Become A City — Gain Sovereignty, Self-governance, And Legal Standing

Dear Residents of The Woodlands,

The Woodlands has been taking steps to become a city since 1996, the year Kingwood was forcibly annexed by Houston. Since 2018, three independent consultants, Novak, Matrix and H.R. Green, have produced studies on best ways to incorporate and their associated costs. www.TheWoodlandsIncorporationStudy.com

On August 13, 2021, the Township board of directors voted 5 to 2 to place incorporation on the November 2 ballot. Residents will have an opportunity to vote “For or Against Incorporation” and “For or Against the Incorporation property tax rate of 22.31 cents per $100 valuation, the same rate paid in 2020 and 2021.

If future city councils try to raise the property tax rate more than 3.5%, a state law will trigger a mandatory vote by the residents to approve or reject the higher rate.

Many residents have noticed large green signs posted in easements along major roads in the Township. You might wonder who is doing this. It is the developer, Howard Hughes, who leased the land to the Municipal Utility Districts (MUDs) but retains control of the easements.

Three groups are aligned to prevent The Woodlands residents from establishing an independent city:

The Developer - Howard Hughes and affiliates
Montgomery County Commissioners
MUD directors from 11 Woodlands MUDs.

Here are some of the ways The Woodlands residents will benefit by becoming a city.

Sovereignty — Incorporation is the only way to assure The Woodlands will never be annexed by Houston and Conroe.

Self-Governance — Incorporation will give residents local control of land use planning, streets, street parking, rights of way, speed limits, traffic signs and lights, noise, animal control, and fireworks. It will allow continuation of deed covenants and streetscape maintenance.

The new city can stop developers from clear cutting trees; limit high density construction; stop unwanted thoroughfares from bringing in more traffic; maintain excellent services in law enforcement, firefighting, trash pickup, parks, pools, and pathways.

Once The Woodlands is incorporated as a general law city, it can establish a home rule charter committee to create a charter or constitution for the new city. Once approved by the voters, it can only be amended by the voters. The charter can require that all elected city officials, i.e., council members and mayor, remain unpaid, just like the current Township board.

The new city council can authorize a property tax freeze for seniors and disabled. The Township cannot. This tax freeze is already calculated into the 5 year incorporation budget.

Standing — The City of The Woodlands will be recognized by local, county, state and federal agencies. It will gain a vote on regional thoroughfare plans at the Houston Galveston Area Council, (HGAC). The city will be eligible for federal and state emergency management assistance. It could immediately qualify for up to $30M in federal COVID relief. Currently our federal tax dollars are going to other cities, counties and states, while the Township remains invisible and ineligible.

Becoming a city will allow The Woodlands yo be recognized by the US Postal Service as a legal entity. Residents of The Woodlands are now considered part of Spring, Conroe, Magnolia, and Tomball.

Early voting begins October 18 and Election Day is November 2. The last day to register to vote is October 4. It is time for The Woodlands to become an autonomous city. Join me in voting For Incorporation and For the 22.31 cent Incorporation Tax Rate.

Let’s Keep The Woodlands Wonderful and make it even better for future generations.

God bless Texas and the USA!

Dr. Shelley Sekula-Gibbs, M.D.
832-721-7546
-Candidate for re-election to The Woodlands Township Pos.5
-Not the opinion of the Woodlands Township Board of Directors

**WOL Staff Update: The credentials of the author were mistakenly omitted by WOL Staff when the story was originally posted. They have been added to this story as of September 10th. They were originally received in the copy but left off in error. Woodlands Online would like to apologize for the lack of inclusion of this information, we always intend to remain transparent on the content we share with our readers.