The West Houston Association hosted a lovely evening reception Tuesday, December 4th, for the Annual Holiday & Awards Ceremony. The event celebrated our association, our members, and their outstanding projects with a night of cocktails, hors d’oeuvres and celebration.
The reception began at 4:30 pm and was held at the Westin-Memorial City. John Moody, WHA Chairman & CEO of Parkside Capital, kicked off the evenings events by congratulating the association and it’s members on a great year! Greater West Houston has many projects using standards and sustainable techniques that are improving the quality of life for residents and businesses throughout the region. A few projects stand out above the rest and WHA was excited to recognize these teams for their valuable ingenuity.
On behalf of the Quality Planned Development (QPD) Committee Collins Pier, Committee Chair, announced Harvest Green as the 2018 QPD Award winner. Harvest Green is known as the first Houston-area agri-hood located in Fort Bend County and is 1,300-acres of development centered around a community farm. The community features a 12-acre Village Farm which has individual plots where home owners can grow their very own produce for use. The Farm also includes a greenhouse and 250 acres of waterways, lakes, park land and greenbelts and open space. Harvest Green was recognized for meeting and exceeding the standards for residential commercial, and mixed-use developments. Jerry Ulke, General Manager of Harvest Green, accepted the QPD Award on behalf of the project.
The Sustainable Infrastructure Committee awarded their second year of Sustainability Stars to three excellent projects! Jim Russ, Committee Chair and CEO of EHRA Engineering, recognized the winners for their project planning and design decisions that enhance the economic performance, social benefits and the environmental returns for the project sponsor and the community in which it is located.
Bridgeland Creek Parkway Sections 7 & 8 received the Investigation (planning) and Investment (design) stars for 2018. Bridgeland took the initiative to incorporate green infrastructure and low impact development into roadways. Located within the Cypress Creek Watershed in Northwest Harris County and west of the Grand Parkway, Bridgeland Creek Parkway sections 7 and 8 provide a more natural and sustainable example for future road development. These new boulevard sections will be part of Prairieland Village, a subdivision of the master-planned Bridgeland development. The proposed roadway consists of approximately one mile of new major thoroughfare with a drainage area of approximately 25 acres. Heath Melton of Howard Hughes Corporation accepted the award on behalf of the project. Consultants include HR, Green and SWA Group.
Read More on Bridgeland Creek Parkway.
Queenston Manor Apartment Homes received the Investigation (planning), Investment (design), Integration (construction) and Inspiration (third-party recognition) stars for 2018. When the site plan for Queenston Manor was initially prepared, a detention pond was proposed to manage the site’s runoff. This feature consumed a large area, making multi-family development financially infeasible. Redesigning the site with LID practices increased the amount of land available for buildings, allowing the developer to construct 48 additional units within the multi-family residential project. While the installation of LID systems cost over $800,000 more than a traditional system, the 48 extra units generate an additional $642,812 in revenue each year. Chris Browne of EHRA Engineering accepted the award on behalf of the project. The owner of the project is Academy Development and consultants include EHRA Engineering and Construction EcoServices.
Cross Creek Ranch – Polishing Pond received the Investigation (planning), Investment (design), Integration (construction) and first ever Innovation (“wild-card” efforts we didn’t think of) stars for 2018. Designed as a 45-acre wetland treatment basin, the Polishing Pond is the start of a three-part water management transect where community effluent is captured and treated, sent to an extensive naturalized system of bioremediating polishing lakes, and then slowly discharged into a meandering three-mile long creek restoration. This project is the first of its kind in Texas. Rob Bamford of Johnson Development Corporation accepted the award on behalf of the project. Owners of the project are Johnson Development and Fort Bend MUD 169. Consultants include BGE, Allen Boone Humphries Robinson and SWA Group.
Read More on the Cross Creek Polish Pond
In addition to our Quality Planned Development and Sustainable Infrastructure awards, WHA asked each of the seven committee chairs to nominate a committee member who went above and beyond for the association. The recipient has been participating in the bi-monthly committee meetings and provided valuable expertise in the creation of the 2060 Plan. WHA’s Executive Committee unanimously agreed that the following committee members should be recognized as WHA’s 2018 Outstanding Committee Member recipients.
Parks, Recreation & Open Space: Adam McGovern
EHRA’s Adam McGovern has not only shown up with great input, he helped show off the Parks section of the West Houston 2060 Plan.
Education & Workforce Development: Sara Montenegro
Sarah hosts all of the committee’s meetings at Texas Children’s Hospital, where she’s the VP in charge. She has been active on WHA’s board and discussion on workforce development.
Flood Control, Drainage & Wetlands: Alex Kamkar, Toll Bros.
Alex is active on the Flood Control as well as the transportation committee. He brings a practical and politically aware element to our discussions.
Water Resources: Wayne Ahrens, Dannenbaum
Wayne is one of the original committee members and provides a first-hand account of some of the biggest water projects across our region.
Regional Mobility: William Papadopoulos, Delta Troy Interests
William’s participation and perspective on transportation issues, especially the highspeed rail line, have added value.
QPD: Brian Stidham
Brian Stidham from Hines Residential asks tough questions and has been an active contributor to all of the committee’s efforts since he joined the committee in 2017.
Sustainable Infrastructure: Maurice Mullaly, DAC Engineering
Maurice is a great contributor and currently working on the committee’s “brag book” for its Sustainability Stars program.
WHA President & CEO Auggie Campbell ended the evenings program by giving special recognition to our outgoing Chairman John Moody. The West Houston Association has been under the leadership of John Moody since 2016. As he steps down as chairman of our association WHA wanted recognize his accomplishments and show our appreciation for all of his work.
The association is lucky to have so many wonderful members who volunteer to make this region better. Thank you all for celebrating with us!
Congratulations 2018 Award Winners!