Lake Conroe Association Announces It Will Fight Temporary 2-Foot Lowering of Lake During Hurricane Season
A political storm is brewing with the Lake Conroe Association.
On April 26, in response to pleas from Lake Houston residents and a directive from the governor (to protect downstream residents from flooding), the SJRA board voted to lower the level of Lake Conroe temporarily. The lowering would amount to one foot during the rainiest months in spring and up to two feet during the peak of hurricane season.
The lowering would help provide a buffer against future storms by creating extra capacity within the lake to absorb rainfall before the flood gates must be opened. Thus, it will help protect Lake Houston area residents from the potential for another massive release like we saw during Harvey. However…
In an open letter posted on May 11, the president of the Lake Conroe Association says his group will NOT FIGHT a 1-foot reduction; however, he claims it MUST FIGHT a 2-foot reduction. He makes three arguments; two feet would, he says: 1) make shallow docks unusable, 2) harm tourism, and 3) reduce values of Lake Conroe homes. He says, “Families expect to enjoy their investment without SJRA and The City of Houston … ‘changing the rules.’”
The Houston Chronicle summed it up this way.
The Lake Houston Area Grass Roots Flood Prevention initiative has contacted the LCA president. We have offered to give him a tour of the devastation in the Humble/Kingwood area first hand.
Our hope is that once he sees what residents here are still trying recover from, he will be less inclined to fight the lowering of Lake Conroe by that extra foot during hurricane season. Stay tuned for more developments.
Posted May 15, 2018
259 Days Since Hurricane Harvey