Below please find comments for TxDOT about the North Houston Highway Improvement Project (NHHIP) for I-45 that were developed by the Montie Beach Civic Club. We encourage you to submit these comments, portions of these comments, or comments of your own, in your name to TxDOT no later than Wednesday, December 9, 2020.
(See also comments submitted by Council Member Karla Cisneros at
https://www.houstontx.gov/council/h/pdf/FEIS-TXDOT.pdf)
Comments may be submitted to the Project Team:
In person at the TxDOT Houston District Office, 7600 Washington Avenue, Houston, TX, 77007
By mail to: TxDOT Houston District Office, Director of Project Development, P.O. 1386, Houston, TX 77251-1386
By email to: HOU-piowebmail@txdot.gov
Montie Beach Civic Club
Notes to TxDOT re: Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for North Houston Highway Improvement Project (NHHIP) to I-45
For December 9, 2020
TRAFFIC
Our overriding concern is that the FEIS does not include a traffic study for impacts on local streets. We ask that TxDOT do a full traffic analysis and mitigate any impacts the NHHIP will make in our neighborhood. For our Brooke Smith/Montie Beach neighborhood the decision not to have on- and off- ramps for North Main WOULD affect local traffic. We would be driving through the neighborhood to access the reduced number of on ramps, and others would be driving through our neighborhood to travel north-south on arteries (North Main, Houston Avenue, Taylor/Watson, and Studemont) because it is no longer practical/feasible to get on I-45.
The net result we see is that our neighborhood will be asked to tolerate the noise and air pollution from I-45 while not being able to readily access it for our own use.
CONNECTIONS
From the inception of meetings about NHHIP, MBCC has voiced concern about connecting with our Near Northside neighbors just to our east. Hence we are pleased that the Cottage Street Bridge will be preserved and hope to see improvements along Cottage on both the west and east portions. This is not only our connection to Moody Park and the Red Line train, but it is a major connection for the Silverdale neighborhood which is wedged between I-45 and the Red Line. Troubling though is that the North St. Bridge serves the same purpose, connecting Near Northside and Woodland Heights while giving residents of the Near Northside a way in and out of their neighborhood (for example, during flooding such as happened with Harvey), but it is slated to be removed. For continued connectivity we ask that the North Street Bridge remain or be replaced. We do not believe walking to N. Main is a reasonable alternative to using this route, especially for children who live in Near Northside to commute to Travis Elementary School on the west side of I-45.
We are very excited by the new, safe bike lanes on Cavalcade that were part of a joint Metro/COH project. And, we are equally excited by and interested in safe, separated bike lanes on the frontage road. We ask for clear schematics of how the bike lanes on the frontage road will look.
We are also delighted that the frontage road in Segment 2, our neighborhood, will be designed to COH standards. The current design calls for 3 lane frontage roads on the west side of I-45 in Segment 2. Since the design also eliminates the N. Main exit ramp between Patton and N. Main, we are concerned that 3 lanes will only encourage speeding along this stretch of Segment 2. Since TxDOT is amenable to reducing frontage roads by one lane (DEIS comment response #553), we ask for 2 lane frontage roads in this area.
ENVIRONMENT
As stated earlier, our neighborhood will bear the brunt of air and noise pollution with questionable benefits. While we are happy that some mitigation for dust and noise impacts will be available for qualifying families as well as air monitoring during construction. Similarly, the longitudinal tining is good. However, we are also expecting long term mitigations. TxDOT should commit to sound walls in Segment 2.
The effects of Climate Change are discussed in the DEIS, but removed in the FEIS. Why? Conditions have only gotten worse.
The White Oak Bayou Greenway is a treasure for all of our neighborhoods: we take out of town guests there to bird, family weddings happen with the downtown skyline in the background while family reunions go there for photo ops. The signage along the greenway has the Houston Parks logo. How can you conclude that the primary use is for drainage and flood control? The impact of expanding the interchange from 8 lanes/140 feet to 21 lanes/700 feet is incomprehensible and harmful to our neighborhoods. We ask for a redesign that will leave our treasured greenway and view of the skyline.
Woodland Park is a true hidden gem in our area. Due to its unique characteristics of being a wooded area with Little White Oak Bayou running through it, the park provides habitat for many species of native wildlife and is a true respite from city life while being located only a mile or so from downtown. Additionally, the park is a major stopover for migrating birds during the spring and fall/winter. Nearly a hundred species of non-native migrating birds can be seen in the park for a few weeks out of the year. We are concerned the proposed noise barrier may not be sufficient to mitigate the impact of additional lanes and the inevitable increase in traffic bordering the park. We ask the design of the noise barrier be sufficient to mitigate these effects. Also of notable concern is the removal of the culvert where Little White Oak Bayou crosses I-45 at the eastern edge of the park. The culvert provides the only way to traverse the bayou from north to south on foot at the east end of the path through the wooded area. Along with Wrightwood Street on the west end of the path, Houston Audubon Society members and interested birders survey the park on a monthly basis and use the footpath to do so. We request a footbridge be put in place to allow this activity to continue.
FLOODING
During major flood events, we have catastrophic flooding at I45/Main and I45/Patton. We have major concerns whether the pumps and detention ponds will be sufficient to handle the depressed areas of I45 in Segment 2.
We are also concerned by the tributary to Little White Oak Bayou at I-45 (see pp 3 - 59, FEIS), which starts on the West side of I45 at Fugate Street near the Sleep Inn and exits on the East side of I45 by the Top Brass store. This culvert supports the Brooke Smith subdivision: to avert lateral flooding during major rain events like we currently experience, we ask that this culvert also be an open channel to improve drainage from Brooke Smith to Little White Oak Bayou.
Note: There has been a history of lateral flooding of homes in the Brooke Smith subdivision, which occurs when the tributary to Little White Oak Bayou at I-45 culvert reaches capacity and the street culverts draining into it cease to drain the streets.