Mobility Issues

As a large landowner with lands affected by the City of Houston’s Major Thoroughfare and Freeway Plan (MTFP), the Waller County Transportation Plan, and HGAC’s 2045 Regional Transportation Plan, the Coastal Prairie Conservancy has actively participated in the review and development of these plans as a stakeholder. The Coastal Prairie Conservancy is in a unique position to understand how these plans can work together for the benefit of the region – to balance the protection of our area’s natural resources, while also providing residents safe mobility options.

The Coastal Prairie Conservancy will continue to advocate for an integrated approach that recognizes the value of the contiguous protected lands. We implore planners to preserve the integrity of our preserved land, and to recognize that limited population growth will occur within protected lands, eliminating the need for a transportation grid that was conceived decades ago in anticipation of different land uses.

No New Roads within the Katy Prairie Preserve

Unfragmented and contiguous lands are critical to the health of many wildlife populations and the functionality of working lands. Land fragmentation impacts not only farms and ranches, but also the many plants and animals that live on the prairie. Smaller degraded fragments do not support the diverse wildlife communities that flourish on larger undeveloped and undivided areas. Connections between habitat areas are also extremely important to maintaining healthy populations. We recommend a planning strategy that minimizes disruption to those connections.

The Katy Prairie is in the Central Flyway, and the over 20,000 acres that the Coastal Prairie Conservancy has protected have been designated a Global Important Bird Area by National Audubon. Many birds and other prairie animals are sensitive to light, sound, and vibration and would be driven away by the construction and operation of any new roadway to cut a new path through any of Coastal Prairie Conservancy’s conserved lands. Wildlife, including turtles, cross from one area to another to utilize habitat, and busy roads within the preserve would lead to mortality. Katy Prairie Preserve lands provide extraordinary habitat, including prairies and wooded creeks, which would be both destroyed and greatly altered by a roadway and associated infrastructure.

In addition to the benefit the Katy Prairie Preserve system provides to wildlife, it also offers amazing benefits to the public by improving air and water quality, providing nearby agricultural products, and offering much needed recreational opportunities; all of which improve the quality of life for Harris and Waller County residents. These benefits would be degraded by any new roadway affecting the preserve.

The Coastal Prairie Conservancy advocates for the removal of the proposed extension of Jack Road to the west of Warren Ranch Road which is depicted on the City of Houston’s MTFP – this unnecessary thoroughfare would effectively bisect the Warren Ranch, and severely damage the conservation values of this historic cattle ranch.

The Coastal Prairie Conservancy advocates for the removal of proposed extensions of Schlipf and Kickapoo Roads which are depicted on the City of Houston’s MTFP – into land that is part of the Katy Prairie Preserve in recognition of the permanent protected status of these lands. Without future development, the need for these roads has been eliminated.

Park Road

We note that visitors to the Katy Prairie Preserve often pull over, photograph wildlife, and enjoy the views of the preserve – both on surrounding roads and particularly on the interior roads. It is expected that these activities will continue and will increase with frequency as the preserve is further enhanced and becomes a destination for Houston’s growing population. Further, wildlife, including turtles, often need to cross the road to access appropriate habitat.  For this reason, we will continue to advocate that Sharp Road should be classified as a “Park Road”.

The Coastal Prairie Conservancy recognizes that Sharp Road will continue to provide east-west access through the preserve.  The Coastal Prairie Conservancy requests that the Planning Department expand the functional classification of roadways in the MTFP to include a “Park Road (PR)”, and that all roads surrounding and within the Katy Prairie Preserve be designed in accordance with the Park Road Standard, particularly Sharp Road. (The other roads within the Katy Prairie Preserve, Hebert Road and Pattison Road, are outside of the City of Houston’s ETJ, and are thus not noted on the MTFP).  Park Roads allow for mobility within the preserve but slow the traffic consistent with the purpose of preserved lands. Sharp Road is particularly suited to the Park Road standard given its location within the preserve complex. Sharp Road begins at a Harris County park (Paul D. Rushing Park) at the east end of the Katy Prairie Preserve, and winds through the preserve, crossing multiple streams and passing alongside conservation properties, before reaching the Katy Prairie Preserve’s Visitor Center at the Indiangrass Preserve at the west side of the Katy Prairie Preserve at Hebert Road.  Travelers on these roads are likely to be visiting preserve properties, and vehicles often stop to take photographs of birds visible from the roadside (including the American Bald Eagle and Sandhill Cranes). The National Park road standard is “intended to enhance visitor experience while providing safe and efficient accommodations of park visitors and to serve essential management access.”[1] Texas Parks & Wildlife Department similarly publishes design standards for park roads to preserve the integrity of the surroundings, respect ecological processes, protect natural resources, and provide high visual quality.[2] Within the Katy Prairie Preserve, a Park Road would allow visitors to pull over, view wildlife, and enjoy the views of the preserve. It is difficult to imagine roadways more suited to the park road standard.

Further, Mound Road should be downgraded to a Park Road, as Baethe Road, to the north, is appropriate as the nearest Major Thoroughfare providing east-west traffic on the north side of Warren Ranch.  This is consistent with the Waller County Transportation Plan, which shows Baethe Road identified as the major road to connect from the Waller County side to the MTFP on the east.

[1] Park Road Standards, National Park Service 1984, retrieved from https://flh.fhwa.dot.gov/resources/design/library/park-road-std.pdf

[2]  Design Standards for Roads and Parking, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department 2008, retrieved from http://onlinemanuals.txdot.gov/txdotmanuals/pdp/TPWD.pdf

Bicycle Loop

As shown in the Waller County Transportation Plan, a bicycle loop has been proposed to be established around the perimeter of the Katy Prairie Preserve to provide the community with active transportation options (see Waller County Transportation Plan, Page 44, Figure 4-9).  This low-impact use is compatible with the enjoyment of the natural resource and would address resident concerns regarding the sharing of roadways by vehicles and bicycles.

The Coastal Prairie Conservancy supports, and invites others to also support, multiple use trails along the uninterrupted edge of Coastal Prairie Conservancy lands and the extension of bicycle access from urban centers to a loop around the Katy Prairie.  These trails would be most enjoyable alongside a Park Road.

Light Pollution

We advocate for standards that minimize light pollution, particularly near the Katy Prairie Preserve.  Dark skies are important for migrating birds and other wildlife[3].  The Katy Prairie is sought after by local astronomy clubs, as it is one of the few locations in the Houston area where light pollution has been kept to a minimum. The Coastal Prairie Conservancy works with private landowners on the preserve to utilize warm light fixtures that minimize glare, and our community values dark skies which provide a refuge for a multitude of species that would otherwise be driven away by light intrusion. We urge planning engineers to respect the value of dark skies in this area, and to also implement mitigation strategies such as requiring shielded and downward facing fixtures to limit glare and light trespass to neighboring lands. We urge planners to take into consideration the impacts of both natural and human environments.

The Coastal Prairie Conservancy has been working since 1992 to protect natural areas, farmlands and waterways that contribute to the economy and the health and quality of life of residents. These lands improve air and water quality, sustain local agriculture and provide wildlife habitat and opportunities for recreation. Coastal Prairie Conservancy lands preserve the region’s character and culture in perpetuity for the benefit of future generations of Houstonians. Unless proactive action is taken, we stand to lose or significantly impair these resources and the important ecological services that they provide to the region. We appreciate the challenge of planning for the projected urban growth and increased mobility of the area while conserving our high priority natural resources and preserving the ecological and agricultural diversity of our region.

[3] https://www.darksky.org/light-pollution-poses-threat-to-migrating-birds/