In 2015, Liberty County (pop. 76,000) invited TxTC to the community. Three catalyzing events resulted in the county working collaboratively with its cities to develop an innovative plan for long-term resiliency.
- Plans were drafted to build the third loop around Houston, or the Grand Parkway Highway 99
- Unincorporated land was subdivided into 900 small lots—only large enough for mobile and manufactured homes
- The county experienced five disaster declarations and over 100 days of flood waters within one year
Together, TxTC and the County designed a planning process. The project facilitated seventeen public forums and community engagement meetings to discuss the community’s vision and goals for growth and development (from 30 in attendance to over 200). The County Extension Agent, a trusted community leader, reached out to community members. County Judge Jay Knight led the charge by organizing regular meetings with the cities to discuss priorities. Cities, once with fierce rivalries, determined that “we are stronger as a county when we all work together.”
Together the community decided they wanted to focus on a high quality of life that strives to be:
- family-friendly,
- resilient,
- equitable, and
- driven by sustainable growth
The community focused their efforts on ways to grow that they “would be proud for [their] kids and grandkids to live in.”
Other classwork:
- Engineering students analyzed areas expected to grow and provided guidelines to limit the amount of impervious runoff, incentivizing green infrastructure.
- Students developed a logo design, also seen on the cover of the plan. The three lines of the river, three trees, and three rings of the sun represent the Trinity River. Additionally, the team developed a tourism map of assets and a website to support an online presence.
- Three youth in the community began a blog called The Trinity Time Hop, to document their concerns, perspectives from older residents, and history of the past to envision the history of the future.
Since the completion of the project:
- The County has adopted the plan
- County officials testified to the Texas Legislature about the need for greater land use controls in rural areas, particularly those on the urban fringe and in hazardous areas
- The cities within the county are developing their own plans in line with the region.
- The planning committee continues to meet regularly
- The “Liberty County Strategic Plan” received the Current Planning Award from the APA Texas Chapter, the first time a project moved from a student award category into the professional award category.