Upgrading city facilities, developing a network of walking trails and finding ways to bring dining and entertainment venues to the city are a few of the priorities set forth in a draft of a new comprehensive plan being considered by Jersey Village City Council. Council has been fine tuning the plan, which has not been updated in 25 years, at a series of workshops with plans to adopt it this year.
Jersey Village embarked on the mission to draft a new comprehensive plan last spring. Over the past year, consulting firm Freese and Nichols has gathered input from council, staff and residents at a series of forums, workshops and online surveys.
The plan is broken up into nine chapters covering economic development, parks and transportation, among other topics. The plan comes with 21 priority recommendations, which include developing a trail system to connect parks and neighborhoods, improving city identity and upgrading city facilities.
Several plan recommendations also include specific studies city staff would need to complete before moving forward, such as developing a landscaping master plan.
“Jersey Village is going to go through redevelopment, and there are going to be some changes with the expansion of [Hwy. 290],” said Dan Sefko, planning director with Freese and Nichols. “The plan gives leaders guidance to make decisions about the future of the community.”
Attracting business
A major objective tied to several plan recommendations is coming up with ways to attract more businesses to Jersey Village. Suggestions revolve around making things easier through tax abatements, among other strategies.
“We really don’t want to take anything off the table when it comes to incentivizing people to move their business to Jersey Village,” Mayor Justin Ray said at an Aug. 24 workshop.
Council members expressed a desire to work closely with businesses already in Jersey Village to learn more about what they would like to see and to make sure plan recommendations are not going to make their lives more difficult.
Some council members were concerned about a recommendation to reduce visual clutter in the city, and how that could unintentionally limit advertising options. Ray emphasized the need to come up with a definition for visual clutter before devising practices to clear it up.
The council also examined plans to hire a full-time economic development coordinator, considering instead the possibility of hiring a part-time coordinator or consultant.
“The reality is we have 17 vacant commercial lots in the city,” City Manager Mike Castro said. “We have to decide if that warrants bringing an economic development person in to work fulltime.”
City improvements
The plan also includes recommendations for how to improve the quality of life for Jersey Village residents. Proposals to develop a trail system and improve city facilities were well-received by residents and City Council.
The trail plan calls for making better use of bayous and existing parks to connect neighborhoods. The city has about three miles of trails, Parks Director Kimberly Terrell said.
Funding for the system could be boosted from grants through the Texas Parks and Wildlife fund, Terrell said. The city could also work with the Harris County Flood Control District to develop trails along White Oak Bayou using drainage easements.
Certain connections were identified as vital to an enhanced trail system—connecting existing trails along Philippine Street to White Oak Bayou and connecting trails along Rio Grande Street to Jersey Village High School—but council members left much of the future development up in the air. Council Member C. J. Harper expressed concern that some residents would not be happy with trails being put in behind their houses.
“We don’t have to lay [the trail plan] all out right now,” Ray said. “We can look at our options, weigh it against what would work best and utilize the land as necessary.”
The plan also recommends looking into developing programs for the community that make better use of the underutilized Jersey Village Civic Center and area parks. Planners also considered the option of redeveloping the Jersey Meadow Golf Course, but resident feedback was in favor of keeping the course.
“There are a million dollars a year coming into this town through the golf course from outside sources,” resident Bob Gonzalez said at an Aug. 17 City Council meeting. “It’s an important part of this city and a unique thing we have.”
Certain improvements proposed in the plan are not likely to take shape until the Texas Department of Transportation finishes construction on Hwy. 290 in 2017 at the earliest, Castro said. The council was in favor of plans to install signage around city access points, but determined it did not make sense while construction was underway.
Funding the plan
Many aspects of the plan call for staff to look into funding opportunities through means such as grants, corporate sponsorships and creating a tax increment reinvestment zone—a subdivision where redevelopment is financed with future tax revenue.
Corporate sponsorships—which could involve businesses, individuals or community groups—were deemed not a high priority by the council compared to other methods of raising funds. However, although not included in the plan, several council members were interested in exploring ways to partner with city schools.
Other recommendations could be funded with money set aside in the city’s annual capital improvement budget.
“We have to put the plan in the context of what council and staff do on a daily basis,” Council Member Greg Holden said.
Upgrading city facilities, developing a network of walking trails and finding ways to bring dining and entertainment venues to the city are a few of the priorities set forth in a draft of a new comprehensive plan being considered by Jersey Village City Council. Council has been fine tuning the plan, which has not been updated in 25 years, at a series of workshops with plans to adopt it this year.
Jersey Village embarked on the mission to draft a new comprehensive plan last spring. Over the past year, consulting firm Freese and Nichols has gathered input from council, staff and residents at a series of forums, workshops and online surveys.
The plan is broken up into nine chapters covering economic development, parks and transportation, among other topics. The plan comes with 21 priority recommendations, which include developing a trail system to connect parks and neighborhoods, improving city identity and upgrading city facilities.
Several plan recommendations also include specific studies city staff would need to complete before moving forward, such as developing a landscaping master plan.
“Jersey Village is going to go through redevelopment, and there are going to be some changes with the expansion of [Hwy. 290],” said Dan Sefko, planning director with Freese and Nichols. “The plan gives leaders guidance to make decisions about the future of the community.”
The trail plan calls for making better use of bayous and existing parks to connect neighborhoods. The city has about three miles of trails, Parks Director Kimberly Terrell said.
Funding for the system could be boosted from grants through the Texas Parks and Wildlife fund, Terrell said. The city could also work with the Harris County Flood Control District to develop trails along White Oak Bayou using drainage easements.
Certain connections were identified as vital to an enhanced trail system—connecting existing trails along Philippine Street to White Oak Bayou and connecting trails along Rio Grande Street to Jersey Village High School—but council members left much of the future development up in the air. Council Member C. J. Harper expressed concern that some residents would not be happy with trails being put in behind their houses.
“We don’t have to lay [the trail plan] all out right now,” Ray said. “We can look at our options, weigh it against what would work best and utilize the land as necessary.”
The plan also recommends looking into developing programs for the community that make better use of the underutilized Jersey Village Civic Center and area parks. Planners also considered the option of redeveloping the Jersey Meadow Golf Course, but resident feedback was in favor of keeping the course.
“There are a million dollars a year coming into this town through the golf course from outside sources,” resident Bob Gonzalez said at an Aug. 17 City Council meeting. “It’s an important part of this city and a unique thing we have.”
Certain improvements proposed in the plan are not likely to take shape until the Texas Department of Transportation finishes construction on Hwy. 290 in 2017 at the earliest, Castro said. The council was in favor of plans to install signage around city access points, but determined it did not make sense while construction was underway.
