The Huntsville City Council voted unanimously Tuesday, Oct. 6, to pull three tracts totaling about 1,018 acres south of town into the city’s extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ). The vote expands Huntsville ETJ expansion into mostly wooded Walker County land flanking Interstate 45, and brings future subdivisions there under city rules for streets, drainage, water and sewer design and platting even though the land is not being annexed.
The three petitions, all filed by the landowners, cover a 644-acre tract along and south of a road east of Interstate 45, a 323-acre tract south of Lonestar Road and west of the interstate, and a 51-acre tract. The applicants are TX Keeland Ltd. of Huntsville, with Robert W. Keeland as general partner, for the two larger tracts, and BS Investors (Worldwide) of Conroe, managed by Jacob Slott and Greg Buckner, for the 51 acres. The Planning Commission recommended approval of all three on Sept. 17.
Council members raised the ongoing question of who pays for the roads, utilities and services that follow new subdivisions in the ETJ, and tied the vote to the city’s negotiations with Walker County on a replacement for a 2002 ETJ development agreement. The land is not inside Huntsville city limits unless the council later agrees to annex. The changes take effect 10 days after final passage.