Commissioner Noack Responds to Robinson Road Petitioners

THE WOODLANDS, TX -- Recently, Woodlands Online ran a story about the owners of local business Camp Bow Wow and other concerned business owners gathering signatures for a petition to present to Montgomery County Commissioners Court. The petition was designed to prompt the commissioners involved to take action against the mounting traffic issues along Robinson Road and its surrounding areas.

Precinct 3 Commissioner James Noack himself took notice of the story and met with Woodlands Online staff to respond to the questions and issues raised by the owners of Camp Bow Wow.

“Of course, as The Woodlands area and Montgomery County continue their unprecedented growth, traffic and infrastructure issues are a key priority that must be addressed as soon as possible after they arise,” said Noack. “Right off the bat, I’m pleased to announce that Montgomery County has already spent $75 million over the past five years on infrastructure projects. We recognize the needs for traffic relief that the owners at Camp Bow Wow discussed in the previous story. However, as powerful a tool as a petition is, the fact remains that the Robinson Road issues are largely outside of our immediate ability to provide relief.”

Despite the Robinson Road project being primarily an Oak Ridge North city issue, Noack’s Precinct 3 of Montgomery County has been proactive in facilitating the project. “We have effectively given Oak Ridge $2 million toward the project, and additionally we will be giving the city the option to purchase from us the nearby community center and surrounding land at its inexpensive face value.”

Noack pointed out that the Robinson Road projects are largely dependent on Oak Ridge North’s administration. Any road realignment or expansion involves procuring a railroad permit, something that James Corn, the Oak Ridge North director of infrastructure, is still in the planning stages to do. Additionally, several properties must be purchased and subsequently demolished, moved, or renovated in order to provide enough space for the road widenings. Further, Corn has stated that it will take at least one year to properly accept bids for any projects.

“I and my fellow elected officials are one-hundred percent committed to getting this done,” said Noack. “A look at our past, ongoing, and planned future road projects shows that we are aware of the growing pains that any region going through the expansion like ours go through.”

Some of the completed Montgomery County Precinct 3 projects that Noack pointed out include:

- Woodlands Parkway widened from Kuykendahl to Forestgate
- Birnham Woods widened from Elan to Fuller Bluff
- Elan Blvd widened from Birnham Woods to Aldine Westfield
- Birnham Woods widened from Fuller Bluff to Waterbend Cove
- Woodlands Parkway widened between I-45 and Grogan's Mill
- Rayford Rd bridge and realignment
- Complete Rayford Rd from 99 to Birnham Woods

Projects currently under construction include:

- The final widening of Birnham Woods
- Constructing a dedicated right-turn from Rayford westbound to I-45
- Adding another through-lane at the same intersection

“And, of course, the realignment and widening of Robinson Road, offering the hope of traffic relief to the owners of Camp Bow Wow and their neighbors,” said Noack. Additionally, he provided Woodlands Online with his private cell phone number to pass on to the staff at Camp Bow Wow in case they had any additional questions of him.