September 25, 2026 · 8 min read

Proclamations, Toll Road Updates, and Healthy Debate | Recap of Montgomery County Commissioner's Court, September 17, 2026

A morning of proclamations, Dolly Parton included. Then a back-and-forth in open court over merit raises for Precinct 3 employees. And a quick look at toll road revenues to wrap up the morning.

Introduction to the Meeting

Montgomery County Commissioner's Court met Thursday morning, September 17th, at the Alan B. Sadler Building in Conroe, TX. County Judge Mark Keough presided over the meeting. Commissioner Gray, Pct 4, was absent for the meetings. The judge and remaining commissioners were enough for a quorum.

Thursday's court included three individual meetings. The regular session ran about an hour and a half. Next, the Montgomery County Toll Road Authority met for just a few minutes for official business, including revenue figures for the period. Later in the afternoon, the court came back at 1pm for a workshop on a new courthouse.

The Quick Highlights

--The court declared Friday, September 25th 2026, Dolly Parton Day in Montgomery County. With a nod to Dolly's song, "9 to 5", 9/25.
--Nancy Bond, mental health coordinator for the Sheriff's Office, was named Employee of the Month.
--The court also recognized National 4-H Week and Library Card Sign-Up Month for September.
--Keough pulled Precinct 3 employee merit raises off the consent agenda to discuss in open court. After a back-and-forth with Wheeler, they passed 3-1. Keough was opposed.
--The rest of the consent agenda passed as usual. This includes the county's FY2027 compensation program, with its 5% COLA taking effect October 10th.
--Phase 2 of David Memorial Drive is out to bid. Staff is aiming to bring an award to the October 22nd court.
--At the Toll Road Authority session, the court approved an FY2027 budget projecting $25.29 million in revenue.

Celebrations to Start the Morning (Proclamations, Resolutions and Presentations)

Nancy Bond Named Employee of the Month

The September award was presented to Nancy Bond, the mental health coordinator for the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office. The lieutenant who presented the award said Bond coordinated critical incident debriefings and checked on employees across multiple divisions, "during an incredibly difficult time for our agency."

September 25th, 2026 Is Dolly Parton Day in Montgomery County

Judge Keough presented the resolution, setting aside Friday, September 25th, to remember Dolly Parton, who died August 25th. The date was picked on purpose. Written out, it's 9/25, a play on "9 to 5."

The resolution leans on her Imagination Library, which mails free books to young children and is sponsored locally by Children's Books on Wheels.

"It's just amazing when you look at her life and all the things that she did, and really how it has impacted us here in Montgomery County through the Books on Wheels program," Keough said.

October 4th–10th Is National 4-H Week

The county's 4-H extension agents brought a group of members to present the National 4-H Week proclamation. It calls 4-H "America's largest youth development organization," serving 6 million young people across the country.

A few of the members spoke about their own projects: poultry judging (the team is headed to nationals), livestock, photography, and several hundred handmade blankets donated to kids in need. They also brought gift baskets for each member of the court.

It's Library Card Sign-Up Month, and There Are Still a Few Days Left

Dr. Janna Hoglund, director of the Montgomery County Memorial Library System, presented for Library Card Sign-Up Month. September is almost over, so if you've been meaning to get a card, now's the time!

Hoglund said the system saw more visitors, more cardholders and higher event attendance this past year. Innovate at MCMLS, the maker-space and technology program that started at Kevin Brady Library in The Woodlands in February, has had more than 1,600 users. Following that, it's set to expand to Malcolm Purvis Library in Magnolia in November, the Willis branch in February 2027, and Central Library in Conroe in May 2027.

Merit Raises for Precinct 3 Staff; Vote Splits at 3-1 After Keough Pulls Them for Debate

The consent agenda is where most of the routine business passes in a single vote. This agenda carried lots of payroll changes like new hires, step increases, and resignations.

Before the vote though, Keough pulled items 15 through 36 to talk about in the open. All 22 were merit increases for Precinct 3 employees.

Keough laid out his concerns to the court. The new budget already gives every county employee a 5% COLA raise, and these merit raises land on top of that.

"It just seems that we just keep figuring out ways to continue to give additional raises when we just gave a 5%. Why?" he asked.

Wheeler: Merit Raises Are Not a Participation Trophy

Wheeler said his precinct has 56 employees, and the ones on the list earned a raise through their evaluations.

"It's not an across the board, everybody gets the same participation trophy," he said.

That's the same position Wheeler took at the September 8th budget vote, when he told the court he believes in merit-based raises rather than across-the-board ones. He voted against that budget.

But pushing back on the increases from this meeting, Keough said, "I think it's exorbitant. I don't think it's good use of the county's money."

Commissioner Robert Walker came at it from a different direction, defending the cost-of-living raise as its own thing, separate from the merit raises being discussed. "A COLA is a cost of living when you're paying six bucks a gallon for diesel, like I did this weekend," he said.

"I'm not trying to micromanage your department," Keough said.

