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Jon Lindsay, Longest-Serving Harris County Judge and Toll Road Architect, Dies at 90

His two-decade tenure introduced a unified toll road model that redefined how the county financed growth.

Overview

  • Lindsay’s death was reported Wednesday at age 90, and no cause has been released.
  • He was the first Republican to serve as Harris County judge and led the county for a record 20 years beginning in 1975.
  • He is credited with creating the Harris County Toll Road Authority after voters rejected regional rail, enabling the Sam Houston Tollway, the Hardy Toll Road and later Beltway 8 expansion.
  • His priorities included flood control through bayou-side park acquisitions, construction of Ben Taub and LBJ hospitals, and modernization of mental-health care and county finances.
  • He declined to seek reelection in 1993 following bribery accusations and an inquiry, later serving about a decade in the Texas Senate; survivors include three sons and two grandchildren.