Community Impact staff compiled a number of articles in November, ranging from the opening of a new H-E-B in Montgomery to a plan for a new city hall.
Here are the top five stories you may have missed from the last week in the Conroe and Montgomery areas.
H-E-B opens store in Montgomery with BBQ restaurant
H-E-B’s long-anticipated opening in Montgomery came with fervor and celebration from the community Wednesday morning. People began lining up as early as 10 p.m. the night before, according to the company and more than 900 customers were ushered into the store with festivity at the 6 a.m. grand opening.
“As a proud Texas company, we are eager to serve the Montgomery community with the best service and highest quality products,” Byron O’Bannon, the store’s general manager, said in a news release. “I’m eager to give back to this community and to foster a store environment that’s welcoming to all our neighbors.”
Montgomery County wants to buy out around 50 flood-prone homes with FEMA grant application
Montgomery County commissioners at their Nov. 5 meeting approved hiring a consultant to help navigate the application process to obtain funding from a Federal Emergency Management Agency program for buying out and demolishing homes that have flooded multiple times.
Jason Millsaps, executive director of the Montgomery County Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, said Montgomery County has about 250 eligible properties that have repeatedly flooded. FEMA designates homes that have multiple claims for flood damage as “severe repetitive loss” properties.
“Predominantly, these are going to be located in Precincts 3 and 4, which is based on the historical nature of our flooding,” Millsaps said.
Montgomery’s new City Hall project expected to cost $16.6 million
The city is planning to move City Hall to the former Jim’s Hardware building on Liberty Street in Montgomery. Jim’s Hardware closed in 2025 and the city acquired the building.
The plan is to renovate the 32,000-square-foot building, which could eventually house more than 100 city employees, according to previous reporting.
The current $16.6 million price tag includes expanding and replacing the existing parking lot, according to Tellepsen, the city’s contractor. Construction is expected to begin by March and take a year to complete.
LongHorn Steakhouse opens in Willis
LongHorn Steakhouse, which is a part of Darden Restaurants, has several cuts of steak on its menu and also offers seafood, chicken, pork chops, salads and burgers.
Visitors can call ahead to join the waitlist or do so on LongHorn Steakhouse’s website. The location offers online to-go orders and curbside pickup.
Conroe council wants revived planning commission to give citizens greater awareness of upcoming developments
Brandy Taylor, Conroe’s director of municipal development, said at the city council's Nov. 5 meeting that staff brought the item back for discussion at Thursday’s meeting to gather more input from the council.
Taylor said current changes for bringing back the planning commission included the body no longer having approval power but meeting solely to give recommendations on variances, requiring ethics training, and removing members who miss three or more meetings in a year.
Council member Shana Arthur said long-range planning will be an important factor for the revived planning commission.
“This is something really worth looking at to do,” Arthur said. “I do believe we ... need some type of oversight but it needs people that are really looking out for the best interests of what this does for Conroe.”
