June 27, 2010
Good times ahead, say speakers at North County summit
WILLIS – Good times are still ahead. That was the fundamental message delivered at the second annual North Montgomery County Economic Outlook and Planning Summit Thursday.
An audience of more than 100 attended the event hosted by the city of Willis’ Economic Council and Entergy Texas’ Team Cities Program. They spent more than three hours at the North Montgomery Community Center listening to 14 elected officials and civic leaders discuss a variety of topics from government to transportation, education, economic development and community development.
State Rep. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, captured the crowd’s attention talking about the upcoming state legislative session. While the state has approximately $8 billion in its “rainy day fund,” lawmakers need to find at least another $1 billion in revenue to meet the $182 billion the state has spent during its budget over the past two years.
Creighton told the audience he welcomed their ideas to generate that additional revenue, regardless that their ideas involved casinos or slot machines at the horse track.
“It (the budget) will be a challenge,” said Creighton, adding that the budget is the only bill the Legislature is required to pass when the session commences in January.
Creighton said redistricting will be a hot-button issue in January. Texas’ growth in population – to about 26 million – could result in another U.S. congressman and a third state representative for Montgomery County.
“I’ve seen more congressmen in the last four months than I’ve seen in the previous four years,” he quipped.
Spending also was a topic for Montgomery County Judge Alan B. Sadler. The county addresses its 2010-2011 budget with hearings the last week of August. Commissioners approved a record $213.9 million budget this past year.
Any increase in spending should put more deputies “on the street fighting crime,” said Sadler, adding that the upcoming budget and a proposed $330 million road bond “need a lot of thought.”
James Koch, Houston regional director for the Texas Department of Transportation, gave an optimistic outlook for construction along the North County transportation corridor. Expansion of Interstate 45 from League Line Road to Calvary Road – funded by federal stimulus money – is scheduled for completion by the first quarter of 2014.
A half-dozen rehab projects in the Willis area are slated to begin between August 2010 and 2013. Funding for major projects throughout Houston is shrinking, Koch said. The figure will be $350 million next year and will be down to $100 million to $150 million by 2012.
“We’ve added capacity projects to the best of abilities, but the money’s tight,” he said.
Willis Police Chief James Nowak reported that crashes in the city have dropped from 101 through May 2009 to 81 during a similar period in 2010.
How much the city’s newly installed red-light cameras had in that 19.8 percent reduction, Nowak didn’t know.
“But it looks promising,” he said.
After years of double-digit growth, Mark Castleschouldt said the drop in property valuations was inevitable.
“We knew it was coming. We just didn’t know when,” he said.
Castleschouldt still anticipates “moderate growth,” and industrial and commercial growth should continue in North Montgomery County where, “there’s a tremendous amount property.”
”I’m an optimist,” he said.
County Tax Assessor/Collector J.R. Moore reiterated that message, noting the $160 million value of the Anadarko Tower that fully hits the county tax roll starting in January.
While 2009 sales tax revenue in Willis was 13.5 percent off compared with 2008, sales tax revenue was off only 4.2 percent from April 2009, city economic consultant J. Rice said.
“It’s beginning to show we’re coming out of this,” he told the audience.
Construction of the Sam Houston Town Center will play a big role when that turnaround takes place.
Anchored by a 125,000-square-foot Kroger Marketplace, the center could bring $19 billion in additional value to Willis over the next quarter-century, said Jay Sears, co-founder of NewQuest Properties, which is building the facility through a private/public partnership with the city of Willis.
More than 40,000 people are expected to frequent the retail center, meaning it will attract customers from Bentwater, Montgomery, Huntsville and Conroe, he said.
A new furniture store is scheduled to open there in the spring or early summer 2011.
“It will serve as the catalyst for future growth,” Sears said.
Sears said the existing Kroger supermarket, with its capacity of 60,000 square feet, is drawing interest from various national businesses.
Willis Independent School District Superintendent Dr. Brian Zemlicka said the district’s recent growth is at 2.5 percent, but that could increase once the widening of I-45 is completed.
He said the 26-room expansion on the east side of the high school campus is now complete.
