During Wednesday and Thursday’s Conroe City Council workshop and action agenda meetings, council members discussed and deliberated on numerous topics, including regulating storage containers on residential property, annexation of additional land by municipal utility districts and purchasing ballistic helmets and vests for Conroe police officers.
Here is what you may have missed from Conroe City Council meetings. To view the complete agenda, click
here.
1. Approval of ordinance regulating storage containers on residential properties (approved)
Conroe residents will not be allowed to have storage containers on their property without a permit, or use them as residential dwellings. Director of Community Development Nancy Mikeska said an amendment to the city’s code was introduced because some citizens were unhappy with the lengthy presence of visible storage containers in Conroe neighborhoods.
The ordinance requires residents—not commercial properties—to pay a $50 permit fee to keep visible storage containers on their property up to 90 days. Residents who do not adhere to the code will be fined up to $2,000.
Mayor Toby Powell supported the ordinance, saying during Wednesday’s workshop that “storage units are just not a home.”
2. City council members deny municipal utility district annexation request
Council deferred two resolutions by two MUDs to annex additional land into their boundaries. The request by Chemtec Energy Services to annex 7.827 acres of land into the Lake Conroe Hills MUD, and a request by MUD No. 1 to annex 5.964 acres of the Park West subdivision, a planned residential development, will be considered at the next council meeting.
3. Approval of ballistic vests and helmets for Conroe Police Department
City Council approved the use of $64,000 in funds to purchase ballistic vests and helmets for every Conroe Police Department officer. While officers already wear Kevlar vests every day, the new vests are rifle-rated, which would protect officers in active-shooter situations, said Chief of Police Philip Dupuis on Wednesday.
4. Council opposes Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District fees
Council members approved a resolution opposing an increase in LSGCD fees. The proposed rate would increase from 7.5 cents to 11 cents per 1,000 gallons of water used, effective Jan. 1. The district has attributed the increase the fees to ongoing litigation with the city of Conroe and other utility providers.
Update: This article has been edited to show the correct effective date of LSGCD's proposed water rate increase, should it be approved.