Government
BY NICHAELA SHAHEEN
County approves takeover for Old Conroe Road project
Montgomery County Commis- sioners Court approved an interlo- cal agreement Jan. 29 to take over the Old Conroe Road project from Conroe. What you need to know The agreement shifts sponsor- ship of the project to Montgomery County and outlines how the county will assume control of design documents and contracts so it can push the roadway toward right-of-way acquisition and construction. During discussion, Montgomery County Precinct 2 Commissioner Charlie Riley called it “one of the biggest” off-system projects in Texas and said the county was ready to “start working on the road
today” once approved. Diving in deeper The interlocal agreement covers a proposed extension of Old Conroe Road from Loop 336 to FM 1488. According to prior reporting, the agreement lays out: • Within 45 days of the city execut- ing the agreement, Montgomery County will pay $3.4 million— listed as the county’s “amended share”—toward preliminary design and plans, specifications and estimated costs tied to the project. • After execution, the county will take over contract administration and succeed to the city’s rights under the design documents.
Old Conroe Road project The Old Conroe Road project proposes an extension of the road from Loop 336 to FM 1488, including a new bridge crossing the San Jacinto River and a four-lane road at an estimated total cost of $221.1 million.
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336
SAN JACINTO RIVER
1488
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SOURCE: MONTGOMERY COUNTY/COMMUNITY IMPACT
Montgomery County discusses, lines up next $60M road bond sale
Conroe OKs $500 street closure fee Conroe City Council gave its approval to a new street-closure and special-events fee structure Jan. 22, setting a $500 nonrefund- able application fee as the starting point for events that require closing city streets. The gist Norman McGuire, assistant city administrator and public works director, told the council a typical one-block downtown closure requires review and coordination across multiple city departments, putting the city’s internal cost at about $400 even before factoring in any event-specific needs. McGuire described the $500 as an application fee that covers the city’s baseline review closure event. Organizers may still face additional costs depending on what an event requires.
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Montgomery County commissioners moved Jan. 29 to keep the county’s road bond program moving—approving the paperwork needed to launch the next bond sale and laying out a timeline that could put new construction dollars in precincts by early June. What this means County staff told the court the first round of the road bond program has generated about $130 million so far when combining bond proceeds and interest earnings. Roughly $42.9 million has been spent. To avoid taking on too much debt at once, staff said the county plans to split the next borrowing into two $60 million sales instead of issuing $120 million in a single tranche.
County road bond breakdown
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$130M total generated when combining bond proceeds and interest earnings $42.9M total spent to date $87M program’s cash balance $30M unassigned funding from initial issuance
SOURCE: MONTGOMERY COUNTY/COMMUNITY IMPACT
The specifics The first $60 million issuance is targeted to close in May, and a second $60 million issuance is expected later in 2026. Commissioners also approved a reimbursement resolution meant to keep projects from stalling, allowing the county to cover certain costs upfront if needed and reimburse those expenses later using road bond funds.
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CONROE - MONTGOMERY EDITION
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