Tomball City Council members held a special workshop meeting before its regular meeting on Monday, Dec. 5. Here are three things to know from the meetings. 1. Tomball City Council approved Harris County's offer to purchase a portion of the city of Tomball's existing utility easements for Phase 2 of the Tomball Tollway, the tolled section of Hwy. 249 in Tomball. The property is located on the east side of Hwy. 249 south of Brown Road. "This is part of the next phase of the Tomball Tollway expansion," Community Development Director Craig Meyers said. "These easements were put in place for the city to extend future water and gas [lines] to that area, and with the takings that the toll road is trying to do, there's still plenty of adequate easement there for future [lines]." Harris County will receive three separate parcels of land. The county will pay $7,305.50 for 0.0391 acres, $2,625 of which will be given to ChristBridge Fellowship, located at 29510 Hwy. 249, Tomball, for the loss of trees on the acreage. The county will pay $4,383.50 for a smaller parcel and will also receive a small parcel as a two-year temporary construction easement for the construction of the toll road. 2. Tomball City Council members held a workshop session to discuss the implementation of an in-city municipal utility district. A representative from Allen Boone Humphries Robinson LLC said both residential and commercial developers have expressed interest in investing in Tomball, should a MUD be implemented within city limits. The city has implemented public improvement districts—or PIDs—but is seeking additional avenues to finance infrastructure and encourage development long-term within city limits. A MUD is implemented as an incentive to developers. While subject to city ordinances, the MUD—governed by an elected board of directors—is able to levy property taxes in the district to reimburse the developer for the cost of the infrastructure. A MUD essentially brings infrastructure into the city at no cost to the city or its general tax base. 3. The city of Tomball received a transparency star for traditional finances from the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, recognizing the city for its financial transparency. The city has received two of five transparency stars, a new program implemented by the Texas Comptroller's Office encouraging financial transparency in all areas of governmental finance.