Residents Make Requests On Airport Expansion Project and Hammer Mayor Owen for Lack of Action on Apartments!
-a MissouriCityChatter.blogspot.com exclusive:
At last nights Missouri City Council open session, speaking to a near full house, several area homeowners made requests of city council to intervene on their behalf with the county and Bob Hebert to stop the S.W. Airport expansion project and road diversion that has been in the news recently and is supported by Sienna developers. This project has the potential to adversely impact some 10-15,000 area homeowners.
Citizens representing Colony Lakes, West Point, Waterbrook, Silver Ridge, Waterbrook West, Sienna Plantation, Oakwick, New Point Estates and others were in attendance at this timely session. As one resident entered the room he was greeted with the comment by one city official “I wasn’t aware there was anything important on the agenda tonight”.
This myth was soon dispelled once the open session arrived. The first area speaker, Rodrigo Carreon, asked the council to get involved in cutting down noise via the airport expansion rather than passing more silly dog noise ordinances. This seemed to get a chuckle out of one or two of the council members in attendance at the time. Carreon was followed by Paul Malone of the Waterbrook neighborhood off Sienna parkway.
As usual Paul’s eloquent delivery and gracious approach to the airport and apartment land use issues was evident. He said he had many concerns with what he’s seen in the local area with regard for “distrust of government”. Malone was referring to the December 13th flip-flop in front of abc13 news cameras he witnessed on the airport issue at Arcola city hall by Mayor Gipson and the July 2005 uninvestigated ethics complaints over the 2700 apartments forced on Sienna and Missouri City residents by Mayor Allen Owens’s #2 campaign contributor Larry Johnson of Johnson Development Co.-Houston (’99-’05).
Finally, Dr. Calvin spoke on four issues impacting his neighborhood of Sienna Plantation and surrounding communities. He lead off with a similar request that the council oppose the current airport and road diversion project because of the negative impact this may have on home values. He claimed “according to the research literature homes on average within 2 miles of either end of the fly-way are impacted by 1-2%. When this is factored to all residents living in this area and on both ends of the runway this runs into the millions of lost dollars in property value and taxes”.
Calvin also addressed the issues of the 3rd owner of South Sienna taking place (another resale in 7 months) “without our developer run HOA keeping Sienna residents informed of this action”. His concern on this issue seemed to stem from the promises made in June over no more apartments being built in the South Sienna area. This and other commitments made by the #2 owner (Regents Prop. Of California) may no longer be a condition of the new ownership (we believe a company out of Arizona has purchased the property according to city sources).
The final two issues addressed by Calvin were the uninvestigated city ethics complaints filed in July against Mayor Owen, which lead to a SLAPP suit against Calvin by the mayor's backers, and the fact that the city had taken no action to reduce or remove the 1800 phase 2 apartments as requested through a petition garnering over 1100+ area signatures last summer. These apartments are coming to North Sienna courtesy of Owen’s #2 contributor and benefactor for this land sale, Johnson Development Co.-Houston (Larry Johnson, President) and developer for Sienna Plantation and Riverstone communities here in Missouri City. He also mentioned the new attitude of the Greater Fort Bend County EDC against apartment over-development, by new president John Wiley (click title link for this interview by Mr. Kumar of the FB Sun).
For more on this and other South hwy 6/Sienna area updates. . . stay tuned here to MissouriCityChatter.blogspot.com.
Stay informed and keep in touch!
posted by responsible_dvlpmnt at Tuesday, February 21, 2006
15 Comments:
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Don't forget the petition drive to reform the developer/building trades at:
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/322833272?ltl=1138543614
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
More on airport misinfo from FBSun:
Arcola resident responds to county judge's memo on McKeever Road expansion, airport
I am writing this letter in response to County Judge Bob Hebert's article in your paper on Feb. 8, where he responds to queries on McKeever Road and Houston SW Airport. I believe the judge was incorrect on several key points which I feel need to be pointed out.
