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Tomball discusses uses for relief funds
Magnolia seeks newVFWpost
BY CHANDLER FRANCE
coming this year, City Manager David Esquivel said. Council members approved using $1.7 million in ARPA funds to replace the city’s existing water meters and transmitters during a Jan. 17 meet- ing. Other uses proposed during the Jan. 3 meeting included providing grants to nonprofit organizations, replacing hotel occupancy tax revenue lost as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and improving occupancy tax revenue fund would use more than $524,000 of the city’s allotted ARPA funds, according to a presentation to council. The city also proposed using $100,000 to provide grants to nonprofit organizations and the remaining $527,437 for improvements to the Tomball Historic Depot. Council Member Chad Degges said he would rather see the city use regularly budgeted funds than ARPA funds for improvements to the depot. “We didn’t have these projects. ... the Tomball Historic Depot. Building up the city’s hotel They weren’t on our to-do list that we have to do right now,” Degges said. “One of the things we can do is help households and small businesses.”
During January meetings, Tomball City Council discussed potential uses for the funding it has been allocated by the American Rescue Plan Act, a $350 billion federal COVID-19 relief package. Tomball will receive a total of $2.92 million with half already received and the remaining funds The city is receiving funds from the American Rescue Plan Act, a $350 billion federal relief fund. Tomball will receive $2.92M from the $350 billion relief fund. Potential projects
BY ANNA LOTZ
Veterans in the Magnolia community are working to restart a Veterans of Foreign Wars post in Magnolia. Harold Reed, a Magnolia resident and commander of the Grimes County VFW, said Mag- nolia previously had a VFW post that closed in the late 1980s or early 1990s. Reed said veterans in Magnolia must travel to posts in Conroe, The Woodlands, Tomball or Navasota. “The needs assessment that we did [in November] showed ... the community needed a VFW post,” Reed said. “For the most part, what we’ve been seeing is that Magnolia veterans have been pretty much staying put; they haven’t joined any post.” Reed said there must be at least 35 members to apply for a charter to create the post, which would need state and national approval. He said membership drives will be held in March and April with hopes to apply in July.
$524,000* to replenish hotel occupancy revenue approximately $1.7M earmarked to replace water and gas meters
$527,437* for Historic Depot improvements
$100,000* for nonprofit grants
*PROPOSED
SOURCE: CITY OF TOMBALL/ COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
Old Conroe Road expansion project under federal review
1 Lake Creek bridge 2 San Jacinto River bridge
SGT. ED HOLCOMBE BLVD.
281.469.7745 CypressChristian.org
Two lanes expanded to four Proposed alignment
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BY JISHNU NAIR
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A federal review process is underway for the Old Conroe Road expansion on the Magnolia-Conroe border to make sure it is eligible for federal funding, said Michael Keck, the project manager for the city of Conroe’s chosen engi- neering firm, LJA Engineering. He said the review could take a few years. Keck confirmed construction will likely begin in 2024 and take anywhere from two and a half to three years. LJA Engineering received a $120 million budget from the city of Conroe for the project. According to metropolitan planning organization the Houston-Galveston Area Council, the Old Conroe Road project is slated to receive $77.9 million in federal funds and $23.4 million in local funds. In an April public presentation, LJA Engineering described the project as a way to improve connectivity in southern Montgomery County. Old Conroe Road will be connected to South Sgt. Ed Holcombe Boulevard with a pair of bridges across Lake Creek and the West Fork of the
OLD CONROE RD.
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SOURCE: LJA ENGINEERING/ COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
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San Jacinto River, according to LJA Engineering. Additionally, both Sgt. Ed Holcombe Boulevard and Old Conroe Road would be widened from two to four lanes to relieve congestion. The project also contains medians and intermittent sidewalks, according to LJA’s presentation. Keck said the bridge crossing the West Fork posed several challenges for LJA, including ensuring it was high enough to avoid potential floods from the river. Another time-consuming aspect of the project involves construct- ing in the wetlands, which requires approval from the Army Corps of Engineering, Keck said.
COMING TO BRIDGELAND 2025
K-12 • est. 1978
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TOMBALL - MAGNOLIA EDITION • JANUARY 2022
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