CITY OF KATY (Covering Katy News)—The Pitts Road realignment project at Morton Road is moving forward with the purchase of land needed to complete the project.
Why it Matters:
When residents leave or enter the the rear side of the Cane Island neighborhood using Pitts Road, they must turn onto Morton Road before quickly returning to Pitts Road. The misalignment creates a traffic problem that city leaders are working to fix. The city needed to purchase land to connect the two sections of Pitts Road. On Monday night, The Katy City Council authorized the purchase of about three acres to connect the two sections of Pitts Road.
"It's a long-term goal to line up these intersections," Mayor ProTem Chris Harris said.
There will also be lighting improvements to a section of Morton Road that has become more heavily traveled due to population growth, but is still very dark at night.
The city purchased the land from WM Trucking and Excavation for about $1.19 million. The land is in Waller County.
On Monday, the council also authorized $342,936 to install a traffic signal for the intersection.
Pitts Road at Morton Road
More Work Ahead
Last October, the council authorized the expansion of Pitts Road between Cane Island Parkway and Morton Road. Work began in December and is about 60 percent complete.
Adding another City water well
In a separate action, the council authorized another purchase of about 17 acres of land from WM Trucking & Excavation. The council approved spending about $3.4 million for that property in Waller County.
Harris said the city plans to put a water well on that property, expand detention pond capacity, and add green space for the Leyendecker Landing water retention facility northeast of the Pitts Road-Morton Road intersection.
Harris said he and others have been working to buy the land since he joined the council in 2018.
"It's a professional accomplishment," Harris said, "There's a lot of use for that property, 20 acres in all. It's very, very exciting."
Leyendecker Landing is named for the late David Leyendecker, a longtime Katy city engineer who died in 2021.