Before doing so however, the point needs to be made that there is one reason, and one reason only for South Post Oak to intrude into Newpoint. That reason is that the FAA has set a Control Point where no road can be situated, and McKeever presently violates that Safety Zone. Therefore, the road must be diverted around this Control Point, which South Post Oak provides by intruding into Newpoint. All of the other blathering that the judge does on the article to justify the county's action in this matter is nothing more than hog-wash.
1) Hebert: "...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..significantly lowers the overall cost of this mobility project for the county..."
Response: The required condemnation/purchase of 10+ acres in Newpoint, required compensation for adjoining landowners for reduced property values, required re-location of Duke Road, and inverse condemnation of Neuhaus property will cost the county significantly more than anything that Griffith is offering. The statement that the cost will be lowered is a mis-statement.
2) Hebert: "...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".
Response: The realignment of McKeever was not initiated by Fort Bend County, but rather by the owner of Houston SW Airport Jamie Griffith. This fact is illustrated in a letter from Griffith to then Fort Bend County Judge Adolphus dated April 19, 2000 (8 months prior to January 2001) in which he states; "An integral part of the future development of Houston SW Airport is the expansion of the airport north across McKeever Road and the Briscoe Canal. In order for this to happen, McKeever Road needs to be diverted up to Highway 6 where it will tie into South Post Oak. To facilitate the inclusion of this project in the upcoming (Mobility Bond) election, I will commit to dedicating the right-of-way to the county and to funding 50 percent of the road's construction cost between Highway 6 and the old McKeever Road. Upon completion of the new McKeever Road/South Post Oak, the old McKeever Road right-of-way would be deeded to the airport owner."
3) Hebert: "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."
Response: The people who own the property in question have paid, and continue to pay property taxes on the land extending all the way to McKeever Road. This property includes a 200 ft. wide GCWA canal easement. The judge is hinting that if he is capable of building South Post Oak "wholly within the restricted canal easement" then he is not harming the property owners. This is an incorrect statement. The judge admits that this canal easement is restricted - presumably for canal-related business...not road construction. And because the proposed use by the county exceeds the scope of the easement, the county would have to pay the landowners for the land included inside the easement. Although the landowners cannot build inside the restricted easement, the easement is fulfilling the important purpose of providing a buffer zone from other development (including road construction).
4) Hebert: "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".
Response: What needs to happen, since the airport is currently out of compliance with FAA safety regulations (runway was built too close to McKeever in the first place), is that the County should insist that McKeever Road be taken out of harm's way by requiring the airport owner to remove 950 ft. from the west end of the runway. The health and safety of Fort Bend County residents using McKeever Road should be foremost in the county's cocnern here. Mr. Griffith has ample room (211 acres) in which to build South Post Oak to McKeever, and if the county interferes here to confiscate properties in Newpoint, then this is nothing more than eminent domain abuse disguised as a mobility issue. This will accomplish "the enhancement of the safety of his current airport operation while minimizing the taking of property in Newpoint Estates", as it will bring the airport into compliance with FAA safety guidelines while not requiring condemnation of any Newpoint properties at all.
5) Hebert: "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 second (rejection) occurred when the airport owner turned to the county with a request that the county acquire the airport."
Resposne: Mr. Griffith sent a letter on August 8, 2000 to Bob Hebert along with other leaders of the Greater Fort Bend County Economic Development Council; Judge Adolphus, Bob Brown, and Herb Appel detailing what needs to be done to setup the airport for acquisition by Fort Bend County. To quote Mr. Griffith: "The conclusions, I believe are that; 1) Houston SW Airport needs a sponsor front and center (Fort Bend County) to lead the conversion to public ownership project. And 2) To get funding for the called-for studies (The $500,000 appropriated by Tom DeLay for the sham called the Airport Feasibility Study) this year, I believe the appropriate officials should immediately contact Dave Fulton, indicate their desires, and demand some cooperation."
Judge Hebert and the GFCEDC have been instrumental (and still are as evidenced by the judge's actions today) in pushing the airport expansion project forward. The fact is that the county declined acquisition of this airport only because the city of Arcola forced them to decline acquisition. The judge is trying to take credit where none is due here.
