Work to improve Pearland’s aesthetic appeal and create a sense of arrival and place within the 350-acre Texas 288 Corridor is set to begin this year with plans to wrap up in mid-2023.
The project — which includes installing city gateway signage, fountains, extensive landscaping and new lighting, plus 50-foot sculptures featuring pears along Texas 288 — was awarded to Millis Development & Construction for $18 million during the Nov. 8 City Council meeting.
The improvements represent the fourth phase of a $23.7 million project that began a few years ago but has been in the works for nearly a decade. Earlier work included irrigation and plantings as well as ordering trees that will be installed in Phase 4. Sales-tax funds allocated to the Pearland Economic Development Corp. (PEDC) are bankrolling the work.
Corridor has boomed in last 25 years
PEDC President Matt Buchanan said the project is key to preserving and boosting the economic value of the corridor, which has experienced rapid growth in the last 25 years and now boasts millions of square feet of retail space, two hospitals and large swaths of residential areas. He said the area represents a $2.5 billion sales tax base for the city.
“This has been a longtime priority,” Buchanan said
When the work is complete, residents can expect to see 16, 50-foot pear monuments along the 288 main lanes at the McHard Road and Broadway crossings. These place-setting structures will be lit at night. The work will also mean the planting of approximately 3,500 trees and nearly 6,000 oleander shrubs along the highway’s frontage roads. A dozen more types of plants also will be planted throughout the area, including at 288’s intersections with McHard Road, Broadway, Magnolia and Beltway 8. Those areas will also be spruced up with Pearland gateway signs.
Mayor Kevin Cole said he was happy to see the project moving forward.
“We want people to know they’ve moved from Houston to Pearland, that they’re entering a different place, and (288) is our biggest thoroughfare and an opportunity (to do that),” he said.
Council member Adrian Hernandez said the project “really puts us into the next tier of being a community of choice.”
Costs for project jumped when rebid
Despite the council’s approval of the contract, several council members expressed frustration that the cost had increased from $14.1 million when it was last bid out in mid-2020. These increases are largely due to soaring costs that have affected many sectors of the construction industry. However, without the benefit of foresight, the council requested staff rebid the project instead of moving forward at that time.
Councilman Alex Kamkar — who was not on council when that decision was made — argued the project should have been approved the first go around, but council member Trent Perez had a different opinion about the situation.
“In this case, there was some concern about the scope of the project, and as a council we agreed that it was better to move forward thoughtfully,” Perez said.
Had the project been approved at that time and the project’s plantings done according to plan, they would have likely all died during the February 2021 freeze and presumably would have had to be repurchased and replanted, Perez added.
Nevertheless, Perez made a motion that the contractor look to find $4 million in overall cuts from the project and, if found, make a presentation to the City Council so elected officials could determine if they wanted to modify the project to reduce the costs. However, his motion failed.
Idea: Rename area “the Medical Corridor”
Council member Woody Owens said he’d like the council to discuss renaming the 288 Corridor “the Medical Corridor.” He said the idea makes sense considering that Texas 288 serves as a direct line from Pearland to the Texas Medical Center, where more than 10,000 city residents travel every day for work.
“No other place in Houston can claim that,” he said.
Mayor Cole agreed with Owens and said he may entertain a rebranding discussion in the future.
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November 15, 2021 at 11:10PM
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Giant monuments with Pearland’s favorite fruit to dot 288 Corridor - Houston Chronicle
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