Tag Archive for: De Leon

East-West Northpark Drainage Under 494, UPRR Now Connected

1/17/2026 – Northpark Expansion Project contractors have now officially completed connecting drainage on both sides of Loop 494 and the UnionPacific Railroad.

Contractors begin backfilling hole after last section of 5’x8′ culvert was connected to junction box west of railroad. Photo 1/16/26.

By today, the work area had been completely filled in and leveled. See below.

Highlighted area shows where final drainage connection above was made yesterday. Photo 1/17/26.

Now stormwater west of Loop 494 has a path to the Kingwood Diversion Ditch and the San Jacinto West Fork.

Path from ponds to Diversion Ditch via Ditch One behind the businesses on the north side of North Park.

Project Manager Ralph De Leon emailed the Lake Houston Redevelopment Authority Board yesterday to inform them. He wrote, “Just wanted to share that we’ve reached a milestone. The contractor poured the collar on the west side of the rail tracks yesterday, functionally connecting the 8’ x 5′ boxes coming from the junction box at the Shell Station and going underneath Loop 494 to the junction box west of the rail tracks.”

The bore under the tracks finished several weeks ago. The culvert shown above plugged the last gap.

De Leon did not indicate whether contractors sealed the last junction box with a Golden Spike.

Meaning of Milestone

With the east/west subsurface work completed, contractors can now begin building the bridge over the railroad tracks and Loop 494. De Leon concluded his email to the board with “We are officially there now.”

When complete Northpark Expansion will represent the first all-weather evacuation route from Kingwood for 78,000 people.

However, while reaching the milestone is a huge accomplishment, it will also mean some inconvenience next week.

Westbound Lane Closure Weekend of 1/23/26

On Friday, January 23, the eastbound entrance to Northpark from the northbound I-69 feeder road will be reduced to one lane eastbound. The constriction will start at 8 p.m. and remain until 5 a.m., Monday, January 26th. 

During that time, the contractor will demolish and replace the remaining section of old roadway and install the last storm sewers at that location. 

Looking E over entry from US59. The red crosshatched area will be demolished and repaved next weekend.

On Friday starting at 8PM, contractors will close one lane per the diagram above and begin demolition of the old concrete and an old 24″ storm sewer lateral pipe in the red L-shaped box.

On Saturday, they will replace the pipe, then begin grading and preparing for “Fast-Track” paving. Fast Track uses special techniques and materials that minimize traffic disruption. Contractors hope to begin pouring the concrete by 7-8PM.

On Sunday, they will stripe the newly constructed concrete and reopen lanes in their original configuration before the weekend.

The new lanes should reopen by 5AM Monday at the latest.

For more information on other facets of the project, see the latest 3-week look ahead schedule.

Posted by Bob Rehak on 1/17/26

3063 Days since Hurricane Harvey

Northpark Update: Drainage on Both Sides of UPRR Tracks Finally Connected

12/6/25 – Northpark Drive expansion contractors started boring underneath Union-Pacific Railroad Tracks on 5/17/25. Yesterday, they finally connected the drainage networks on both sides – an early Christmas present for the project team. It also represents a major project milestone in the quest to build an all-weather evacuation route for Kingwood.

Pictures of Final East/West Connections under Tracks

This morning, Project Manager, Ralph De Leon sent me pictures taken earlier on Thursday.

Culvert sections creeping toward junction box (right). A concrete/sand mixture surrounds the sections to lock them in place.
Northpark
Wider shot shows culvert’s entry point into junction box.
Workers place plywood across the entry, then…
…pour more concrete to seal it off.
Contractors finally removed the retaining walls that kept workers safe in the pits.

How Bore Pits Looked Today

By the time I got there today with my drone, contractors had completely filled one bore pit and mostly filled the second!

Pit between tracks and Loop 494 filled!

According to De Leon, even though contractors have completed the east/west drainage, they must still connect the junction boxes to 8′ x 8′ culverts that branch north on both sides of the tracks.

One branch will collect stormwater from Loop 494 shown above.

Pit east of tracks was mostly filled in today. But note excavator digging an additional trench north (right) of pit.

The second will convey part of the stormwater that goes under the tracks to the north behind Extra Space Storage, Public Storage and Dunkin’ Donuts. See above. That water will use a ditch that connects with Bens Branch and the Kingwood Diversion Ditch near the Fireworks Stand.

Trench (r) will connect the junction box to culverts already buried behind storage businesses.

