Conroe council approves bid award for Well 32 after developer agrees to pause litigation and provide easements

The Conroe City Council on Jan. 31 approved a bid award for CIP Project 2024-19—Water Well Plant 32—after representatives of developer Howard Hughes said the company would temporarily put litigation "off the table" and coordinate easements, upsized water lines and other infrastructure to support the project.

Council approval came by voice vote after discussion and public questions about cost and protections for the city. City staff presented a revised drilling and production bid of $13,646,080; council members and staff said the city had already purchased electrical components previously budgeted at $252,000, which the mayor described as part of the grand total for the project.

Why it matters: The well is intended to serve the northwest region around The Woodlands Hills and related developments. Developers’ commitments on easements, utility coordination and a donated fire‑station site were central to persuading council members to move forward with the contract award.

Council discussion and developer commitments Councilwoman Porter said she attended a Jan. 28 meeting with Howard Hughes leadership during which the developer agreed to several items the council viewed as essential. "They agreed to put litigation off the table," Porter said, describing the company’s offer as meeting a primary council concern. Porter also said Howard Hughes agreed to upsize distribution lines, provide easements along The Woodlands Hills’ western boundary for a proposed distribution loop, coordinate with utilities to expedite service to Well 32, and provide a detention pond on developer‑owned property.

Jordan Watson, director of community and government affairs for Howard Hughes, told the council the company was "ready to keep that momentum going" and described the developer as committed to partnering with the city on growth and infrastructure. "We appreciate the progress we've made together so far," Watson said.

Council members also referenced the long history of agreements between the city and the developer. City staff and council members cited an initial utility service agreement from 2012, a development agreement in 2016, and amendments in 2023 and 2024 that frame existing obligations between the parties.

Costs, bid details and procedural history City staff said the revised bid for drilling and producing a Jasper water well (removing a Catahoula option) is $13,646,080; the mayor and staff confirmed the $252,000 in previously purchased electrical components is not included in that bid price but should be added to compute the project's purchase total. The mayor said: "You lay the $252,000 on top of it that we've already paid for. That's your grand total." Taken together, the figures discussed by councilmembers produce a project total of $13,898,080.

Council members also noted that Well 32 failed to pass at a prior meeting for lack of a second on a motion. Porter described multiple internal conversations and said she sought additional information from staff before voting; after the Jan. 28 meeting with Howard Hughes she said the written commitments satisfied her concerns.

Public questions and memorializing commitments A registered speaker, Betty Avery, asked for clarity on the project’s scope and on which components taxpayers were paying for, including electrical work, transformers and generator costs. Avery asked, "Is that including the electrical? Is it not in the electrical? And the other aspect, there's a generator. Is that generator considered an electrical?" The council and city staff answered that previously purchased electrical components were excluded from the new bid price and reiterated the council’s interest in documenting developer commitments.

Several council members asked whether the developer’s statement about pausing litigation was memorialized in any document. Porter and others said the developers agreed that litigation was "off the table at this particular time." Councilmembers, city staff and the developer acknowledged that memorializing the agreement in writing would be important going forward; no formal written addendum was presented during the meeting.

Vote and next steps A motion to approve the bid award for CIP Project 2024-19 (Water Well Plant 32) was made and seconded; the council approved the award by voice vote. The motion passed with no recorded roll‑call tally in the meeting record.

Council members asked staff to follow up on memorializing agreements reached with Howard Hughes and on utility coordination; no formal staff directive or specific deadline was recorded in the meeting minutes provided.

The council adjourned the special meeting after the vote. The item will remain subject to any formal contract execution steps and to staff follow-up on the commitments developers described at the Jan. 28 meeting.