Construction in Upper Kirby area leaves residents with mixed feelings

HOUSTON – Drivers and businesses in Upper Kirby have mixed feelings about the upcoming construction.

“Traffic is a nightmare anyway, so anything that's going to make it worse is not good,” said Kate Jones.

Crews will soon start another construction project on Shepherd. This one is from Westheimer to the Southwest Freeway.

“I guess what's gotta be done is gotta be done, but I wouldn't like to be experiencing it if I lived in this area,” said Jones.

Travis Younkin, with the Upper Kirby Management District, said the goal is to fix drainage in the area.

“Our drainage infrastructure is drastically under capacity. None of the roads in Upper Kirby major thoroughfares have been redone in 60 years,” said Younkin.

At the same time, they decided to improve other things, like moving utilities underground and making it safer for those walking along Shepherd.

“We're addressing all the pedestrians issues, not just to city standards, but wider sidewalks, pedestrian lighting,” said Younkin.

Every time it rains, employees at Whole Earth Provision Company on Shepherd and Alabama rush for their sandbags.

“We deal with the flooding coming up through our doors, and we have to fix the baseboards, moldicide, the carpet and everything,” said assistant manager Andrew Hoskins.

With better drainage, this store is willing to take the temporary hit.

“It's going to be rough for that year, year and a half, or whatever, but afterwards, you know, that's all going to be much better. It'll much more beneficial, I think,” said Hoskins.

Construction was expected to start next January and will take about a year and a half.

The City of Houston was in charge of the recently completed project along Shepherd north of Westheimer.

The Upper Kirby Management District is overseeing the upcoming construction south of Westheimer.


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