METRO’s Downtown/Midtown Transit Streets began in 1997 and it and their first light rail segment on Main St were complete in 2006. Tom’s services related to this project was to the Downtown Management District who funded the street trees with irrigation, enhanced sidewalks and crosswalks, enhanced street lights and other pedestrian related amenities. The services ranged from the interface with his street revitalization projects to representing the building owners and property managers as the utility, street and sidewalk reconstruction impacted the building’s occupants and operations.
The Transit Street and light rail program was the complete rebuilding of 14 major streets in downtown and those streets front on every major building. Vehicle and pedestrian traffic control and protection was a prime concern as was maintaining public and private utilities to the office towers and historic structures that have been refurbished and serving as offices and restaurants.
Since the completion of the first light
East End Light Rail into downtown
rail on Main St. METRO is nearing completion of the east-west rail on Capitol and Rusk Streets. Improvements to the sidewalk space of both streets had been managed by Tom in anticipation of the rail installation and the coming high pedestrian traffic. This east-west addition was implemented while Tom represented the City of Houston.