HCFCD to Unveil Final Design of Woodridge/Taylor Gully Project on July 1

6/20/25 – Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD) has announced that it will unveil the final design of the Woodridge/Taylor Gully Project in Kingwood on July 1. Based on preliminary engineering, HCFCD applied to the the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) via the Texas General Land Office for a grant of $42 million to cover the cost of construction.

HCFCD will reveal the final design in a virtual public meeting at 6:30 PM on July 1, 2025. Sign up here to attend the webinar.

History of Woodridge/Taylor Gully Project

According to long-time residents, Taylor Gully never flooded, even during Harvey, until Perry Homes purchased and cleared the 270-acre Woodridge Village property immediately north of Sherwood Trails, Elm Grove and Mills Branch Villages. The property, just across the county line in Montgomery County, forms the headwaters of Taylor Gully and used to be heavily forested.

But shortly after Perry’s contractors started clearing the property, hundreds of homes along Taylor Gully flooded twice in 2019.

Engineering documents specified that the contractors should have cleared the property in sections and built detention basins for each section before moving onto the next. However, the contractors clearcut the whole property and sloped it toward the homes that flooded before building the required detention.

The fiasco turned into a giant class-action lawsuit. During the lawsuit, Perry’s contractors scrambled to build the stormwater detention basins. However, it also became clear that the detention they were building was about 30-40% short of Atlas-14 standards which Montgomery County had not yet adopted.

County/City Purchase Property from Perry

HCFCD and the City of Houston purchased the property from Perry to keep it from being developed. Early on, they announced plans to turn it into a giant regional stormwater detention basin to reduce flood risk.

Preliminary-engineering plans later recommended:

• Building another stormwater detention basin on Woodridge Village holding 412 acre-feet (virtually doubling capacity).
• Expanding a portion of Taylor Gully and lining it with concrete.
• Replacing the culverts at Rustling Elms with a clear-span bridge.

HCFCD entered into an Excavation and Removal Contract with Sprint Sand and Clay to get a head start on excavating the new Woodridge Basin. However, when HCFCD applied for HUD funding, by law, they had to terminate the contract. That happened at the end of 2023. Why? Conditions on the property can’t change while the GLO and HUD evaluate grants. It’s a fraud prevention measure.

Generic Differences Between Preliminary and Final Design Recommendations

During preliminary engineering, managers try to prove up the value of a concept. But along the way to final design, they sharpen their pencils.

As a project progresses from concept to constructible plans, typically they tighten and incorporate:

• Hydraulic and Hydrologic Modeling – with higher resolution topography, updated rainfall data, and detailed channel/basin geometry.
• Right-of-Way and Easements – Whereas preliminary layouts assume general access needs, final design incorporates, precise right-of-way limits, utility conflicts, coordination with surrounding landowners, and legal descriptions for acquisition and/or dedication.
• Geotechnical Investigations – Soil borings for slope-stability analyses for embankments, groundwater-level monitoring, channel linings, etc.
• Structural-Design Finalization – Including sizes, materials, and load capacities for bridges , weirs and detention outlet structures.
• Environmental and Permitting Integration
• Cost Estimate Updates – Whereas preliminary estimates often have ±30 accuracy, final design includes detailed quantities, updates unit costs and construction phasing for more precise budgets and schedules.
• Constructability and Value Engineering – Engineers and sometimes contractors look for ways simplify/reconfigure designs that lower costs.
• Utility Coordination – Precise identification of existing utilities (water, sewer, fiber, gas) along with plans to relocate them if necessary or change design.
• Public Involvement and Stakeholder Feedback – Where we are now. Feedback sometimes results in design modifications for aesthetics, access, noise or neighborhood concerns. It might also be valuable for inclusion of trails, parks or other recreational elements.

HCFCD has not yet released any of the specific changes between their preliminary and final plans for this property.

HCFCD Hopes to Bid by October

According to HCFCD spokesperson Emily Woodell, “We’re wrapping up design for this project, which is what we plan to cover at the community engagement meeting. Based on current project schedules, this is set to go out for bid for construction contracts in October of this year.”

“We’re planning to amend this into the overall contract with the General Land Office in the very near future, which will allow us to draw grant funds. None of the design work has been funded by CDBG, it was all locally funded. Grant funds will be used for construction.”

HCFCD urges community members to attend the virtual meeting. Remember, it’s:

Tuesday, July 1, 2025

Starting at 6:30 PM

If you have suggestions after seeing the plans, now is the time to share them. So sign up now.

Posted by Bob Rehak on 6/20/25

2852 Days since Hurricane Harvey