The county needs to do the right thing here by; 1) Not getting involved in eminent domain abuse to obviously benefit a private developer, and 2) Demand that this airport be brought into compliance with FAA safety regulations by removing 950 ft. from the west end of the runway. The possible expansion of this runway by 950 ft. eastward does not make any sense as the airport currently cannot meet FAA safety regulations - bringing in more and larger jets is only going to exacerbate this safety problem.
Thomas J. Hilton
Arcola
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Hi JK, LJ, DG, CJ, etc. JDC/SJD! . . . . waving at ya!
From FBNow.com:
Another Sugar Land Apartment Robbery!!!
Pair Of Armed Robbers Pull Sugar Land Man From Car; Three Others Escape
Two men pulled a Sugar Land man from his vehicle and robbed him at gunpoint in front of his residence Friday night, and police believe the same suspects attempted two more robberies but failed when the victims were able to escape.
All three incidents happened between 11 and 11:30 p.m. Friday. In the first, a man told police he’d just pulled into his parking space at an apartment complex in the 2700 block of Grants Lake Boulevard. Two suspects approached, pulled his car door open and yanked him from the vehicle, robbing him of his wallet at gunpoint.
This is the article that gives good background on the threaded post:
Council speakers slam Missouri City
officials over Sienna apartment issue
By Barbara Fulenwider
At most city council meetings none to few speak during the public comments part of the agenda but at Missouri City’s July 18 council meeting the mayor and council got an ear full.
Chris Calvin, who has been identified in local media as the spokesman and co-chair of Committee for Responsible Development, which opposes apartments in Missouri City, was the first speaker and he told council and Mayor Allen Owen that he had requested a copy of the mayor’s campaign contributions.
Calvin said that over the past two election cycles 60 percent of the total contributions came from developers and that Larry Johnson, developer of Sienna Plantation, was among the largest donors in that group.
Calvin also said that at the June 6 council meeting residents spoke up opposing apartments in Sienna and "were treated with little courtesy" by the mayor.
Specifically, Calvin said that when one resident spoke opposing apartments the mayor told him that he could sell his house if he didn’t like it here. Calvin requested that an ethics committee be formed "to look into this" in regard to the code of ethics council members must adhere to. He ended by requesting that the developer contributions to Owen’s campaigns be entered into the public record of the July 18 meeting.
Paul Malone also spoke on the issues Calvin raised and "how the city has handled some of the issues are my concern." He began by saying he had nothing to say about apartments, that his issues are "how council and the mayor have been functioning in recent months -- how the city has handled some of the issues.
"It is hard to imagine that anyone in the city has acted more responsibly in the development of our city than you," Malone told Owen, but added that the mayor’s remarks at the June 6 council meeting were "especially troublesome to me.
"The perception is "the way you’ve done some things, especially recently, (which) have contributed to the distress and confusion in our community. I’m focusing on you (Owen) because you’re the leader. I know you alone can’t take any action without council. It’s not all your fault." And he said he was sorry that council members Jerry Wyatt and Don Smith were not present.
Malone referred to the June 6 meeting where two residents of Sienna protested apartments during an agenda item concerning the Sienna Plantation Joint Development Agreement.
"It’s not acceptable to me for any official to criticize a citizen that you’ve put in a particular position," Malone said referring to the fact that the mayor strongly answered a citizen who does not live in the city limits.
At that meeting council voted to annex a commercial area in order to collect sales taxes while many residential areas in Sienna are not in Missouri City so pay no property taxes and are not represented on city council.
"Some Sienna citizens have been made dysfunctional by the situation they are in," Malone said adding that he believes council has "seen some of this type of dysfunction in some of the people who have tried to address you."
Malone said the mayor’s comments pose the perception to citizens that those who contribute more money to the city via taxes carry more weight than those who don’t. "You told (homeowner) Robert Die, that Johnson has a lot more invested in Sienna than Die has invested in his home. Your words and actions stressed that who has the most invested or at stake gets a bigger vote in what the city does.
If this is a miscommunication or perception not based on reality, then mayor, you need to look at how you’re functioning that has caused this to happen. "The owner of a business consulting firm in Missouri City said he wasn’t for hire but urged them to hire a consultant to help them "understand what’s going on in regard to this situation so it doesn’t deteriorate further. In my opinion, it will only get worse unless you and council change some things."
