RV Park Developer Clearing Land Near Site of Precinct 4's New Edgewater Park

Higbie Ventures LP, a construction company headquartered at 3733 Westheimer, has started clearing more than 20 acres immediately north of Harris County Precinct 4’s new Edgewater Park at US59 and the San Jacinto West Fork for a recreational vehicle park that would hold 182 RVs. The land sits between the Union Pacific Railroad Tracks and Lakewood Cove just west of Laurel Springs Drive.

*Looking S from over Union Pacific tracks on right. Lakewood Cove on left. Edgewater Park is the big treed area to the left of the railroad tracks in the distance.* *Photo taken 10/26/2021.*

Goodbye Towering Pines, Hello Oleander

Landscaping plans indicate that the company will clear all the trees that buffer neighbors to the east from the noise of freight trains. Oleander would replace the towering pines. Oleander is pretty but poisonous. It’s toxic to humans and pets if even small amounts are ingested.

Neighbors’ Fears

Neighbors worry about how a nearby RV park could impact their home values, safety and quiet neighborhood traffic patterns. They generate a lot of heavy vehicle traffic that streets weren’t designed for. And the RV owners sometimes also decide to become permanent residents.

Neighbors also fear that changes in elevation could flood them. Dirt excavated from a large detention pond will be used to build up part of the site. The detention pond, which will have a dry bottom will occupy the southern end of the site and intercept all stormwater draining toward the cypress ponds in Edgewater Park to the south. The site’s grading plan states that “Stormwater runoff shall not cross property line.”

This could disrupt replenishment cycles of the cypress ponds in Edgewater Park which will be one of the signature attractions of the park.

Moreover, even though part of the property sits in the floodplain, Harris County Flood Control says it was not given an opportunity to review the plans. And the floodplains shown on the plans correspond to a pre-Atlas 14 era with rainfall amounts roughly 28% lower than today’s.

The contractor did not post a drainage analysis for the project but seems to be complying with Harris County Flood Control District guidelines of .65 acre-feet of floodwater detention capacity per acre.

Neighbors Claim No Public Notice Given

It’s unclear how Higbie got permits without a public notice. But at a meeting of 150 Lakewood Cove residents last week, not one could remember receiving a notice about the RV Park development.

However, the City of Houston Permitting site shows eight permits issued to the developer for the RV Park.

*From Houston Permitting Center as of 5PM on 10/28/2021*

Permits Seem to Apply Only to Sitework

The plan documents posted on the contractor’s website claim that ALL have received permits from the City of Houston, though they do not show permit stamps, only that they have been reviewed for compliance.

The permits above apply to site work only, not the construction of buildings on the site. These permits relate to site clearing, paving, sidewalks and utilities. However, there don’t appear to be any permits related to actual buildings shown on their plans.

Even though one of the permits shown in a database search is labeled “Building Pmt,” the actual permit says it is for “Structures Other than Buildings.” See below.

*The “building permit” associated with the Higbie site says its for structures other than buildings.*

Planned Buildings Not Yet Shown on COH Permit Site

But the site clearly contains buildings. They include a recreation center, comfort stations, dog wash facility, shop, cart storage buildings, outdoor fire pits, restrooms, laundry, showers.

Even though the contractor’s web site shows these structures as approved, the City of Houston Permitting Center does not.

Another possible permitting issue: Permits allow 182 pads for RVs but the site plan calls for 226!

The City of Houston District E office has not responded to enquires about whether the site is fully permitted or why the plans do not show permit stamps by city engineers.

Drone Photos Show Extent of Clearing To Date

Drone photos show the contractor has already cleared a large area on the northern portion of the site and is working south. These show the extent of clearing as of 10/26/2021.

*Looking NW at site. Lakewood Cove in lower right. RV Park in Center. Lowes in upper right. US59 cuts across top of frame.*

*Looking S again. Site clearing is moving south. The southern edge of the RV Park will roughly parallel the southern extent of homes in this photo.*

*Looking N. The northern end of the site also roughly parallels the northern end of Lakewood Cove. So all homes in the subdivision would be affected.*

*Contractor is leaving trees around the perimeter for now, but the landscaping plan calls for them to eventually be replaced by oleander.*

Park Plan Update

Dennis Johnston, Harris County Precinct 4 Parks Director was kind enough to supply these most recent plans for Edgewater Park. The RV park would be above the black line at the top of the frame below. This first image shows trails within and around the park as well as an alternate route to connect Hamblen Road with the bridge over US59 leading to the Sorters-McClellan bridge. The alternate route would provide a way for traffic to avoid blind turns onto 494.

The most recent plans for Precinct 4’s new Edgewwater Park. Even though the Park was announced long before the RV facility, the park is still in permitting according to Johnston. For a high-res printable pdf of this plan, click here.

*Edgewater Park Plans. Blue areas indicate wetlands. For a high-res printable pdf of this plan, click here.*

Petition Circulating

More than 160 Lakewood Cove residents have already signed a petition protesting the RV park. But it’s not clear whether anything can be done at this point to affect the developer’s plan. Neither the developer, Laurel Springs RV, LLC nor contractor have responded to pleas for meetings with residents according to one community leader that I have talked to.

Accordingly, Lakewood Cove is circulating a petition on Change.org targeted at community leaders and elected officials, pleading for help.

This development raises many questions. I sincerely hope the developer choses to engage with the community to answer neighbor’s questions.

Posted by Bob Rehak on 10/28/2021 and updated 10/29/2021 to reflect a difference between the contractor and developer.

1520 Days since Hurricane Harvey

The thoughts expressed in this post represent opinions on matters of public concern and safety. They are protected by the First Amendment of the US Constitution and the Anti-SLAPP Statute of the Great State of Texas.