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Chang i ng t he l ook o f DOWNTOWN TOMBALL
for the project, it received overwhelming opposition from residents and business owners at the March 31 town hall and an April 4 City Council meeting. TxDOT and city o cials are now considering alter- natives to the proposed plans. “TxDOT owns up to the fronts of our buildings; they could literally come through Tomball and plow all this stu up and down town and do whatever the heck they want to do. We have a golden opportunity to take our diamond that we have in the rough and polish the facets on it and make it shine,” Council Member Derek Townsend Sr. said. Reconstruction needs The project proposal originated after the Hous- ton-Galveston Area Council completed two studies: an access management study from 2007-08 and a Livable Centers Study in 2009, according to Bruce Hillegeist, Greater Tomball Area Chamber of Com- merce president. Hillegeist said both studies included public meet- ings for residents to give feedback, and in 2015, the City Council unanimously approved applying for a grant for the project. Kelly Violette, executive director of the Tomball Economic Development Corp. and city planner at the time of the Livable Centers Study, said she believes the need for the project has not changed because of Tomball’s continued growth. Police Chief Je rey Bert said the city is experiencing “unprecedented growth” with 2,200 single-family homes being built in the next three to ve years and a population estimate of 18,000 by 2027. Tomball’s population grew from 11,186 to 11,689 from 2015-20, according to ve-year American Com- munity Survey estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau. “We’re looking at a population growth of nearly 50% in the next three to ve years, so that will impact tra c and tra c safety,” Bert said. Anticipating growth, the H GAC completed the Livable Centers Study so the city could focus on making Tomball—and speci cally downtown—safe for pedestrians and cyclists while reducing the need for single-occupant vehicles, Hillegeist said. However, Council Member Lori Klein Quinn said in an interview tra c has declined since the Grand Parkway opened through Tomball in 2016, and she believes TxDOT’s recommendations are based on
The city of Tomball and the Texas Department of Transportation are working together to create a safer, more pedestrian-friendly downtown.
The original proposal The rst draft of TxDOT’s proposed upgrades to FM 2920 includes extending sidewalks and adding raised medians at Business 249, at Oak Street, and from Walnut to Elm streets. This is a preliminary map and could change. SOURCE: CITY OF TOMBALL COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
N
WILLOW ST.
Project cost
249
BUSINESS 249
Sidewalks
Medians
The city has also allocated $3 million for additional design costs.
MAIN ST.
2920
TxDOT 20%
Medians
249
2920
Est. total:
Sidewalks
$28.61M
80%
RIGHT YIELD LANE REMOVED AND ENTRY ADDED TO H E B
Federal funds through Houston- Galveston Area Council
BUSINESS 249
HIGH INTENSITY PEDESTRIAN TRAFFIC LIGHTS
The right-turn lane would help with tra c mobility and reduce risk for collisions. RIGHT TURN LANE
Alternative safety solutions
These lights provide a safe crosswalk when there is no tra c light. The light would stop tra c whenever pedestrians push the button.
City o cials are considering these alternatives to present to TxDOT instead of raised medians.
said in an email TxDOT plans to use more recent data to analyze crashes—before and after the Grand Parkway opened—and continue to re ne the scope of work to nd mobility solutions. Locally, Bert said the police department responds to about two tra c collisions a month between Oak and Elm streets. From 2012-21, there were been 97 crashes between Oak and Elm streets, according to TxDOT crash data. There were 526 crashes over the same time period between Willow Street and Busi- ness 249. “[Drivers] won’t be able to cross lanes of tra c,”
outdated tra c data. TxDOT data shows annual average daily tra c on FM 2920 at Business 249, at Oak Street, and between Walnut and Elm streets was around 20,000 vehicles in 2009. Daily tra c continued to climb until it peaked in 2015 at around 28,000 vehicles. Since 2016, the annual average daily tra c has decreased. For example, there were 19,722 average daily vehicles in 2020 at FM 2920 and Oak Street. “The Grand Parkway took a tremendous amount of tra c o our roads,” Klein Quinn said. TxDOT Public Information O cer Danny Perez
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COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER • COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM
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