Montgomery County undecided on lease for decommissioned Veterans Park in Conroe

The city of Conroe is planning to lease the decommissioned Veterans Memorial Park, located near the tax office, from Montgomery County for events and merchandising, including outdoor dining. County commissioners raised questions about the property’s planned usage.

The proposal was first brought forward at a Sept. 14 Commissioners Court in a letter from the Conroe City Council. The letter defined the property as “the entire area between Davis Street and the parking lot on the southside of the Montgomery County Tax Office.”

The park was decommissioned in 2017 when a new Veterans Memorial Park was built at Freedom Boulevard in Conroe.

The letter also stipulated a rental term of five years and one five-year renewal term. The county would receive a $2,000 monthly credit to apply against building permit fees due to the city of Conroe or other fees both the city and county would agree on. Unexpended credit could be carried forward from year to year but could not be used before it was earned.

Commissioners deferred any decision on the property to a future date. Precinct 1 Commissioner Robert Walker said at the Sept. 14 meeting that agreeing to the terms would prevent Montgomery County from developing the property on its own, such as turning it into a parking lot for the Tax Office, for at least five years.“I think we should keep it for ourselves and move forward with better parking, because we have an issue right there, right now,” Walker said.

Precinct 3 Commissioner James Noack also disagreed with any potential use of the property, pointing out the county cannot profit from county property and arguing the city should not be able to either.

“There’s no way,” Noack said. “I don’t think we should have anything to do with it.”

County Judge Mark Keough told Community Impact Newspaper at a Sept. 28 meeting there had been no further developments on the park property.