More on Road Diversion/Airport Expansion for Sienna + Colony Lakes Area!

From FortbendNow.com:

McKeever Road Expansion Doesn't Pass Smell Test
When you take into account the nearly completed expansion of the Sugar Land Regional Airport, the Southwest Houston Airport expansion is not only unnecessary, it is a complete waste of money and resources. Sugar Land Regional Airport is already an alternative airport for Hobby and Bush.

According to Google Maps, the two airports are a distance of 15.9 miles (29 minutes) apart. That includes cutting through Sienna Plantation to get there!

Tom Hilton has done a great job of gathering evidence:

Judge Hebert was quoted in the 12/28/05 Fort Bend Star: “the plan would divert McKeever Road to South Post Oak – providing critical relief for the overly congested roadways for people living in Sienna Plantation as well as overall relief for motorists who use those roadways.”

Fort Bend County has Harlem Road, which has had wrecks involving fatalities, yet McKeever Road Is a “higher priority”project according to Judge Hebert.

He must have attended some different math courses than the rest us. McKeever Road has a current traffic level of about 200 cars per day projected to reach 600. Harlem Road, on the other hand, has 10,400 cars per day with a projected load of 29,400. Harlem Road has had fatalities and McKeever has not.

Draw your own conclusions but it is evident to me that lives, safety and facts are not relevant to the court or special interests that contribute to the coffers of Judge Hebert.

Again we have a perfect example of “Actions speak louder than words.”

Still the questions remain:

Why does this airport require expansion when Sugar Land has nearly completed their expansion?

Where is the benefit to the community?

How is the cost of such a project justified?

Why is the taxpayer to be burdened with the expense of the project for Jamie Griffith’s personal and private business?

Why aren’t real questions being answered?

Who can be held accountable?

How can they be held accountable?

When will they be held accountable?

Perhaps the family of the next victims of a Harlem Road motor vehicle accident should file suit against the Commissioners Court, Bob Hebert and Jamie Griffith for gross negligence and dereliction of duty?

These people are using the power they have, unjustly and for no other purpose than personal gain. They should be ashamed.

Prescott Small
Stafford

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Comment: To obtain the information on traffic rates please visit http://www.citizensforbettergovt.org/EDA.doc


See also the staged article which showed up in the FBSun and the response by yet another Sienna resident impacted by increased jet traffic over our homes here (for more area homeowner responses visit http://www.fortbendnow.com/opinion/664/2003-plans-to-expand-airport-in-arcola-secretly-moving-forward. It must also be noted that Mr. Hebert receives campaign contributions from this developer along with many other area politicians including our own mayor Allen Owen of Missouri City (who has remained silent on this issue that will negatively impact home and property values in this area of Mo-City).

Hebert responds to queries on McKeever Road, airport in Arcola

Fort Bend County Judge Bob Hebert has responded to questions raised by Sienna Plantation Residential Association regarding the Houston Southwest Airport in Arcola and the proposed realignment of McKeever Road with South Post Oak Blvd.
In a letter sent to Sandy Denton, general manager of Sienna Plantation Residential Association, last week Hebert says "The responses to your questions come from this county judge, and may not necessarily represent the views of our county commissioners. My staff has relied on official minutes of Commissioner's Court, calculations provided by the county engineer and records of the Houston Southwest Airport for the numerical data provided herein, but the opinions and conclusions are mine alone. They reflect my understanding of this mobility project at this time. "
The contents of the letter are reproduced below.

Will McKeever Road be improved and/or realigned? If so, why and how?
Yes, The county plans to extend South Post Oak southward from Highway 6, tie it into the existing McKeever and reconstruct McKeever westward as an improved two-lane road with shoulders to its intersection with Sienna Parkway. McKeever Road will remain a city street in Arcola from Highway 6 to its new intersection with the South Post Oak Boulevard extension.
The County realized that McKeever Road would cease to be a major thoroughfare when the overpass spanning Highway 6 at FM 521 was completed and began planning an alternate route to Highway 6 in the year 2000. That Highway 6 overpass now severely restricts traffic from easily and safely gaining access to Highway 6 during peak traffic periods. As Fort Bend grows South of McKeever a North-South thoroughfare from McKeever is needed to give residents an alternate hi-capacity route for access to Highway 6. Chimney Rock was originally planned to tie Highway 6 into McKeever, but that alignment was abandoned at the request of Newpoint Estate property owners as it would have bisected that community. The completion of South Post Oak Boulevard on the North side of Highway 6 coupled with the airport owner's offer to donate right-of-way across his 200+ acres South of Highway 6, plus contribute $500,000 to the construction project and to allow the city of Arcola to annex acreage along both sides of the new street significantly lowers the overall cost of this mobility project for the county and adds significant value for the city of Arcola. Completion of this project will allow traffic along the new South Post Oak/McKeever routing to access Highway 6 through a traffic controlled intersection. Future construction of the proposed Steep Bank Trace Boulevard as Sienna grows eastward will make the new South Post Oak Boulevard extension an even more important mobility asset for Sienna area residents in the future.

