visual appeal and extra home value, especially in family-oriented neighborhoods. If you already have a fence, make sure it’s freshly stained or painted and in overall good condition. 
• Keep up with exterior maintenance – Refasten hanging gutters, straighten window shutters, replace cracked window panes, seal cracked asphalt and add mortar to loose bricks. Once complete, these tasks make your home easier on the eye and could increase home value by 10 percent.

For more information about how to imporve curb appeal and sell your home for more, contact the Texan Realtor Team today. Image via Shutterstock.com

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