_-Mayor, you’ve done many things right in this city and you’ve done some things wrong and I ask you to find some way to deal with these people differently. That goes for all of council, not just you, mayor.
Keep up the good work but please do it a little different," Malone said. Owen replied, "It troubles us as well. It has divided the council and is dividing the city and there’s not an easy solution to it; there are a lot of outside factions to it.
The A word has set us back to where we were three years ago. "Then he pointed to his 30-year friendship with Sienna Plantation Developer Larry Johnson and said that "because of that relationship, I was able to sit down with him and get the compromise they agreed to on the apartments.
Had I not had that personal relationship with him, I’m not sure he would have agreed and we (Missouri City) ended up with a hospital. "The mayor said he’s "proud of the fact that developers and builders who built this city have chosen to support me in my role as mayor," that he’s "proud of what Johnson & Sienna brought to this city" and denied having ever shown "any favoritism to any developer regardless of their contribution to me.
The state of Texas has a very strong ethics law and one we always abide by. I’ve never tried to hide anything. "Owen said he’s lived in Missouri City for 29 years and served as a city official for 25 years and it’s "a thankless job" because "you can never please everybody.
There will always be two sides. I appreciate your comments. I think they were sincere. We’ll all try to do a better job and thank you. "Then Gerry Hookstra stepped to the microphone, and the Missouri City resident who lives in Sienna, spoke to a petition drive started to stop more apartments from being built in Sienna.
So far, he said more than 1,100 residents have signed the petition against a second group of apartments and that only one in 25 home owners or 5 percent didn’t sign on. "No more than 150 to 200 residents would support a second grouping of apartments.
Ninety-five percent plus do not want a second group of up to 1,800 apartments in the area adjacent to the Planned Development 8 region where currently up to 900 apartments are already approved. "Most residents in Sienna seem very happy with the course of development with the exception of unwanted apartments and the lack of representation here.
We are requesting that city council initiate an amendment to the developer’s agreement that removes or significantly reduces the number of apartment units near Waterbrook West."
Yet another comment on this expansion from FBNow.com:
17 Someone's gotta watch the shop - Feb 21, 01:58 am
The Houston Southwest Airport has received grants contrary to FAA guidelines and standards. This is highly suspicious, as many of decisions made to permit this sub-standard airport to receive money was made by one man: FAA’s own Mike Nicely.
In order to receive our tax dollars through the FAA grant, an airport must be included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems (NPIAS). The NPIAS identifies those public-use airports considered to be safe, efficient, and within an integrated system of airports in order to meet the needs of civil aviation, national defense, and the Postal service. This airport does not meet the FAA’s own safety standards as stated below, and so it did not meet the definition for inclusion.
Granting of these funds is contrary to FAA Order 5100.38B, Change 1, dated January 8, 2004
para 36. Mandatory Standards.
In complying with Assurance 34, a sponsor is required to comply with all appropriate technical guidelines incorporated into identified advisory circulars, and these standards become mandatory for the project being funded. The list of the advisory circulars is published electronically on the World Wide Web. Any guidance that needs to be specifically required for a project other than that identified in the headquarters list of current advisory circulars should be added to the project as a special condition. Standards in effect on the date of allocation of AIP funds to a project apply to that project. Standards that become effective after the date of allocation may be applied to the project by mutual agreement between the FAA and the sponsor. As allowed in Title 49 U.S.C., Section 47105©, where states have established and the Secretary has approved airport development standards at nonprimary, public-use airports (other than standards for safety of approaches) the applicable State standards shall be used. Any modification to the technical standards of the advisory circulars identified must be processed in accordance with the procedures of FAA Order 5300.1, “Approval Level of Modification of Airport Design Standards”.
One of the specific violations of these “mandatory standards” is the Runway Safety Area (RSA) for Runway 9 (west side of the airport). Per AC 150/5300-13, Chg 8, Chapter 3, paragraph 305c:
Sub-standard RSAs. RSA standards cannot be modified or waived like other airport design standards. The dimensional standards remain in effect regardless of the presence of natural or man-made objects or surface conditions that might create a hazard to aircraft that leave the runway surface.
