Governance

The Woodlands Township was formed in 2010 through the merger of the Community Associations of The Woodlands and the Town Center Improvement District (TCID). The Community Associations had long provided services such as fire protection and community management, while TCID, created by the Texas Legislature in 1993, focused on economic development in The Woodlands Town Center. In 2007, voters approved expanding TCID’s authority to cover all of The Woodlands, preventing annexation by Houston or Conroe. Today, The Woodlands Township delivers a range of services and is funded primarily by property tax, sales tax, and hotel occupancy tax.

Incorporation


History of the Township

While The Woodlands was originally founded in 1974 by George P. Mitchell, The Woodlands Township is the merger of the Community Associations of The Woodlands, Texas, and its entities with the Town Center Improvement District (TCID) of Montgomery County.

The Community Associations, which comprised The Woodlands Community Association (WCA), The Woodlands Association (TWA), The Woodlands Commercial Owners Association (WCOA), had a long history of providing governmental-type services to the residents and businesses in The Woodlands, dating back to the founding of The Woodlands in the mid- 1970s. The Woodlands Fire Department was established in January 1975 to provide fire and emergency medical services to residents of The Woodlands. The Woodlands Community Service Corporation was established in 1992 to provide staffing and managerial services to the community associations serving the needs of The Woodlands.

The Town Center Improvement District (TCID) was created in 1993 by the Texas Legislature as a governmental agency charged with promoting economic development in The Woodlands Town Center, a 1,000-acre business and commerce district. In January 2010, all of these entities came together under one governmental organization called The Woodlands Township. 


Expansion and Governance

In 2007, the overwhelming passage of three propositions by voters in The Woodlands expanded the area under TCID’s authority to include The Woodlands’ entire 28,000-acre residential and commercial area, and renamed the governmental organization to The Woodlands Township.

That same year, the Township’s Board of Directors also unanimously approved a Regional Participation Agreement (RPA) with the City of Houston and Conroe, preventing annexation of The Woodlands by the City of Houston and allowing residents of The Woodlands to determine their own future governance structure with the earliest date of May 29, 2014.

Also in 2007, The Township also entered into a Transition Agreement with The Woodlands Community Association, Inc., The Woodlands Association, Inc., and The Woodlands Commercial Owners Association, Inc. The agreement provided for a continuation of quality services and amenities, consolidated operations and one place to call for service, one board of directors, fully elected by mid-2010, more services funded through sales taxes, a tax-deductible property tax and the ability for The Woodlands to determine its future governance options.


Transition to Services

On January 1, 2010, services and operations of the Community Associations of The Woodlands (as administered by The Woodlands Community Service Corporation) fully transitioned to The Woodlands Township, including The Woodlands Fire Department, deed restrictions, parks and recreation, service requests, environmental services, neighborhood services, community relations and The Woodlands Community Magazine.

The Woodlands Township is primarily funded by property tax, sales and use tax, hotel occupancy tax and program revenues.