CITY OF KATY, Texas (Covering Katy News) — Construction on the first 1.5 miles of Katy's long-planned Snow Goose Trail is expected to begin in November, five years after voters approved funding for the project.
Katy City Council on Monday approved a $1.16 million construction contract with Castillo Aranda LLC of New Caney for the first phase of the trail. The total project cost, including engineering and contingencies, is approximately $1.57 million.
"We are finally here," Council Member Paula Taylor said before the unanimous vote.
The project was approved by Katy voters as part of the city's 2021 bond election.
City officials said the contractor is expected to mobilize in mid-November under a 180-day contract, putting completion of the first phase around the middle of May 2027.
"It's a 180-day contract, so that would have them wrapping up about middle of May of next year for this phase," a city official told council.
Taylor jokingly responded that she would hold the city to that schedule.
The first phase covers approximately 1.5 miles. Taylor also addressed concerns she said have been raised by residents about how close the trail would come to their homes.
"We are going along the bayou," Taylor said. "We are not going right behind the fences of the residents' homes."
The trail will cut over toward Scott Ranch Road and includes part of a previously approved traffic signal and crosswalk project there.
Trail network planned through 2029
Monday's discussion also provided a broader timeline for Katy's planned trail network, with additional segments expected to move into construction over the next several years.
A trail segment along Morton Road is expected to begin construction in mid-2027. Another section along 10th Street, extending from the bayou to Avenue C, is currently being designed and is expected to go to construction next year.
A segment along Pitts Road extending to a future park is planned for approximately 2028.
Another section along Avenue C, running from 10th Street toward Old Katy, is anticipated around 2028 or 2029.
One roughly half-mile gap remains without a firm construction date because that portion depends on a channel improvement project being designed by the Brookshire Katy Drainage District.
Council Member Johnston Dietz asked whether the city could begin the next phase before the first phase is finished, potentially reducing construction mobilization costs. A city official said the schedule for that phase depends entirely on the drainage district completing its plans, and the city does not yet know when that will happen.
Dietz said he was scheduled to meet with Brookshire Katy Drainage District officials the following day and would ask specifically about the project's schedule.
The council separately approved an interlocal agreement with the drainage district allowing construction of the trail system.
Once completed, the various segments are intended to form a trail network extending through Katy and eventually reaching the city's historic downtown area.