"Well, I'm not worried about you trying to micromanage my department. I can manage my own department," Wheeler said.

Wheeler then made his case with an analogy considering two employees sitting side by side. One shows up late and avoids eye contact, the other shows up early and makes the coffee. Both got the exact same 5% raise in the budget. "What motivates this person to continue to do a great job?" he asked.

Getting to the Vote

Wheeler moved to approve the 22 raises, and Commissioner Charlie Riley seconded. They passed 3–1, with Riley, Walker and Wheeler in favor and Keough opposed.

On the requested raises themselves, nineteen of the 22 fall between about 0.5% and just under 2%. The first on the list, a Nature Center Manager going from $34.88 to $35.22 an hour, is the one Wheeler pointed to as "less than 1%."

To clarify, these merit raises are on top of the county-wide 5% cost-of-living adjustment, adopted with in the 2027 budget. Commissioner Wheeler was against the 5% increase, and instead wanted county-wide merit increases instead.

Other Agenda Items Presented Before the Court

The Morningbrook Drive Stop Signs in High Meadow Estates Are Coming Down

The agenda called for removing the stop signs on Morningbrook Drive in High Meadow Estates, based on a recent traffic study. This topic sits within Precinct 2, Commissioner Riley's district.

Two residents asked the court not to pass the item. Gary Jones said Morningbrook is the one long, straight stretch in a neighborhood of winding roads, and that people treat it like a racetrack. The stop signs, he said, break that stretch up. Ernie English, president of the High Meadow Estates Property Owners Association, added that the road has no sidewalks and is used by walkers, runners, bicyclists and golf carts.

Although he heard them, Riley said the signs can't stay, "Stop signs cannot be used for traffic control or speed control."

He did offer to keep working on it, possibly with the constable's office. "We'll get together with you," Riley said, "and we'll figure out what we can to try to help you do something." The removal passed with the other public hearing items.

The Drainage Manual Changes Passed; the 14-Day Window Waits for October 8th

The court approved amendments to the county's Drainage Criteria Manual. Engineering staff said the changes were clerical, meant to clarify what developers have to submit and included no technical changes.

Resident Chad Price spoke at the hearing. His concern was a 14-day window for a commissioner to sign an acknowledgment letter on a development proposal. He said it's too short for the public to review anything, calling it "kind of like a way to just ramrod it through," and asked for 30 days instead of the proposed 14 days.

Wheeler agreed with Price on the timing. He said 14 days is too short when a commissioner or staff member is out sick or on vacation, and suggested 30 or even 45.

County Attorney B.D. Griffin then pointed out that the 14-day provision isn't in the drainage manual. It's in the Development Regulations, and the court had already set a public hearing on those amendments for October 8th on the consent agenda.

Before adjourning, the court met in executive session with the County Attorney about potential litigation related to development standards. It came back and took no action.

David Memorial Drive Phase 2 Is Out to Bid

This is the phase that carries David Memorial Drive north from behind the Portofino Shopping Center up to SH 242. This project sits within Precinct 4, but Wheeler led the discussion in Commissioner Gray's absence.

Wheeler gave Gray credit for getting it this far. He said the road will help residents well beyond Precinct 4, since "almost all of us use I-45 at some point or another, and this will alleviate a lot of the traffic off of I-45."

The Commissioner's Court Also Runs a Toll Road

Right after the regular session, the court met as the Montgomery County Toll Road Authority, which oversees the county's tollway on SH 249.

Riley chairs the authority, Walker is vice chair, Keough is secretary, Gray is treasurer and Wheeler is a director. Gray was absent for this one too. The whole meeting took about three minutes to simply approve the items on the agenda.

The authority approved its FY2027 budget. Budget Officer Amanda Carter presented the figures during the meeting.

She added that operating revenue has grown from 23.1 million in last year's amended budget to 25.2 million. "We're seeing considerable growth still on the toll road," she said.

Topics to Keep on Your Radar

October 8th: The 14-Day Development Window Gets Its Hearing

The Development Regulations amendment, including the 14-day acknowledgment window Chad Price objected to, goes to a public hearing at the October 8th court. If you have an opinion on how much time residents get to look at a development proposal, that's the meeting to show up to.

The same day, the court will hold hearings on proposed all-way stops in Precinct 4: at Ricewood Drive and North Lake Houston Parkway, Brook Hollow Drive and Saddle and Surrey Lane, and Riverbrook Drive and Brook Hollow Drive. There's also one on a proposed 20 mph school zone on Via Corsica Drive.

October 14th and 22nd: David Memorial Drive Phase 2

Bids are due October 14th. If staff stays on schedule, an award comes to the court October 22nd.

Workshop About the Courthouse

Dock Line Magazine is publishing a full update on that afternoon's courthouse workshop, and what the architects are supposed to bring back, in a separate piece.

The gist is this: the architects estimated around 3-months to complete the requested changes. Voters likely won't have a bond election in May 2027.

Sources

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The Montgomery County Courthouse in Conroe, Texas

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