It was common knowledge that Houston Southwest did not meet RSA standards especially because of McKeever Road. To quote Mike Nicely of the FAA; “One of the impediments that prevent Houston Southwest from meeting FAA design standards is the present location of McKeever Road near the west end of the runway. Vehicles traveling on McKeever Rd violate the runway threshold-siting surface…allowing McKeever Rd. to exist in it’s present state or in an improved state….would conflict with FAA design standards. In addition, McKeever Rd. in its present location would preclude any extension of the runway.”
This airport was not within compliance of the “current standards for safety of approaches” as of February 24, 2005 when the grant was awaiting its rubber-stamp approval from puppet TxDoT. Per Linda Howard, TxDoT Aviation Division:
The FAA decides where the discretionary money goes. We showed a potential project in the NPIAS/CIP for the airport; however, the FAA makes the decision on what discretionary funds are available and which airports get how much. They are often helped in this decision-making by congressional delegations. The funds will likely flow through our agency because we are a block grant state for federal funds.
Note the term “congressional”. And then note that the owner of the airport has contributed the maximum amount to Congressman Tom DeLay’s campaign for several years.
Could Mr. Nicely have received congressional pressure to reverse his concerns about Houston Southwest’s non-compliance with FAA standards? And of course, the ugly terms “graft and corruption” can not be forgotten here.
Even the proposal of this grant violates FAA’s own guideline that “Airports should be compatible with surrounding communities…” by dismissing the opposition expressed below:
(1) FAA and TxDoT have copies of a 2003 petition with approximately 1000 signatures of Texas citizens opposing the use of tax dollars for this airport.
(2) Fort Bend County considered purchasing the airport. However, after review of the feasibility study for the purchase of the airport, the county declined to sponsor the airport.
(3) Three Fort Bend County cities (Rosenberg, Richmond, and Arcola) passed 2003 resolutions against the governmental support of the airport.
Why so much opposition?
FACTS: The airport is landlocked by five railroad tracks for the Union Pacific and BNSF on the east and south, two canals (one to the north and two to the east), two roads to the north (McKeever) and east (FM 521), and three residential areas-north, west, and east. Per the FAA, the airport is in congested airspace, and has potential conflicts with Hobby Airport, Ellington Field and Sugar Land Municipal. The airport is within a flood plain. This airport is limited to one runway which is contrary to prevailing winds. There are three other airports 30 minutes or less away from Arcola: Hobby, Brazoria and Sugar Land. The fact that Sugar Land is located only 14 miles away from Houston Southwest, and is well within the NPIAS Standards of 20 miles between airports, means that funding for Houston Southwest is a redundant use of tax dollars. There are also additional smaller airstrips and airports in the area.
Any dollars spent for the improvement of this airport would be misdirected, misappropriated and misused. An investigation is highly warranted.
Related piece in the FB Sun (November):
OP/ED Piece in the FB SUN Today (Comments on Goff Smears):
Views on apartments shared by many
11/14/2005
It has this community divided."
He stated that this issue of additional apartments had created a firestorm that has the council back to its conflicted way of functioning of three years ago, at which time the council as a group sought professional counseling to reduce the conflict. Mayor Owen made these comments following my comments to the council about the problem of how they were handling some things for our city.
Anyone can go to the Missouri City home page on the internet at http://www.ci.mocity.tx.us and follow the links to see the video of this meeting and hear these comments for themselves.
In marked contrast to the mayor's publicly stated opinion about an issue that has the entire community and the city council itself divided, your paper published on the front page of your November 9, 2005, issue quotations from Doug Goff, senior vice president & director of Land Development of the Johnson Development Corporation. Mr. Goff is quoted as saying that "By doing this (postings made under different aliases on a blog site), Mr. Calvin gave the false impression that the views he was espousing ... were shared by a large number of Sienna Plantation residents." This front page story in part created the impression that this issue of new apartments in the area was only between Mr. Calvin and SJDC, and that the impression that it was not an issue for others in our community was false.
