Voting breakdown shows Woodlands area most in opposition

From Conroe Courier By Catherine Dominguez | Posted: Tuesday, May 19, 2015 9:39 pm

More than 25 people spoke during Montgomery County Commissioners Court Tuesday morning urging commissioners to put a revised road bond package on the November ballot.

However, while County Judge Craig Doyal and Precinct 3 Commissioner James Noack agree the county needs to revisit a road bond and cooperation is needed from the court and community, but it remained unclear whether voters would see another road bond election this year.

In a statement before the court’s meeting, Noack said, “We talk too much, don’t listen enough, angry too often, forgive too little” and suggested more cooperation is necessary moving forward after the $350 million road bond on the May 9 ballot failed.

“We all want what is best for the county, yet sometimes we may not always agree on what is best or how to get there,” Noack said. “There has been a lot said over the last few months that has divided this court and this county. If we can accept differences and find common ground, there is nothing together we cannot accomplish.”

Doyal agrees and urged the court and residents to consider all the factors in constructing a road bond package for a future ballot.

“We need to talk to the people in the community and find out exactly what their concerns were and why it didn’t pass,” Doyal said. “In the spirit of cooperation, I think it is critical to move forward, but we have to come together realistically and we need to listen to the financial adviser when they tell us things.”

By the numbers

With the breakdown of the voting from the May 9 election, it is clear the majority of those who voted at precincts in The Woodlands area, which fall in Precincts 2, 3 and 4, opposed the $350 million road bond that included the highly controversial Woodlands Parkway extension.

With all 32 consolidated precincts reporting, 16,220 votes (57.19 percent) were against the road bond, with 12,143 (42.81 percent) in favor. This is the second time in four years voters nixed a road bond referendum. A $200 million road bond also failed to pass in 2011.

Of those no votes, 9,648 (59.48 percent) were from voting precincts in The Woodlands area, including Windsor Hills, Harper’s Landing, Shenandoah and Barbara Bush Elementary which are located in Precinct 2.

Of the 12,143 yes votes cast countywide, only 1,976 (16.27 percent) came from The Woodlands area voting precincts. The Woodlands area made up 11,624, (40.98 percent) of the 28,363 total votes cast in the election.

Galatas Elementary, located at 9001 Cochrans Crossing, had the largest total turnout of voters with 3,015 – 1,729 of those votes were during early voting.

Voters in Precinct 4 were almost divided equally with 1,297 against and 1,275 for the bond with four of the eight voting precincts rejecting the bond.

In Precinct 3, six of the eight voting precincts rejected the bond; and in Precinct 2, four of 10 voting precincts rejected the bond. Precinct 1 only had one of its six voting precincts reject the bond.

Precinct 2 Commissioner Charlie Riley was absent from the meeting following a surgical procedure.