The Courier of Montgomery County reports that Conroe city officials plan to divert funds for needed water and sewer infrastructure projects by canceling a $193 million project to extend Old Conroe Road. Lack of funding commitment from Montgomery County was cited as a reason for the cancellation.
Montgomery County Judge Mark Keough, however, said his office is working with Precinct 2 Commissioner Charlie Riley to ensure the road project goes forward despite Conroe’s cancellation last Thursday.
Keough said he looked at the project as “imperative” for the county. He said, “It’s a lot of money (the Houston Galveston Area Council) is throwing at this and we want to be sure we don’t lose this opportunity. We are going to move forward with the project.”
Conroe was left to fund about $40 million dollars, while the city had secured federal funds through HGAC to cover most of the cost.
Bond funds were allocated by the city for the project. However, Assistant City Administrator and Director of Public Works, Norm McGuire, said the funds could be reallocated to address the city’s bad situation with the lack of water infrastructure.
Along with other city officials, Councilman Howard Wood worked with HGAC to get funding and asked to have the decision deferred because of concerns about giving up over $170 million in federal funds.
In a letter to City Administrator Gary Scott and Deputy City Administrator Nancy Mikeska, McGuire said $4.7 million has already been spent by the city on the project. He estimated that an additional $42.5 million will be needed because of the county’s “lack of commitment.”
McGuire said that considering the current situation, the staff does not see it as being “fiscally responsible to continue allocating taxpayer funds toward a project that lacks full cooperative support.”
