Legal Battle over new CISD high school site

The Houston Chronicle– Trial set over land for new CISD high school. The Conroe Independent School District is in the midst of a legal battle over the site where a new Oak Ridge high school is planned to be built.

CISD is in ongoing litigation with six south Montgomery County property owners who jointly own a large tract of undeveloped land adjacent to the site for the new high school on Riley Fuzzel Road. With negotiations and special appointed commissioners failing to produce a result that was acceptable to both parties, a jury trial has been set for May 16.

“We have rights to the land. The only thing debated here is, ‘What’s the dollar amount,'” said Datren Williams, a CISD trustee and second vice president of the board.

Construction of a new high school was approved by voters during a $487 million bond election in November, which included a total of five new schools, three of which are in the Oak Ridge area.

The district expects to construct the new Oak Ridge high school with $142 million from that bond. The district revealed design and construction plans for the new high school over the summer, which were approved by the CISD trustees.

Acquiring the land

The dispute arose after CISD purchased 37 acres of undeveloped land from Toll Houston TX LLC off Riley Fuzzel Road for $5.7 million in early 2015 as the new site of the second Oak Ridge high school.

The district bought the property with the intention of acquiring additional adjacent acreage since construction of a high school requires about 80 acres. Toll Houston TX LLC owns about 700 additional acres adjacent to the site of the school, according to court documents submitted by CISD.

“The availability of parcels this size in this area of CISD is very limited. CISD believes the site it has selected is the most appropriate site for this community high school,” said CISD Superintendent Don Stockton.

CISD is asserting a right to the property west of its 37 acres off Riley Fuzzel Road, which is owned by the Hilliard family and has been in the family for decades.

The six property owners named in the suit are Deborah-Doris Lisette Hilliard, Amy Hilliard Wills, Roy Hilliard, Christopher Hilliard II, Jennifer Elizabeth Hilliard Wilshusen and Eldorado, Texas-based Bell Endeavors Ltd., whose registered agent isHelen Hilliard Brame.

Before petitioning the court, the district offered to purchase the disputed 46 acres for $5.1 million, which it claimed was the fair market value after hiring a property appraiser, according to the final offer it mailed to the Hilliards. But after much back and forth, the family declined the offer.

The district did not accept the Hilliards’ refusal to sell 46 acres of its 364.7-acre tract near the site of the future high school and so CISD used eminent domain to condemn and acquire their property. No homes are located on the disputed property.

“To obtain a portion of the land needed for the new high school, the district, without success, approached the Hilliards on several occasions in an attempt to negotiate a price,” Stockton said. “Because no agreement was reached to purchase the unimproved land and because there was no other viable high school site option in that area of the district, CISD had to utilize the eminent domain process to acquire the Hilliard’s portion of the site.”

The eminent domain proceeding was started in June and has continued in the courts. Three disinterested property owners in Montgomery County were appointed to assess the value of the property and any damages in accordance with the law. The special commissioners ruled that the Hilliards should receive $10 million – more than the original $5.1 million the district offered – for the property and any damages during an oral hearing on Oct. 16.

Weeks later, both the school district and the Hilliards filed objections to the commissioners’ decision.

The attorney representing the district, J. Mark Breeding, asserted that the $10 million award “exceeds the just and adequate compensation,” according to court documents.

“It boils down to the compensation. I’m pretty sure we could get anything we want out of them if we gave them enough money. But that’s not what we’ve been charged to do as our fiduciary obligation to the taxpayers of the district. We don’t mind paying them … but we can’t just throw away taxpayer dollars because someone wants an unreasonable amount of money,” Williams said.

However, the Hilliards assert that the award was “insufficient to adequately compensate” them for damages suffered and, in particular, the devaluation of the remainder of the property that was not taken by CISD, according to court documents. The Hilliards also assert, according to court documents, that the district has committed a “clear abuse of its discretion,” stating that no public necessity exists for condemning the Hilliards’ property.

The Hilliards’ attorney declined further comment.

“It’s common place in any government entity. It’s how the Grand Parkway got built,” Williams said of utilizing eminent domain, referencing the new freeway that nudges up against the disputed property and the future site of the high school.

Construction plans

Although litigation is pending and the jury trial is months away, CISD is preparing for the construction of the new high school.

The district sold $138 million worth of bond money in its bond sale this month and expects to dedicate $77 million from that sale toward building the high school. Last year, CISD spent money from its surplus funds to clear the property off Riley Fuzzel Road to prepare for construction.

The new secondary school is considered a critical project for the district. The Oak Ridge area is the fastest-growing part of the district, with schools facing a large influx of students due to increased residential development in the area.

Schools like Birnham Woods and Cox Intermediate in the Oak Ridge area are expected to be close to 200 percent of capacity in less than nine years.

The current Oak Ridge high school is the most overcrowded campus in CISD. The combined student enrollment capacity at Oak Ridge High and its ninth-grade campus is 3,768. CISD expects enrollment at the high school campuses to far exceed 5,000 students by 2024, according to a 2015 demographic study. The senior campus is already 550 students over capacity.

In order to meet student demand, the district uses portable temporary classrooms. About 20 percent of CISD’s 155 portables are divvied up between Oak Ridge High School senior and freshman campuses. The district hopes that a new high school will relieve pressure.

CISD expects to begin construction on the new high school this year in time for opening in the fall of 2018. It’s proceeding with plans despite pending litigation. No delays are expected at the moment.

“Because the district now has the authority to take possession of the land and proceed with the project, construction of the high school has begun,” Stockton said.

The Oak Ridge area isn’t just getting a new high school. The district expects to build an intermediate and two elementary schools in the area to also meet demand.

The CISD board of trustees approved a $2 million deal for 17.67 acres of land for a new elementary school off Texas 242. The school is expected to be in the Harper’s Preserve residential community. The new elementary school is expected to relieve pressure from Oak Ridge and Houser elementary schools, which are both expected to be at 100 percent capacity by 2018, according to a demographic study commissioned by the district.

CISD by the numbers

$142 million: The total cost to construct the new Oak Ridge high school.

$10 million: The amount the special commissioners agreed should be paid to the Hilliards for the 46-acre property and any damages, according to court documents.

$5.7 million: The amount the district paid to Toll Houston TX LLC for 37 acres off Riley Fuzzel Road, which is the site of the new Oak Ridge High School.

$5.1 million: The amount the district offered the Hilliards for the 46 acres of their property, which was declined.