The rest of the stormwater from the junction box will use culverts already buried down the middle of Northpark. Contractors have already made and buried that connection, according to De Leon.

Up Next Elsewhere on Northpark

According to the Lake Houston Redevelopment Authority website, after tying into the drainage ditch that goes behind the storage businesses, the large storm sewer crew will move across the tracks and tie in the Loop 494 drainage to the western junction box.

They will then begin working on the east side of the tracks from the Anderson Rd to Northpark Christian Church where the paving has been poured setting the curb inlet tops and extensions.

Another crew will also work east of the tracks from Northpark Christian Church to Advanced Auto, setting the curb inlet tops and extensions.

On Monday December 15th,  they will move to the corner of LP 494 and Northpark in front of the Dry Cleaners to set the sanitary sewer manhole cone and top.

The dirt crew will begin backfilling and grading behind the curbs on both east- and westbound Northpark east of the railroad tracks.

The concrete paving crews will pour from Anderson Rd. towards the Dairy Queen driveway. They will then move to westbound Northpark and pave from Sun Auto to Quick Quack/Sherwin Williams.

The driveway crew will continue working on the remaining 4 driveways on westbound Northpark near Northpark Christian Church. They will then return to working on the sidewalk from Northpark Christian Church to the east end of the project at Advanced Auto.

For More Information and a Timetable

See the Lake Houston Redevelopment Authority Website and their three-week lookahead schedule.

Posted by Bob Rehak on 12/6/2025

3021 Days Since Hurricane Harvey

Northpark Crews Begin Pouring Concrete Monday, Road Narrowed

Northpark Drive construction crews have finished placing rebar in a 1000 foot long stretch on both sides of the entrance to Kings Mill. They will begin pouring concrete there on Monday, 9/16/24 at 3 AM. Concrete trucks will enter and leave the construction zone approximately every six minutes.

Because workers will spread the concrete next to the inbound lanes, traffic will be reduced to one lane until approximately 1 PM. However, both inbound lanes should open for the evening rush hour.

Rebar and forms ready for pour at 3AM Monday. Traffic on right will narrow to one lane to protect workers spreading the concrete.
Looking west from Kings Mill Entrance at rebar ready for concrete.

At this time, the construction team has scheduled additional concrete pours for 9/20, 9/27, and 10/1; times and dates subject to change.

Project managers evaluated all-night and all-weekend scenarios for pouring the concrete, but encountered legal restrictions having to do with worker safety and/or cost.

Back-and-Forth Paving Plan

The general plan is for crews to pour one side of one stretch of the road while prepping the other. After they finish the new middle lanes, the old outer lanes will be demolished one side at a time. They will reroute traffic to the middle lanes will reconstructing the old lanes.

At this point, neither inbound nor outbound traffic will be shut down completely, though it will narrow to one lane on the side where concrete is being poured.

Looking east at entire stretch of rebar on right. The next pour will be on other side of road.

More Visible Progress

Ralph De Leon, the project manager, emphasized that most of the wrinkles that the project experienced in the last year have been ironed out at this point. However, one small snag remains re: a switch of fire hydrants and buildings with commercial sprinkler systems on the north side of Northpark.

Several companies and a church are migrating to the City of Houston water system, and it’s apparently taking longer than expected for the City’s billing and meter installation department to catch up with the new infrastructure installation. Worst case: some businesses may get free water for a month or so.

De Leon asked for patience. “People don’t see all the work that’s going on underground, but that’s the real heavy part of the lift,” he said. “People will begin to see a lot more progress on Monday. The above-ground ‘flat work’ that everyone sees goes much faster.”

Major Steps After This

The area between the Diversion Ditch and Russell Palmer Road will be paved as part of Phase II, which includes everything up to and a little bit past Woodland Hills Drive.

Paving crews will next complete the new lanes between Russell Palmer and 494.

Looking NE across 494 and Northpark (right). First junction box has just been buried in lower left. Drainage team must next bore under 494 and railroad tracks.

Next, paving crews will turn their attention to 494.

Loop 494 will get the same alternate side of the road treatment in sections until finished.

Finally, crews will begin work west to US59.

NW corner of Northpark and Loop 494, looking west toward 59

The entry ponds will likely be among the last things completed.

In my last post, I alluded to a total shutdown of Northpark while UnionPacific installed new beds and track across the road. Originally scheduled for sometime in October or November, that will now happen in January or February.

It’s too early to tell when bridge construction over 494 will commence.

