A major project to build a new Houston wastewater sewer plant will begin this year. It’s one of several construction projects on the schedule in Houston during the next 12 months, community leaders said this week.
In June, Houston voters approved a $3.5 million bond issue to pay for a new wastewater treatment plant. They also OK’d a 20-year extension to a quarter-cent utility tax already on the books that was expected to expire in July 2010.
Larry Sutton, Houston city administrator, said this week that bids will be released for the plant and construction could begin this summer.
The city began studying the issue with its financial consultants and engineers after mandates to meet state and federal standards require improvements to the 1970s-era sewer plant.
The city also plans to:
*Increase the number of asphalt overlays planned for streets.
*Work with residents to explain how city government operates. It hopes the education process will lead to an increased interest in residents wanting to serve on the council, city committees and other functions.
*Begin updating city ordinances, including the subdivision and planning and zoning laws.
*Continue recruitment for new industry and jobs for Houston, while helping existing companies grow their businesses.
*Proceed with other legs of the Village Trail, a walking and bicycling venue in the community. A section from West Highway 17 and South Sam Houston Blvd. will soon begin and runs to Grand Avenue. Other sections that could be done this year: Grand Avenue to Emmett Kelly Park and possibly in front and south of the Texas County Justice Center.
*Continue studying the possibility of a new well and water tower in the city’s industrial park on North Industrial Park.
Members of the Texas County Commission will launch a complete renovation of the former courthouse, now know as the Texas County Administrative Center, said Presiding Commissioner Don Shelhammer. That comes after several offices relocated to the new Texas County Justice Center.
Shelhammer said when the sheriff’s department jail relocates to the new justice center, work will begin to renovate the Grand Avenue building. The county clerk, county commission, assessor, collector/treasurer and the recorder’s office are targeted for work.
“We hope to have an office completed in a new location before the move from the old one,” explained Shelhammer.
The top floor will be completed first, and the ground level will follow. The commissioner’s offices will be the last to relocate, he said.
Shelhammer and associate commissioners Linda Garrett and John Casey, who began duties Jan. 1, will begin developing a budget this month. At the top of the list is the operational costs for the county justice center.
“We are in uncharted territory for the new justice center. We do not have any experience in just what it will cost to operate,” Shelhammer said. “It will require close monitoring from all elected officials to insure we have adequate funds to sustain the operations with new employees and increased jail capacity.”
Just how much revenue the county will garner from three, half-cent sales taxes also is in question amid a shaky national economy. In 2008, the tally was slightly down from the previous year.
Members of the Houston board of education will meet with patrons again next month to give an update on a 40,000 – 45,000 square foot new high school proposal.
The project, which will appear on the April ballot, will likely result in a commons area that includes a dining hall/lunch room, kitchen, media center/computer lab, general classroom spaces and office and support room. No location has been decided. An addition and renovation of the current library also is under consideration to meet state recommendations on space.
A $5 million general obligation bond would not result in any additional levy. An additional $2.5 million considered as part of a lease-purchase agreement would result in a 43-51 cent increase in the levy, depending on the payback period. There also is the chance the school might be able to tap into a federal public works program that is expected to include school construction to stimulate the economy.
About 70 percent of those attending a forum last month supported the bond issue.
TCMH Project: At Texas County Memorial Hospital, officials will continue to monitor the bond markets and the economy as they gauge timing for a $18 million project that would result in a 52,000 square foot expansion and remodeling of the existing building.
In November, the board halted plans for the project after interest rates rose on bonds needed to finance the project. The increased expense added $2 million in extra interest costs. That fact, along with a shaky national economy, prompted board members to side the project aside for a time.