The Planning & Development Department (P&D) completed the process to amend the Major Thoroughfare and Freeway Plan (MTFP) Map and will request City Council’s approval of thirteen amendments. This memorandum summarizes the process and provides background information on the purpose of the plan.
P&D is responsible for administering an annual public review process for amending the MTFP, which includes multiple opportunities for soliciting and incorporating public comments. This year, P&D reviewed 13 proposed amendments and the Planning Commission considered all 13 of these amendments. 8 of the amendments were submitted by private sector applicants and 5 were submitted by Harris County. The amendments and Planning Commission recommendations are listed below:
A. Northpointe Boulevard: Planning Commission approved the applicant’s request to realign a segment of the proposed Major Thoroughfare Northpointe Boulevard and reclassify an adjoining 700’ segment of Major Collector Grant Road to a Major Thoroughfare. The site is located in Houston’s ETJ in Harris County. Harris County is the applicant, and they requested the shift in the alignment to facilitate lower construction costs for a bridge that is intended to be built over the Faulkey Gully Floodway. The amendment request was supported by staff.
B. Cypress North Houston South of 290: Planning Commission approved the applicant’s request to delete proposed Major Thoroughfare Cypress North Houston between Queenston and US-290. The site is located in Houston’s ETJ in Harris County. Harris County is the applicant, and they have requested the removal due to the infeasibility of construction. There is a drainage facility and an existing Union Pacific rail line that prevents the connection to US-290. Additionally, there is an existing park built in the unimproved right of way (ROW) of Cypress North Houston. The amendment request was supported by staff.
C. Cypress North Houston Road West of 1960: Planning Commission approved three requests all submitted by Harris County:
- Cypress North Houston Road: Harris County requested the deletion of a ~1,300 feet long section of unimproved Cypress North Houston Road between Major Thoroughfares FM 1960 and Perry Road in order to construct a detention project. Staff found that there would be no impact of traffic congestion and supported the request.
- Solon Road: The Planning Commission approved staff’s recommendation to delete Solon Road as a 100’ Major Thoroughfare. The road is currently dedicated at 60’ and serves as an existing low-density commercial corridor, but it does not connect to the east due to a drainage ditch that is just inside City of Houston limits.
- Greens Road: The Planning Commission approved Harris County’s request to delete proposed Major Collector Greens Road. The adjacent east/west Major Thoroughfare Mills Road is only improved to 2 lanes and has ROW dedicated already to allow the improvement and provide higher traffic throughput. When looking at the corridor holistically, with the removal of Cypress North Houston and the unlikely construction of a bridge to connect Solon Road, the existing road network can provide sufficient mobility including future demand. Staff and TxDOT were in support of this request.
D. Mueschke Road: Planning Commission approved the applicant’s request to delete the proposed Major Thoroughfare Mueschke Road from Mound Road to N Bridgeland Lake Parkway. The site is located in Houston’s ETJ in Harris County. Harris County requested the deletion of this proposed segment due to the infeasibility of construction and a proposed detention project that a MUD has proposed. This segment cross Cypress Creek floodway and the existing Oak Meadow Park. Staff was in support of this request.
E. Humble Parkway: Planning Commission approved the applicant’s request to delete the proposed Humble Parkway from Rankin Road to Greens Road. The site is located within Houston’s City Limits just east of George Bush Intercontinal Airport along Interstate 69. The applicant, META Planning + Design requested the deletion due to it being impractical to build due to a bayou and existing pipelines on the site. Additionally, the two parcels that are to be developed will have the ability to take direct access to the US 69 access road. Staff, Harris County, and TxDOT were in support of the request.
F. Chimney Rock Road: Planning Commission approved staff’s recommendation to deny the applicant’s request to downgrade Chimney Rock from a Major Thoroughfare to a minor collector. The Briarcroft HOA submitted this application to downgrade Chimney Rock from San Felipe to Westheimer in order to facilitate traffic calming measures. Houston’s Infrastructure Design Manual (IDM) limits traffic calming measures, such as speed cushions, to certain road classification types. Traffic volumes on the corridor were determined to align with the classification of a Major Thoroughfare, so a downgrade was determined to not be appropriate. The MTFP Amendment process only determines the road classification type, and not what if any safety improvements should be made. P&D, HPW, and Councilmember Huffman’s office have been and will continue to work to identify what safety improvements can be made in the corridor.