I have no basis for disputing all of the quotes of Mr. Goff in this article, but this one critical aspect is definitely wrong. Mr. Calvin's views about not wanting additional apartments in the Missouri City area are shared by many and has the entire community itself divided, as Mayor Owen said. Mr. Calvin appears to be one of the most vocal individuals who is unwilling to be intimidated into keeping his views to himself. Many people in our community, people who are not willing to expose themselves to the attacks of a large and powerful corporation, share some of Mr. Calvin's views. Although Mr. Goff's seeming attacks on Chris Calvin apparently are legal, they do not appear to me personally to be fair or helpful to healing our community.
I also feel that your paper publishing only Mr. Goff's quotes on the first page and then quoting Mr. Calvin and Mr. Feinberg on the second page added to the impression that Mr. Goff's words were more important and carried more weight than their quotes. I was taught that the more important things are on the first page of a newspaper and the less important things are on other pages.
Your paper is an important source of information to our community. We need you to be fair and accurate in appearance as well as fact.
Paul Malone
Missouri City
I wonder if the sales office is telling new buyers about the proposed airport expansion?
___________________
See today's FB Sun:
Sienna Plantation sales exceed projections
02/20/2006
Email to a friendPost a CommentPrinter-friendly
Sienna Plantation's annual sales continue to increase, with 790 home sales reported in 2005, a 27 percent increase over 2004 sales.
Advertisement
The master-planned community, consistently ranked by Metrostudy among the top three active developments in the Houston area, is projected to sell 850 homes in 2006.
During 2005, the Houston-area new-home market experienced a record level of growth, with a 20 percent increase in housing starts, said David Jarvis, director of Metrostudy's Houston Advisory Services.
"With a 40 percent increase in starts, Sienna doubled that rate, posting 792 starts in 2005, compared to 567 starts in 2004. Sienna's housing starts have risen 55 percent since 2003, when the community started 512 homes."
The community's growth is ahead of projections, said Michael Smith, general manager of Sienna Plantation.
"Sales have increased 25 percent or more during each of the last three years. In the first month of 2006, we sold 74 homes, recording the strongest January in the development's history, and we expect sales to follow that growth pattern throughout 2006."
Buyers are sold on Sienna, said Will Holder, executive vice president of Trendmaker Homes. "Sienna continues to exceed buyers' expectations on all levels. The community just keeps getting better, and home shoppers can find exactly what they are looking for. They usually purchase a home during their first visit to the community because Sienna offers the complete package. Everything about the development is done well."
Increased sales this year are due in part to the opening of the Fort Bend Parkway Toll Road, which has significantly improved access to the community. In addition, Sienna offers an impressive array of amenities, including Club Sienna, Brushy Lake Recreation Area and Camp Sienna, as well as the Sienna Plantation Golf Club.
Realtors, who participate in 80 percent of Sienna's sales, also are sold on the community, said Linda Riddle of ReMax-Southwest, who lives in Sienna and is one of the community's top-producing realtors.
"Sienna's strongest selling points are its amenities, its wooded setting and its friendly, small-town atmosphere," said Riddle. "With many companies relocating to Fort Bend, Sienna draws a large contingent of transferees from Oklahoma, Tennessee, California, Louisiana and other states."
Sienna Plantation is a comprehensive master-planned community with a mix of land uses including residential, retail, commercial, civic, recreational, religious, educational and medical, and a variety of housing choices including single-family and multi-family.
Homes by the nation's leading builders are priced from $100,000 to the millions and can be found in distinctive neighborhoods with a wide choice of housing styles.
The community offers extensive acreage dedicated to park lands, golf courses, recreation areas, lakes, greenbelts and nature reserves.
©Houston Community Newspapers Online 2006
I googled this and found it in the LJA Engineering Newsletter:
Summer, 2000
Vol. 5 Issue 1
Table of Contents
Houston Hits The Surface
Sienna Plantation Takes Root
LJA's Construction Inspectors
League City Community
Shadow Creek Ranch
Stafford Run
S.W. Airport Takes Off
SOUTHWEST AIRPORT TAKES OFF
LJA Engineering is providing all facets of the civil engineering, planning, surveying, design, and construction services for the proposed Southwest Airport Improvement Project located in Arcola, Texas.
