At their respective meetings April 23, Conroe City Council and Montgomery County Commissioners Court approved an interlocal agreement with each other tied to the next stretch of the David Memorial Drive extension.
The agreement clears the way for the county to take the lead on building the final roughly 1,500 feet of roadway from the Conroe city limits to Hwy. 242.
The details
The agreement states the project is intended to improve mobility, help traffic move more smoothly and ease congestion in the area.
Under the agreement, Montgomery County would handle the engineering plans, bid the project out for construction and manage the work once a contract is awarded. Conroe still keeps a say in the process; the city will review and approve the plans, and if city officials object to the recommended construction bid, they have 15 days to notify the county in writing after receiving notice.
Conroe City Administrator Gary Scott said the county would also serve as project manager and would remain responsible for maintaining the approximately 1,500-foot segment inside Conroe city limits once the roadway is accepted.
For Conroe, the agreement mainly means the city is formally giving consent for the work to happen inside its city limits while shifting most of the execution side to the county, according to the agreement.
The county would also contribute up to $3 million toward the project, and that work cannot begin until the county receives the needed right of way from Houston Methodist The Woodlands Hospital and any other affected property owners.
What they’re saying
During the Conroe City Council meeting, Scott said the arrangement was a way to move the long-discussed project forward while reducing the city’s financial responsibility.
He also said city officials had been working on the agreement for about six months and told council the deal would save Conroe about $2.1 million compared to what the city had previously expected to put toward the project.
Scott said Conroe’s portion would come from a regional participation account tied to a 2007 agreement with The Woodlands Township, with about $501,000 available for joint projects. He told the council that Conroe's money would be released once the county secures the needed right of way from the hospital.
Council members also framed the project as one that residents have been watching closely.
Officials said they had received calls and emails about the roadway and described the agreement as another example of collaboration between local governments.
The agreement states the county wants to complete the extension using road bond funds and other funding sources, including a right-of-way donation from Houston Methodist The Woodlands Hospital.
How we got here
The David Memorial Drive extension has been in the works for years. Community Impact previously reported that the project began in September 2023 under an interlocal agreement between Shenandoah and Montgomery County, with the first phase later reaching the Conroe city limits.
Community Impact also reported that the remaining segment—once expected to be paid for by Conroe—would instead be funded through the Montgomery County road bond approved by voters in May 2025, with about $2.5 million needed to finish construction.
What they're saying
Precinct 3 Commissioner Ritch Wheeler said the feeder road is a disaster.
“In 2014, when I was on [Shenandoah’s] Planning and Zoning [Commission], we started looking at this road," he said. "In 2016, when I became mayor [of Shenandoah], we started working towards it, and I will say personally, you [Precinct 4 Commissioner Matt Gray] were the third county commissioner, and you got it across the finish line. But I know it’s not just Shenandoah, not just Precinct 4, Precinct 3, Precinct 2 ... this touches everybody.”
Gray said that since he’s taken office, the constituents in the area have needed this improvement and that he’s appreciated the partnership between the city of Conroe and Shenandoah Mayor John Escoto.
Construction is expected to begin this summer, according to Gray’s office.
View the agreement below.
