Bay Area Edition | October 2023

BY JAKE MAGEE

The breakdown

What they’re saying

What's next

The Clear Creek Master Plan splits projects over short-, medium- and long-term time frames. While some can be done in the next few years, others are earmarked for more than a decade from now, according to the plan. Davis said the ball is in city staff’s court to decide which projects to pitch to City Council, which ultimately makes the decision on which projects get approved and when. City officials will brainstorm with City Manager John Baumgartner and council members during their annual retreat in March as they begin considering the fiscal year 2024-25 budget, Davis said. Wei said there are some projects officials are already considering first, such as developing the Kilgore Davis Tract Park located off North Kansas Avenue with a boardwalk.

The projects in the plan don’t come cheap. If the city were to implement all the major projects today, they would total nearly $40 million, according to the plan. Inflation means costs will increase as time goes on, Cutaia said. Part of the plan helps city officials identify what types of grant opportunities exist for the projects, Wei said. For the three proposed parks, officials could use the city’s park dedication funds to help reduce the cost. Officials behind new develop- ments in the city are required to pay toward the park dedication fund, which city officials pull from when doing park projects, Wei said. For the trails, city officials could use 4B Industrial Development Corp. funds, which come from sales tax revenue and are dedi- cated to amateur sports developments.

“I’m excited … we have something in hand that we can work from. It’s a recreation opportunity that we haven’t really fully taken advantage of.” CHIEN WEI, DIRECTOR OF PARKS AND CULTURAL SERVICES, ON THE PLAN’S CREATION “League City has an abundance of natural space, beautiful waterways and scenery, and my impression … is that citizens just want to better utilize that space.” RICK DAVIS, ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER, ON THE PLAN'S ORIGIN

“Clear Creek does have a lot of constraints with it. It takes a lot of effort.” LOUIS CUTAIA JR., HALFF PLANNING TEAM LEADER, ON IMPLEMENTING THE PLAN’S PROPOSED PROJECTS

Planning it out

Clear Creek Master Plan cost breakdown Total: $39.63M $13.56M Trails

THE FOLLOWING TABLE IS NOT COMPREHENSIVE.

Short term (next 1-5 years)

6 trails 2 kayak launches

$8.17M Kilgore Davis Tract Park $7.17M Myrtle Park $5.87M Boardwalks

6 trails 2 boardwalks 5 kayak launches 6 trails 3 boardwalks 1 kayak launch

Medium term (next 5-10 years)

“There’s nothing to develop back there. It stays underwater most of the time.” RUSTY TIDWELL, CLEAR CREEK VILLAGE RESIDENT, ON DEVELOPING MYRTLE PARK

$4.86M Harris County Flood Control Park

Long term (next 10-15 years)

NOTE: THE ABOVE CHART DOESN'T INCLUDE COSTS FOR SMALLER ITEMS, SUCH AS SIGNS AND KAYAK LAUNCHES.

SOURCES: CITY OF LEAGUE CITY, HALFF/COMMUNITY IMPACT

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