Fort Bend Lifestyles and Homes Magazine Feb 2010: Fort Bend County News.

Proud 2009 Showing for the “Show Me City”

The Show Me City continued to build on its past successes this year with the following achievements that allowed Missouri City to continue to stand out and shine:

For the 21st year in a row, the Finance Department earned a Distinguished Budget Presentation Award for fiscal responsibility and sound financial management. The Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada presented the award to the city, which ranks among a select few in the Gulf Coast region that have successively received this award for more than two decades.

The Missouri City Police Department joined an elite group of 18 police forces across the state to attain “Recognized Law Enforcement Agency” status in Texas. The department was evaluated on 161 Best Practices standards to achieve this prestigious award.

For the second year, Congressional Quarterly recognized Missouri City as one of the safest in America. The city ranked as the eighth safest in Texas and in the top 100 in the United States.

The Houston-Galveston Area Council of Governments recognized two parks in their Natural Area Awards program: the Hunter ’s Glen sprayground funded by the Blue Ridge West Municipal Utility District and Buffalo Run Park, which emerged from a water detention project to a beautiful 95-acre city park.

Ten months and an inaugural tee time later, the El Dorado Golf Course is back. The course is the dynamic design of Golf Architect Jeff Blume, who oversaw workers moving 200,000 cubic tons of dirt, installing a complete irrigation system, building 78 sand traps and five different tee boxes and the shaping of 18 Greens.

After meeting the high prevention standards of the National Flood Insurance Program, Missouri City received a “very good” Community Rating System Score of 7, placing residents in a strong position to secure lower flood insurance premiums.

City officials streamlined the 2010 budget to reduce spending by almost 5 percent from the previous year and to maintain stability. The blueprint also includes a $950,000 fund for contingencies.

H-GAC Honors

Fort Bend Projects With Awards

A park, a sprayground and a master-plan are among the winners in the H-GAC 2009 Parks and Natural Areas Award competition. These Fort Bend projects, along with other honorees, serve as models for planning and project implementation for parks and natural areas in the region.

Creating Connections, the Sugar Land Hike and Bike Trail Master Plan, is the winner in the Planning category. Featuring some of the best qualities of trail planning, including usability and comprehensiveness, this plan has been approved by the Sugar Land City Council and has moved into the implementation phase with widespread support.

Sugar Land City Council Approves Creation of TIRZ 4

Sugar Land City Council approved Ordinance 1768 designating a roughly 700-acre tract of land at the intersection of U.S. Highway 59 and University Boulevard as Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ) 4.

The city created TIRZ 4 for the purpose of financing public improvements and facilities necessary to support the development of employment, commercial, cultural arts, sports and entertainment districts within an urban-density, mixed-use center. TIRZ 4 will enhance the creation of a first-class destination activity center within the city, thus promoting the continued economic vitality of Sugar Land and Fort Bend County.

The conceptual plan for the TIRZ is based in large part on the 2007 visioning document —as recommended by the Vision Task Force and adopted by city council—which anticipates the realization of many of the elements from the city’s Cultural/Entertainment District plans.

The city and Newland Communities partnered in the development of a conceptual plan for the 300 acres of commercial reserve within the TIRZ boundary. The TIRZ also includes the University of Houston – Sugar Land site.

A TIRZ is a tool that local governments can use to publicly finance needed structural improvements and enhanced infrastructure within a defined area. The primary goal of a TIRZ is to create additional new value and reinvest that added value back into the designated area.

Sugar Land Town Square, located within a TIRZ, is a prime example of this economic development tool in action. Without the Sugar Land Town Square TIRZ, many of the improvements and amenities currently enjoyed by the residents would never have materialized. With Sugar Land Town Square serving as a thriving TIRZ model, the city will reinvest the new dollars that TIRZ 4 will create back into the project rather than using the city ’s existing general property tax base to fund the public improvements. The TIRZ will ensure residents of Sugar Land see no impact to their residential property taxes and are not asked to shoulder the burden of development within the designated zone.

With the passage of Ordinance 1768, the city will now begin the more detailed process of determining a prioritized list of public improvements to be included in the final project plan for the reinvestment zone, as well as the potential for other entities to participate in its
funding.

Sugar Land Grows by 1,100 Homes Overnight

RiverPark officially became part of Sugar Land with the annexation of the subdivision ’s 3,592 residents on Dec. 1. Two years ago, a Strategic Partnership Agreement between Sugar Land and Fort Bend County Municipal District No. 1 created a plan for annexation. The SPA provided for limited-purpose annexation of retail areas in 2007, followed by annexation of the entire MUD this year.

RiverPark has contracted for fire protection from Sugar Land for years; however, annexation into Sugar Land will include all other municipal services.

The Sugar Land Police Department will establish a new police beat to patrol the area, along with the Telfair subdivision, and RiverPark will begin to benefit from the city ’s public works and utility services, parks and recreation programs and animal services.

Residents will also benefit from property value safeguards offered by the city. For instance, all new construction and remodeling requires building permits. Sugar Land also has zoning ordinances, which establish land use requirements to benefit homeowners. Furthermore, the city ’s code enforcement office ensures and protects health, safety and welfare in existing residences and businesses.

Property taxes for RiverPark residents will decrease from what was formerly paid to their Municipal Utility District. All together, RiverPark’s annexation will save an average resident just over $200 a year in tax and utility costs. There was also no cost to existing residents associated with the annexation.

Located in a 17.85-acre park in northeast Missouri City, the Hunter’s Glen Sprayground is the honorable mention entry in the Policy Tools category. Donated to the citizens by the Blue Ridge West Municipal Utility District, this interactive aquatic playground includes a catch basin to capture grey water and reuse it for irrigation of landscaping.

Missouri City’s Buffalo Run Park is the honorable mention honoree for the On-the-Ground Projects Over $500,000. Initially planned as just a water detention project, this city park is used for boating, fishing, hiking and picnicking, and is home to two large community events —Boo in the Run and the city’s annual Fourth of July celebration.

The H-GAC board of directors honored the outstanding parks and natural areas projects during the board ’s regular meeting in January.