Why is the project being proposed? Who benefits? Who is negatively impacted?
Although I was not in office at the time, it appears that the project was proposed by Fort Bend County which engaged LJA Engineering, Inc. in January 2001 to investigate and design a realignment of McKeever.

When complete the project will benefit the present and future residents of Sienna and other areas South of McKeever in Fort Bend County; it should benefit the existing airport owner by improving airport safety and significantly increasing the value of the 200+ acres he owns through which the South Post Oak extension will pass (over and above the value of the right of way and cash contribution he has agreed to contribute to the project); and development in the annexed areas along the new South Post Oak extension should provide jobs and increased property and sales tax revenues for the city of Arcola and its taxpayers.

The current schematic alignment of the South Post Oak extension would require the acquisition of land off the back of four large acreage lots at the southern end of Newpoint Estates and that alignment would have a potentially negative impact to those four lot owners, but efforts are underway to adjust the proposed alignment to keep the roadway within the already restricted GCWA canal easement and avoid taking premium property off those lots. Under state law any purchase of right-of-way required will be made at fair market value plus any damages incurred. My personal goal is to keep the new alignment wholly within the existing right-of-way and the restricted canal easement and I believe it can be done.
How long will road traffic be impacted while the construction is done?

During the construction of the South Post Oak extension the existing McKeever Road should not be impacted as this will be a "green field" project. Once the tie-in is made to the existing McKeever there will be intermittent delays while the McKeever Road intersection with South Post Oak is constructed, and then as McKeever is resurfaced and improved with shoulders to Sienna Parkway. Work will be scheduled to minimize traffic flow interruptions and advance information will be available on the county's mobile AM radio system to keep area drivers informed as to construction areas and possible delays.
Will the runway be expanded, re-oriented, etc.?

Houston Southwest Airport is a privately owned airport operated under FAA certification as a public aviation facility. While the county has no authority to tell a private business what they may or may not do, the county is also under no obligation to use tax dollars to promote the expansion of any private business. The airport predates Newpoint Estates and Sienna by several years and its existence is protected under federal aviation rules and regulations. However, McKeever Road predates the airport, and I believe that the county is not obligated to alleviate safety conflicts incurred when the airport owner knowingly constructed the runway in close proximity to McKeever. While the county has no control over what the airport owner may do on his own property, I expect the airport owner to cooperate with us in devising a route for the new South Post Oak that will enhance the safety of his current airport operation while minimizing the taking of property in Newpoint Estates. A resolution that meets those conditions would necessarily preclude any expansion of the existing runway to the West.
Will it allow for more and or larger jet aircraft?

The Houston Southwest Airport in Arcola is an FAA designated "reliever" airport. As such it currently services a wide variety of jet aircraft. Its current runway is 5003 feet, and the airport today can safely accommodate most corporate jets. Based on the previous acquisition study performed for the County under the FAA grant, a runway expansion of less than 1000' may be feasible to the East but is limited by the railroad tracks at FM 521. No directional realignment of the runway is feasible due to potential conflicts with approaches to other area airports and other FAA safety standards. A copy of that airport study is available through the County library.

Will there be increased noise in Sienna?
Houston Southwest Airport records reflect that the airport currently experiences jet landings every other day. However, during Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, Houston Southwest Airport records reflect a tremendous increase in jet traffic as corporate and medical evacuations placed a load on all Houston area airports. On September 21-22 the airport experienced a peak volume of a jet landing or taking off every 15-20 minutes throughout the day. If you were not disturbed by the increased jet volume during the time of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, you should not be disturbed if the airport increases daily jet traffic. The volume during that hurricane period far exceeded the volume anticipated by any Houston area reliever airport during routine daily operations.

