Michael Richmond was one of the original designers of The Woodlands hired by George Mitchell.[/caption]
Mike Richmond, vice chairman of Woodforest National Bank, does not mind admitting he may well be the longest-tenured resident in The Woodlands.
"But just in tenure," Richmond said.
At the age of 24 and with an accounting degree from the University of Maryland, Richmond moved from his hometown of Baltimore to join George Mitchell and his team of North Houston pioneers in 1972. Mitchell recruited Richmond, who at the time worked as a certified public accountant in Maryland, along with several other members of a team involved in the creation of another master-planned community in Columbia, Maryland. It was the standards set in that community, along with other master-planned communities of the day, that helped shape The Woodlands, Richmond said.
"We took the best parts of [those] master-planned communities and made them better," he said. "And if we managed to do that successfully, we did our job."
A newcomer to the Lone Star State, Richmond admits he did not exactly know what he was getting himself into—and fully expected Houston to be chock full of ranches instead of bustling corridors—but he knew it was special.
In the 30 years Richmond spent with The Woodlands Operating Company, he contributed to both the financial and commercial development of the community.
Starting one day before crews broke ground, he began on the financial side and worked as treasurer and then senior financial officer before moving to commercial operations.
In the decades since his decision to join Mitchell, Richmond has compiled a long list of completed projects in the community he is unabashedly proud of. They include the creation of The Woodlands Mall and helping to develop The Woodlands Waterway Marriott Hotel and Convention Center.
"I am very proud of the creation of the Town Center Improvement District through the Texas Legislature and being the chairman for its first nine years," Richmond said. "[The TCID] was the predecessor to The Woodlands Township and governance of the community."
Mitchell excelled at executing long-term plans, Richmond said. An example is The Woodlands Mall, which remained a vacant lot for nearly 20 years until the right economic conditions allowed for construction to begin. The mall opened in 1994, and Richmond said not many developers would have had the patience to allow the property to remain vacant.
Richmond said his involvement in the operating company allowed him to make connections with local business leaders, including Woodforest National Bank CEO Robert Malling, which is how in 2002 he found his current position with the bank he had been working with personally for years.
Roger Galatas, who also worked with Mitchell and his team to establish The Woodlands, worked with Richmond for about two decades during the community's early developmental years.
"George Mitchell was really good about identifying great talent to help with [The Woodlands]," Galatas said. "Mike is a very focused individual and very committed to the successful development of The Woodlands, and participates actively in a host of things in the area."
Michael Richmond was one of the original designers of The Woodlands hired by George Mitchell.[/caption]
Mike Richmond, vice chairman of Woodforest National Bank, does not mind admitting he may well be the longest-tenured resident in The Woodlands.
"But just in tenure," Richmond said.
At the age of 24 and with an accounting degree from the University of Maryland, Richmond moved from his hometown of Baltimore to join George Mitchell and his team of North Houston pioneers in 1972. Mitchell recruited Richmond, who at the time worked as a certified public accountant in Maryland, along with several other members of a team involved in the creation of another master-planned community in Columbia, Maryland. It was the standards set in that community, along with other master-planned communities of the day, that helped shape The Woodlands, Richmond said.
"We took the best parts of [those] master-planned communities and made them better," he said. "And if we managed to do that successfully, we did our job."
A newcomer to the Lone Star State, Richmond admits he did not exactly know what he was getting himself into—and fully expected Houston to be chock full of ranches instead of bustling corridors—but he knew it was special.
In the 30 years Richmond spent with The Woodlands Operating Company, he contributed to both the financial and commercial development of the community.
Starting one day before crews broke ground, he began on the financial side and worked as treasurer and then senior financial officer before moving to commercial operations.
In the decades since his decision to join Mitchell, Richmond has compiled a long list of completed projects in the community he is unabashedly proud of. They include the creation of The Woodlands Mall and helping to develop The Woodlands Waterway Marriott Hotel and Convention Center.
"I am very proud of the creation of the Town Center Improvement District through the Texas Legislature and being the chairman for its first nine years," Richmond said. "[The TCID] was the predecessor to The Woodlands Township and governance of the community."
Mitchell excelled at executing long-term plans, Richmond said. An example is The Woodlands Mall, which remained a vacant lot for nearly 20 years until the right economic conditions allowed for construction to begin. The mall opened in 1994, and Richmond said not many developers would have had the patience to allow the property to remain vacant.
Richmond said his involvement in the operating company allowed him to make connections with local business leaders, including Woodforest National Bank CEO Robert Malling, which is how in 2002 he found his current position with the bank he had been working with personally for years.
Roger Galatas, who also worked with Mitchell and his team to establish The Woodlands, worked with Richmond for about two decades during the community's early developmental years.
"George Mitchell was really good about identifying great talent to help with [The Woodlands]," Galatas said. "Mike is a very focused individual and very committed to the successful development of The Woodlands, and participates actively in a host of things in the area."
