Tracking traff ic counts
SOURCE: TXDOT COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
Wilson said. “I’m very excited to see Tomball grow, but I’m not in love with the idea of medians.” Scott Moore Jr., owner of Tejas Chocolate and Bar- becue and Tejas Burger Joint, said he does not see the value in the raised medians and believes it will make moving around Tomball more di cult. Meanwhile, Michael Pierce, owner of Cloud Chief and Co. and Terrarium, said he is on Main Street seven days a week and never sees crashes. But he supports the project because it will beautify down- town, and the raisedmedians will give people a place to stand while crossing. “I see both sides of it, but being a business owner right on Main Street, … it’s a little worri- some,” Covey Apparel owner Jaime Gro said. “Obviously I don’t want something that is going to shut my doors down, but surely, being all small business has been through, TxDOT would take that into consideration.” Klein Quinn said she believes the only raised median needed is at FM 2920 and Business 249. Tom- ball Police Department data shows 195 crashes have occurred there from 2012 to 2022 as of March 16, dou- ble the rate of crashes in downtown Tomball. “It’s di cult to safely cross there at much of the day,” Bert said. Next steps At the April 4 council meeting, council members gave City Manager David Esquivel the authority to develop new alternative plans to present to TxDOT. But there is no guarantee TxDOT will approve plans without raised medians. Esquivel said at the April 4 meeting he will have Kyle Bertrand, an engineer for Gunda Corp. who is working with the city on the project, create di erent designs and take the designs to TxDOT to approve. When a plan is approved, the city and TxDOT will modify the funding agreements, and the project will then be brought to council for a vote. On April 4, Bertrand said TxDOT will not start this project until 2024 at the earliest. Once construction starts, it will be 24-36 months before it is complete. “Construction projects like that are really hard on retail establishments,” Moore said. Maegan Kirby contributed to this report.
Daily tra c on FM 2920 has seen a steady decline since the Grand Parkway opened through Tomball in 2016.
FM 2920 INTERSECTION
AVERAGE DAILY VEHICLES:
0 15K 20K 25K 30K
Business 249 Walnut St. to Elm St. At Oak St.
Grand Parkway segments open from Hwy. 290 to I-45.
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
Years in the making
SOURCES: GREATER TOMBALL AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, TXDOT COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
The FM 2920 project has been in the works since initial studies were done on the corridor 15 years ago and additional road projects completed.
2007 NOVEMBER 2008
FALL 2016 On-street parking is
The Houston-Galveston Area Council completes an FM 2920 Access Management Study.
removed on FM 2920 to add a center turn lane in Old Town as part of a short-term overlay project by TxDOT until raised medians could be added.
FEBRUARY 2016 Grand Parkway segments through Tomball open, connecting Hwy. 290 to I-45.
JUNE 2009
The H-GAC completes a downtown Tomball Livable Centers Study, which includes corridor recommendations.
2022
East of Tomball, TxDOT is designing a project to add raised medians and right- turn lanes along FM 2920 between North Willow Street in Tomball and I-45 in Spring. TxDOT awarded the project to MBN Enterprises LLC, but a construction timeline had not yet been determined as of mid-March.
DEC. 15, 2014 Council voted to authorize the city manager to apply for an H-GAC grant for the redevelopment of FM 2920 and to allocate $3 million for the proposed project. The H-GAC awarded the $28.1 million grant in 2015.
MARCH 3, 2014 PRESENT The city works to extend Medical Complex Drive as an alternate east-west corridor to FM 2920 through Tomball.
Bert said of the planned project. “I think, in the short and long term, … it’ll be a safer place for not only vehicular tra c, but pedestrian and bicycle tra c.” Residential, business opposition As a short-term x to Main Street, Community Impact Newspaper previously reported TxDOT removed on-street parking in 2016 to add a center turn lane in Old Town. A crosswalk on FM 2920 near Elm Street was also eliminated at the time due to safety concerns. Bert said the proposed raised medians would
accomplish three goals: preventing drunk drivers from swerving into oncoming tra c, preventing left turns in which drivers misjudge the speed of oncom- ing tra c and providing better visibility. During a March 31 town hall where TxDOT pre- sented the proposed project, about 150-200 resi- dents and business owners voiced concerns. The majority were opposed to raised medians, Fagan said, although she believes most support the overall project. Residents similarly spoke out at the April 4 City Council meeting. “I love progress,” Kids Anthem owner Sharon
For more information, visit communityimpact.com .
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TOMBALL MAGNOLIA EDITION • APRIL 2022
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