2023
READERS’ CHOICE
Veterans honored at TSTC event - Page 5
281.690.4200 WEDNESDAY • NOVEMBER 22, 2023
Fort Bend ISD: No evidence of human remains at new school site
Staff Reports A second archeological survey that included extensive digging at the site of a new elementary school to be constructed in the Harvest Green community, has concluded there is no evidence of human remains or past burials at the site, according to Fort Bend ISD. The land is located on the east side of Harlem Road with its nearest boundaries being Harvest Garden Blvd. to the north and N. Jester Road to the south. The siting of the new elementary school has raised concerns in the wake of the long-standing issues involving the so-called “Sugar Land 95.” The remains of 95 former prisoners, all of them Blac, who were used in the convict labor system that was in place in Texas from the mid-19th century to the early 20th century at the site of Fort Bend ISD’s James Reese Technical and Center in 2018. That discovery, and the district’s response to it, has led to years of controversy that has garnered national and international attention. “Some community members expressed concerns about the possibility of remains being discovered at the Harvest Green site that once housed a prison farm dating back to the 19th century. They also refer to the discovery in 2018 at the Reese Center when the district was building its career and technical facility and the remains of 95 victims of the state’s former convict leasing system were found on the property,” the district said in a press release. In emailed statement, Jay Jenkins, president of the advocacy group Convict Leasing and Labor Project which has long been critical of the district’s response, said that his group has no specific objections to the siting of the new elementary school. “Since ground hasn’t been broken on the new school site, CLLP is calling for publicly transparent archaeological survey done by a culturally and historically competent archaeologist to ensure that there is not a cemetery on the site of the
SEE EVIDENCE PAGE 2
Fort Bend / Southwest • Volume 48 • No. 60 • $1.00
Visit www.FortBendStar.com
Sugar Land planning commission gives nod to Lake Pointe redevelopment plan By Ken Fountain
KFOUNTAIN@FORTBENDSTAR.COM
Proceeding apace with the redevelopment of the Lake Pointe area in the wake of the imminent departure of the Fluor Corporation’s Houston-area headquarters, the Sugar Land Planning & Zoning Commission made several critical votes at its Nov. 14 meeting.
Fluor, an engineering and design services firm, plans to relocate from its existing campus to west Houston’s Energy Corridor in mid-2024, leaving a 52-acre redevelopment opportunity for the city. In August, Planned Community Developers, a company with deep roots in Sugar Land, announced plans to transform the site into a modern mixed-used devel-
opment called Lake Pointe Plaza meant to capitalize on the latest trends in suburban development. At the Nov. 14 meeting, the city’s planning and zoning commission heard public comment on an updated version of the overall plan for the area presented earlier by PCP. Among the tenants PCD is targeting for the development are high-density middle-
market housing, luxury residential units for sale and lease, Class A boutique office space, medical and life sciences facilities, a 4-star hotel with conference center and exhibition hall, waterfront retail, restaurants and entertainment venues. The agenda items up for a vote included an amendment to the Lake Pointe area’s land use plan adopted by City Council in
2018, to increase the number of multifamily housing units from 444 to 1,100; an amendment to the city’s redevelopment code and a rezoning of the property to a newly designated Lake Pointe Redevelopment District; and the approval of PCD’s proposed concept plan for Lake Pointe Plaza.
SEE DEVELOPMENT PAGE 2
Up close and personal
Chyla Riley, 11, interacts with Dexter, a husky, during an open house at the Missouri City Animal Services building last week. The building is undergoing renovations, including a new lobby, lab equipment, soundproofing, and new double gates. For information on how to adopt, visit missouricitytx.gov/92/Animal-Services. Photo by Ken Fountain
Sugar Land completes restoration work at historic cemetery Staff Reports The city of Sugar Land recently completed significant restoration work at the Old Imperial Farm Cemetery, a historic site located within the 65-acre parkland area between Easton Avenue and the Fort Bend ISD James Reese & Technical Center in Telfair, according to a press release. The city-owned cemetery contains the remains of prisoners who died between 1912 and 1942 at the Texas Department of Corrections’ Central Prison Unit - after the state convict leasing system was abolished in the early 1900s. The city acquired the 65 acres of land, including
The city of Sugar Land recently completed restoration work at the Old Imperial Farm Cemetery. Courtesy City of Sugar Land
the cemetery, in 2012 for parkland and to ensure the preservation of the cemetery. Since then, the city has worked in collaboration with
the Fort Bend County Historical Commission and Texas Historical Commission. These efforts led to the designation of the cemetery property as a
historic site and the unveiling of a Texas historical marker on-site in 2018. The city also developed a site improvement plan to preserve and honor its history. The first phase of the plan is to restore the cemetery and slow down the deterioration of the existing gravestones. The city signed a contract in 2022 with Texas Cemetery Restoration LLC. The restoration project involved repairing and cleaning the existing gravestones, researching prisoners’ names and records and installing the permanent pillow markers for each burial identified in the previous surveys. “Our staff verified the existing gravestone information
Call now to get on the exclusive listings page
Santa Stops & Shops!
Paired with our calendar of Holiday Events and Santa Sightings in and around the community! Elf Hotline:
713-371-3714 to place your ad now!
with the cemetery survey and report published by Texas State Genealogical Society in December 1994, together with the available convict records from Texas Department of Criminal Justice Central Unit,” Joe Chesser, the city’s parks and recreation director director, said in the release. “We are pleased to complete this phase of the cemetery improvements. Our goal is to integrate further cemetery improvements into the design and implementation of the future 65-acre community park.” For more information about the project background and history, visit www.sugarlandtx.gov/ImperialFarmCemetery.