For More Information

For schematic diagrams of the paving plan, click here.

As paving moves east to west, crossovers will need to close temporarily. To see the schedule, click here.

For a three-week look-ahead schedule, visit the Lake Houston Redevelopment Authority website.

Also, see these posts on ReduceFlooding for a history of the project:

Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/13/24

2572 Days since Hurricane Harvey

Entergy Makes Some Northpark Progress, but Significant Issues Remain

Entergy has made more progress on the Northpark Drive expansion project in the last two weeks than in the previous four years. But despite what you see in the photos below, significant issues remain to clear the way for the first all-weather evacuation route from Kingwood.

Some Progress, But…

Last week, Entergy, a $4 billion company in Texas, erected nine new power poles outside of the City’s right of way. This week, their contractor, Primoris Services, started the process of stringing wire. That’s good news. Really!

But unseen obstacles could still delay the project significantly. For instance:

  • Who will pay for moving Entergy’s ground-mounted transformer and associated power lines near the Exxon Station at US59? Entergy reportedly still wants the Lake Houston Redevelopment Authority (LHRA) to pay for upgrading and moving the transformer and buried cables. LHRA insists that’s an illegal ask because it would constitute a gift of public funds.
  • More power poles remain near Loop 494 that will be difficult to move because of conflicts with new storm drains.
  • Entergy must tunnel under rail tracks.
  • Entergy reportedly still refuses to commit to completion dates for moving its equipment.

Will Entergy Beat Union Pacific?

If Entergy does not resolve issues near the railroad tracks before Union Pacific crews arrive to install new signals and improve the road bed, the project could be delayed years.

Union Pacific reportedly has two crews that rotate through 27 states handling such issues. If we miss them this year, the Northpark project goes to the back of a very long line, according to Ralph De Leon, Northpark project manager for LHRA.

Entergy has already blown a City deadline to move its equipment by March 8. So they have already missed a 30-day deadline by 42 days. But according De Leon, Entergy still refuses to commit to any completion dates.

Ray of Hope

According to Houston Public Works (HPW), Entergy has assigned a new project manager and team to the project. This could be a sign of good things to come.

HPW Senior Division Manager Patrick Nguyen says the City is working with Entergy to resolve easement issues that could result in construction delays and cost escalation. Mayor John Whitmire, who is committed to seeing the project through, has reportedly asked Nguyen to act as an arbitrator.

In an email received today, Nguyen said that “Entergy has assigned a new project manager along with a team to the project.” While diplomatically expressing hope, he did not elaborate further.

Progress Last Week

All nine poles erected last week had pulleys and rope or cables threaded through them when I took these photos today. According to one expert I talked to, crews will use the rope or cables to “pull wire.”

Close up (top left) of cables/ropes and pulleys that will be used to pull new electrical wires from pole to pole.

Compare old and new poles in lower left. Once wire is pulled to a pole, it will be attached to the tip of the insulator.

Moving the poles farther from the street will create room for a six lane bridge plus two turn lanes on each side of the bridge (to meet TXDoT requirements).

LHRA first notified Entergy to move its equipment in 2020. Entergy still won’t commit to a completion date.

The mess at 494

Other Northpark News

Contractors are smoothing out the dirt placed over the culverts between the Kingwood Diversion Ditch and Russell Palmer Road.

Looking west toward Kingwood Diversion Ditch from over Russell Palmer Road

Northpark will expand inwards. Contractors will pour two lanes of concrete in the dirt-covered area above. If I read the schedule correctly, paving in the area above could start within the next two weeks.

West of Russell Palmer (below), contractors buried almost another hundred yards of 6’x8′ culvert last week. Weather permitting, and if they can keep up that same rate of progress, they should be to the railroad tracks in another three months or so.

Looking west along Northpark. Last week, culvert crews were barely past the Shipleys Donut sign the lower right.

However, the culvert will not go all the way to the tracks down the median. As it approaches the point where the bridge starts to rise, it will veer to the right and go under the turn lanes where Entergy is moving back its poles.

For More Information

For more information about Northpark expansion, visit the project pages of the LHRA/Tirz 10 website. Or see these posts on ReduceFlooding:

Posted by Bob Rehak on 4/19/24

2425 Days since Hurricane Harvey

The thoughts expressed in this post represent opinions on matters of public concern and safety. They are protected by the First Amendment of the US Constitution and the Anti-SLAPP Statute of the Great State of Texas.