The owner of the Houston Southwest Airport, Jamie Griffith of Texas Avco, Inc., recently purchased an additional 220 acres of land north of the property. The proposed plan calls for (a) the extension of South Post Oak Road southerly, from Highway 6 along McKeever Road to meet the future extension of Fort Bend Freeway, and (b) the extension of Teal Bend Boulevard, to tie into the South Post Oak extension.
These road improvements will spur the development of approximately 200 acres of commercial property sites in and around the airport. Plans are for the airport to develop office/hangar type facilities, as well as commercial structures to serve the existing general aviation activity.
Public/Private
LJA's planning efforts began in the Fall of 1998 and involve multiple government offices - including city, county, state, and federal agencies.
An unusual aspect of this project is the proposed cooperation between public and private entities. When completed, the airport runway and taxiways will be owned by the City of Arcola, while the surrounding commercial properties will be privately owned.
John Perry, LJA vice president, recounted that Congressman Tom DeLay, R-Texas, recently submitted a funding request from the recently approved $40 billion Airport Funding Program. The request includes money for a precision guide slope, additional lighting, and runway improvements.
Speaking of the mutual benefits, Herb Appel, Jr., President of the Greater Fort Bend Economic Development Council, summarized, "The public acquisition and expansion of the Houston Southwest Airport serves several purposes. It develops a safe, all-weather general aviation airport to relieve pressure on the GA service system in Houston, and creates an economic engine for the City of Arcola."
©Copyright 2005 LJA Engineering & Surveying, Inc.
If you ck the map out apparently they have plans for an Arcola Industrial Park right next to the airport.--what a wonderful sight on the way into work!
Doesn't LJA Eng. give campaign contributions to many of the area politicians like Hebert, Owen, etc..?
More comments from FBNow.com:
16 Ric Simmons - Feb 10, 07:08 pm
Tom, Thanks for your continued vigilance on this issue. Although, I am not looking forward to increased flight operations resulting from an expanded airport; I am more concerned with what appears to be goverment incompetence at best and corruption at worst. The numerous contradictions made by the various governmental entities that you have so diligently chronicled reflects poorly on our local representatives. As this current crop does not fare well with the transparency that you bring to their actions let’s hope the electorate steps in and corrects the problem. Keep up the good work. Ric
17 Someone's gotta watch the shop - Feb 21, 01:58 am
The Houston Southwest Airport has received grants contrary to FAA guidelines and standards. This is highly suspicious, as many of decisions made to permit this sub-standard airport to receive money was made by one man: FAA’s own Mike Nicely.
In order to receive our tax dollars through the FAA grant, an airport must be included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems (NPIAS). The NPIAS identifies those public-use airports considered to be safe, efficient, and within an integrated system of airports in order to meet the needs of civil aviation, national defense, and the Postal service. This airport does not meet the FAA’s own safety standards as stated below, and so it did not meet the definition for inclusion.
Granting of these funds is contrary to FAA Order 5100.38B, Change 1, dated January 8, 2004
para 36. Mandatory Standards.
In complying with Assurance 34, a sponsor is required to comply with all appropriate technical guidelines incorporated into identified advisory circulars, and these standards become mandatory for the project being funded. The list of the advisory circulars is published electronically on the World Wide Web. Any guidance that needs to be specifically required for a project other than that identified in the headquarters list of current advisory circulars should be added to the project as a special condition. Standards in effect on the date of allocation of AIP funds to a project apply to that project. Standards that become effective after the date of allocation may be applied to the project by mutual agreement between the FAA and the sponsor. As allowed in Title 49 U.S.C., Section 47105©, where states have established and the Secretary has approved airport development standards at nonprimary, public-use airports (other than standards for safety of approaches) the applicable State standards shall be used. Any modification to the technical standards of the advisory circulars identified must be processed in accordance with the procedures of FAA Order 5300.1, “Approval Level of Modification of Airport Design Standards”.