Will the risk of car/plane or plane/house accidents in Sienna increase?
The alignment solution I seek should reduce the risk when the South Post Oak/McKeever Road project is completed. Additionally, by recently applying for and accepting FAA safety grants, the airport owner has committed to making improvements to the instrument approaches, runway lighting and structural clearances that should significantly enhance the safety of operations at this airport.

How will Sienna residents be specifically impacted?
Once South Post Oak Boulevard is extended and McKeever Road is resurfaced, Sienna residents will have an additional route along McKeever onto South Post Oak to State Highway 6. Sienna Plantation's developer is required to build the proposed Steep Bank Trace Boulevard through to connect with McKeever/South Post Oak to allow traffic from the East side of Sienna to access Highway 6 without having to move westward through the development to Sienna Parkway; thereby further reducing peak-period traffic along Sienna Parkway and improving traffic patterns throughout Sienna Plantation as that areas growth continues. The developer estimates that construction of this phase of Steep Bank Trace Boulevard should begin in late 2006 or early 2007.

Could this affect my property value?
Mobility projects historically have a positive impact on property values. The improved mobility offered by the South Post Oak extension from Highway 6 should help minimize traffic congestion along Sienna Parkway as the area South of McKeever expands.

Will these improvements bring more vehicular traffic to the area? If so, how will this be mitigated?
Given the growth projected for Sienna Plantation, the opposite seems actually true. The new South Post Oak extension will improve access to Sienna Plantation from Highway 6 as Sienna grows. Sienna will provide more vehicular traffic as it develops and the new road will help alleviate potential congestion from that development and offer residents a fast and safe alternate route to Highway 6, FM 521 and Highway 288.
When would these changes take place.

The city of Arcola has passed a resolution in support of the realignment of McKeever Road and the extension of South Post Oak. Once the necessary interlocal agreements have been negotiated, commissioner's court will consider funding the project for construction. While any negotiation is subject to unforeseen delays, the County would like to begin acquiring any necessary right of way by April 1. If that date is met, actual construction could begin by August of this year.
Is this project part of a secret plan between the county and the airport owner to allow the airport to expand its operations?
Not to my knowledge. If there is a secret plan, no one has let me in on the secret. In fact, I have rejected two previous requests from the airport owner to purchase the airport with federal money and convert it to public ownership.
The first occurred when the airport owner sought to have the city of Arcola acquire the airport using FAA funds for the purchase price. Acting then as the court appointed receiver for the city, I rejected that request. The second occurred following the first rejection when the airport owner turned to the county with a request that the county acquire the airport.
Shortly after I took office as county judge, and following a detailed FAA funded study of a possible acquisition, all four county commissioners joined with me to unanimously reject that request. With that rejection the ownership and operation of the airport remains in private hands and any future improvements to that facility would be planned and performed by the private owner on his property subject to review and approval (and possible funding) by the FAA.

Hebert's Response...
Hebert's comment are far from actual truth:
http://www.eltoroairport.org/issues/impacts.html
http://www.eltoroairport.org/issues/rbell.htm
http://www.eltoroairport.org/issues/AirportNoise.pdf
http://www.braac.org/Impact_on_land_values.pdf
http://www.eltoroairport.org/issues/taxloss.html
http://landuse.aers.psu.edu/study/BerksExecutiveSummary.htm

This are just a very, very small sampling of a simple Google search for research on Airports and their impact on residential areas. Some actual $ figures and some what you would need to invest in to reduce airport noise.
My personal opinion is this: HOG WASH...
Steep Bank East in Sienna Plantation is going to take the brunt of this for my area...let only those people who live of of McKeever.

The expansion is not in the best interest of Sienna... improving the quality of McKeever Road 'Yes', not airport expansion.
Oh, not disturbed by jet noise during the hurricanes? Please, I was to busy trying to get out of the area as suggested by the mayor of Houston and Governor of Texas.

Steep Bank East has a 30" industrial pipeline from DOW running through it... almost everyday a pipeline patrol place flys through here... it's a single engine plane, trust I hear and it is disturbing... now JETS?
So, let add this up... Trains, Planes and more automobile traffic.

Airport Expansion is not a MOBILITY PROJECT... MOBILITY PROJECTS are ROADS, inlets and outlets not air traffic.
I moved out here like alot of people to get away from the noise and hurried pace of Houston... enough is enough.
Hebert does not have Sienna Plantations or the residents of, best interests at heart. This change inpacts his area and ours... I urge all residents who don't airport expansion to express this to Hebert personal.

John Armstrong,
Sienna Plantation Resident
Missouri City, TX