CONTRIBUTIONS BY LIZZY SPANGLER BY NICHAELA SHAHEEN
Also of note
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“The city of Conroe’s moratorium is kind of the biggest thing that’s happening in our region right now,” he said. Miller also said that $1,281 in annual property tax revenue per home is lost for every $300,000 house that cannot be built. Conroe’s tax rate for fiscal year 2024-25 is $0.4272 per $100 valuation. “That’s money that could go towards water infrastructure projects,” Miller said. According to Conroe ISD’s 2022 demographic study, over 53,000 housing units are expected to be occupied within the district by October 2032. “A citywide moratorium would be detrimen- tal—not just to developers, but to the entire local economy and to future residents,” Cody Miller said in a May 8 interview. Meanwhile, legal uncertainty is also a concern to city officials. City Attorney Mike Garner said the city can be fined up to $25,000 per day from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for being out of compliance with regulations. “The [Commission] can also refer the matter to the state [attorney general] and then we’re looking at legal battles from both sides of the state as well as future developers,” Garner said. “We’ve got to do what we have to do right now to protect our citizens who are already on the water system.”
Officials with Landmark Properties, which is developing a build-to-rent community, The Everstead at Conroe, said their project hasn’t been deeply affected so far but warned that market dynamics are shifting. “Development moratoriums tend to change market dynamics by limiting new supply,” said Rex Warner, a development manager at Landmark Properties. “The water capacity challenges present a complex issue that requires an experienced development team and close collaboration with local stakeholders.” A spokesperson for Howard Hughes, developer of The Woodlands Hills, said the company went through the city’s formal waiver process last fall and was ultimately denied. Cody Miller said The Woodlands Hills officials confirmed that over 1,200 lots are currently under review and cannot move forward until the city lifts the moratorium. He said he believes other devel- opers—including those not directly impacted by the moratorium zone—are watching closely. Approximately 5,000 lots have been impacted in the northern part of the city since the morato- rium began in August, which includes raw land, pending plats and fully platted lots that builders can’t touch, Cody Miller said.
During its May 8 meeting, Conroe City Council voted 3-2 to direct staff to begin the process to implement a temporary citywide moratorium. Council members Shana Arthur, David Hairel and Marsha Porter were in favor, and council members Wood and Hardman voted against. “This is not voting on a moratorium. This is voting on the process of a moratorium,” Porter said during the May 8 meeting. “The fact of the matter is, we can get out of this pretty quick. ... We have three different [entities] saying we’re not in compliance. I don’t want to be that council that ... ignores that.” While it’s unclear where funding for future water infrastructure projects will come from, options such as a bond were discussed during council’s May 7 workshop meeting. Coon said if the city’s crisis is as severe as City Council is being told, all options are on the table moving forward. “Asking the citizens to vote on specific projects ... is significantly better than asking for a general tax increase,” Hardman said. “We cannot currently fund these future projects ... so some type of incremental funding mechanism needs to occur.” A vote on a decision to enact the citywide moratorium will be cast at a future council meeting after two public hearings are held, Garner said.
What they’re saying
2025
“To sum it up, all the projects just described are going to put a scratch on the surface of the situation that you’re looking at.” NORMAN MCGUIRE, ASSISTANT CITY ADMINISTRATOR AND DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS
“The city should focus on promoting opportunities … that would bring incremental value to the city without necessitating increased
May 8: Council votes 3-2 to direct staff to begin citywide moratorium process July : Water Plant No. 29 is anticipated to be online
May 21-22: Council holds workshop and regular meetings Fourth quarter of 2025: Water Plant No. 30 is scheduled for completion
water demand.” HARRY HARDMAN, COUNCIL MEMBER
2026
“We ... believe the city has not been given enough ... information to move forward with ... a
“Before moving forward with a [citywide] moratorium we need to study the economic impact this can have on our community." DUKE COON, CONROE MAYOR
Fourth quarter of 2026: Water Well No. 37 is scheduled for completion
citywide moratorium.” CODY MILLER, DIRECTOR OF GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS, GREATER HOUSTON BUILDERS ASSOCIATION
SOURCE: CITY OF CONROE/ COMMUNITY IMPACT
2027
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CONROE - MONTGOMERY EDITION
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