One of the specific violations of these “mandatory standards” is the Runway Safety Area (RSA) for Runway 9 (west side of the airport). Per AC 150/5300-13, Chg 8, Chapter 3, paragraph 305c:
Sub-standard RSAs. RSA standards cannot be modified or waived like other airport design standards. The dimensional standards remain in effect regardless of the presence of natural or man-made objects or surface conditions that might create a hazard to aircraft that leave the runway surface.
It was common knowledge that Houston Southwest did not meet RSA standards especially because of McKeever Road. To quote Mike Nicely of the FAA; “One of the impediments that prevent Houston Southwest from meeting FAA design standards is the present location of McKeever Road near the west end of the runway. Vehicles traveling on McKeever Rd violate the runway threshold-siting surface…allowing McKeever Rd. to exist in it’s present state or in an improved state….would conflict with FAA design standards. In addition, McKeever Rd. in its present location would preclude any extension of the runway.”
This airport was not within compliance of the “current standards for safety of approaches” as of February 24, 2005 when the grant was awaiting its rubber-stamp approval from puppet TxDoT. Per Linda Howard, TxDoT Aviation Division:
The FAA decides where the discretionary money goes. We showed a potential project in the NPIAS/CIP for the airport; however, the FAA makes the decision on what discretionary funds are available and which airports get how much. They are often helped in this decision-making by congressional delegations. The funds will likely flow through our agency because we are a block grant state for federal funds.
Note the term “congressional”. And then note that the owner of the airport has contributed the maximum amount to Congressman Tom DeLay’s campaign for several years.
Could Mr. Nicely have received congressional pressure to reverse his concerns about Houston Southwest’s non-compliance with FAA standards? And of course, the ugly terms “graft and corruption” can not be forgotten here.
Even the proposal of this grant violates FAA’s own guideline that “Airports should be compatible with surrounding communities…” by dismissing the opposition expressed below:
(1) FAA and TxDoT have copies of a 2003 petition with approximately 1000 signatures of Texas citizens opposing the use of tax dollars for this airport.
(2) Fort Bend County considered purchasing the airport. However, after review of the feasibility study for the purchase of the airport, the county declined to sponsor the airport.
(3) Three Fort Bend County cities (Rosenberg, Richmond, and Arcola) passed 2003 resolutions against the governmental support of the airport.
Why so much opposition?
FACTS: The airport is landlocked by five railroad tracks for the Union Pacific and BNSF on the east and south, two canals (one to the north and two to the east), two roads to the north (McKeever) and east (FM 521), and three residential areas-north, west, and east. Per the FAA, the airport is in congested airspace, and has potential conflicts with Hobby Airport, Ellington Field and Sugar Land Municipal. The airport is within a flood plain. This airport is limited to one runway which is contrary to prevailing winds. There are three other airports 30 minutes or less away from Arcola: Hobby, Brazoria and Sugar Land. The fact that Sugar Land is located only 14 miles away from Houston Southwest, and is well within the NPIAS Standards of 20 miles between airports, means that funding for Houston Southwest is a redundant use of tax dollars. There are also additional smaller airstrips and airports in the area.
Any dollars spent for the improvement of this airport would be misdirected, misappropriated and misused. An investigation is highly warranted.
18 Artemio Temo - Feb 25, 09:15 am
For what I can see, those plans for expansion that may have beed done in 2000 and 2003 belong to yesterday. They do not comply with today’s regulations. WE
have a bigger Arcola!!!!
We need a BIG PARK for our joung people. leave the airport as is hopping nobody gets hurt if an accident is to happen. Thanks
19 Chris Calvin, Ph.D. - Feb 26, 03:00 pm
Just caught an article on Hebert’s endorsement of Delay. No big surprise since they are all part of the same network. Check how they pass their contributions around from one to the other (even our local Mayor Allen Owen shares many of these contributors and endorsements).
On a side note remember how Hebert smeared his opponent out of the race from a 22 year old juvenile act and his claim that the road diversion and airport expansion are not related projects even though one can not occur without the other?
Here is a link to one of Hebert’s (and Delay’s) big supporters, LJA Engineering, that seems to contradict this Hebert myth:
http://www.ljaengineering.com/newsletter/vol5issue1/airport.html
Stay informed and keep in touch!
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