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County Pulls The Plug On Plans To Divert McKeever Road
by Bob Dunn, Feb 28, 03:51 pm

Fort Bend County Commissioners Court put the brakes on a controversial plan to divert Arcola’s McKeever Road – also known as the South Post Oak extension project.

After an executive session on Tuesday, commissioners and County Judge Bob Hebert voted unanimously to reject the realignment of McKeever Road “as proposed by Houston Southwest Airport.”

The unexpected move means several residents of Newpoint Estates – who’d been led to believe their property would be condemned for right-of-way in the road diversion project – can breathe easier.

“Their property essentially will be intact permanently,” Hebert said. “This county judge will oppose any taking of their land.”

Hebert released a letter to Jamie Griffith, president of the airport, in which he said the county “has determined that any extension of South Post Oak Boulevard, from State Highway 6 to McKeever Road, is premature at this time because no justifiable right-of-way alignment exists…”

Hebert cited intentions by Arcola City Council to retain McKeever as a city street along the proposed diversion to Highway 6; the fact that the proposed right-of-way would take more than 4 acres from four Newpoint Estate lots; and the fact that McKeever Road already existed before the airport owners built their runway.

“And that runway was knowingly built in close proximity to McKeeever Road’s right-of-way. Therefore, Houston Southwest Airport must correct any conflicts existing between its runway and McKeever Road under FAA regulations,” Hebert’s letter states.

”...If you desire to offer right-of-way for South Post Oak Boulevard in the future, we advise you that your runway needs to be adjusted to remove any FAA clearance conflicts with McKeever Road and any proposed extension of South Post Oak Boulevard,” Hebert’s letter states. Any new offer of right-of-way for a new McKeever/South Post Oak alignment “must remain wholly within property that you own, or be accompanied by documentation of the acceptance of the alignment by any other property owners losing property…”

Thus, the county is leaving the door open to realign McKeever in the future, but under restrictions that don’t include condemning private property.

The proposed realignment has drawn fire from a vocal group of Arcola residents, in part because plans originally called for diverting McKeever Road north of a drainage canal running parallel to Houston Southwest Airport property. To accomplish that, the county – or the city of Arcola – would have to acquire or condemn about 100 feet of land from four private parcels in the Newpoint Estates residential community.

Hebert said Griffith isn’t likely to be surprised by the court’s action to dump that plan, because he met with Griffith on Monday to go over the details of what the court was contemplating.

“He accepted it,” Hebert said of Griffith. “He’s not a happy camper, but he’s accepted the reality of it.”

Hebert said the county intends to rebuild McKeever, keeping it as a two-lane road on its current alignment, and adding improved shoulders on each side to improve safety.

“We’re going to have to tear it up and rebuild it,” he said. “It will be a new county road.” He estimated the work will cost about $1.5 million.

He said with the improved McKeever Road, a new road called Steep Bank Trace also will be built, which will provide access to an undeveloped portion of Sienna Plantation property.

Hebert called rebuilding McKeever a temporary solution, because added traffic eventually will require a new plan.

“In the next five or six years, we’ll have to do something,” he said. “But it ain’t going to that alignment.”

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Comment: A word of caution on this project. It has been our experience that this plan never really goes away. It only fades from the spotlight to be revisited by those vested interests still pushing it. Keep an eye on it over time and you will see the pattern of behavior.--Thanks Again Tom Hilton and Citizens for Better Government at http://www.citizensforbettergovt.org/ .