G. E Tidwell Road: Planning Commission approved the addition of proposed Major Collector E Tidwell from East Sam Houston Tollway to local street Pineland Road. The site is located in Houston’s ETJ in Harris County. The applicant, Sappington Engineering, requested this amendment to set an alignment and intends to construct the road to support connectivity for a 1,000,000 sq ft office and warehouse facility. Additionally, the community will have greater access to Sheldon Park and will have an additional ingress/egress point that bypasses a nearby at-grade train crossing. Staff, Harris County, Harris County Precinct 1, and TxDOT support this request.
H. Beathe Road: Planning Commission approved the realignment of proposed Major Thoroughfare Baethe Road. The site is located in Houston’s ETJ in Harris County. The applicant, META Planning + Design, submitted this to add a curve to the existing MTFP alignment to make a more appealing streetscape and allow passive traffic calming measures by introducing a curve. Staff and Harris County were in support of this request.
I. Unnamed East West Major Thoroughfare / Blue Ridge / Hiram Clarke: Planning Commission approved three proposed amendments in Houston’s ETJ in Fort Bend County submitted by META Planning + Design: delete proposed Major Thoroughfares Unnamed East West, Blue Ridge south of McHard, and Hiram Clarke south of McHard Rd. These amendments were approved by Fort Bend County earlier this year and have already been incorporated into Fort Bend’s MTFP. There are several existing land uses, including TV antenna towers, a floodway, and a landfill that make constructing the alignment difficult. Staff and Fort Bend County were in support of this request.
The 2025 MTFP annual amendment review process included the following:
- A pre-application meeting with applicants (January 2, 2025 – February 21, 2025).
- A workshop with the Planning Commission for preliminary review and discussion about the applications (May 15, 2025).
- A thorough review of the applications by P&D staff and coordination with agency stakeholders.
- A public open house held virtually (June 11, 2025).
- A public hearing before Planning Commission (July 24, 2025).
- An MTFP Application Update before Planning Commission (August 21, 2025).
- Planning Commission discussion and vote on the amendments (September 18, 2025).
Background
The City of Houston MTFP identifies transportation corridor alignments and establishes the required rights-of-way for major roadways in the City and its ETJ. Chapter 33, Article IX (Section 33-374) of the Code of Ordinances requires that the Planning Commission prepare and submit the MTFP annually to City Council. In developing the annual amendments to the MTFP, the Commission may consider deleting, realigning, and reclassifying streets designated on the plan. The Commission may also consider adding one or more streets to the plan. An amendment approved by the Planning Commission is not effective until the MTFP is approved by City Council.
The MTFP was initially adopted in 1942, as a way to plan for and preserve a long-term transportation network that would support the rapidly growing city. In 1966, the plan was expanded to include the ETJ. Today, the MTFP uses street classifications identifying the preferred (ROW) width dimensions, as well as the rules governing development along the ROW. Classifications include Freeways/Tollways, Major Thoroughfares, Transit Corridor Streets, Collector Streets (Major Collectors and Minor Collectors), and Local Streets.
The MTFP is important for several reasons:
- It identifies long-term roadway needs for Houston and the ETJ;
- It ensures that development and re-development activities dedicate adequate roadway ROW to maintain a well-connected street network as the area grows;
- It helps govern development that takes place along each specific classification on the map;
- It provides a coordinated plan that is used by public agencies when making decisions related to transportation within the City of Houston and its ETJ;
- MTFP classifications are used within HPW’s Infrastructure Design Manual to define how roads will be designed and constructed; and
- It provides officials and the general public useful information when making land acquisition decisions.
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Vonn Tran
Director
Planning and Development Department