8/18/24 – The sequence and timing of upcoming construction steps for the Northpark Drive Expansion Project is changing. Project Manager Ralph De Leon wants the public to know what will change, why and when between now and the end of the year.
All parties involved in the construction met last week and agreed to the plan outlined below. However, De Leon warned that it could still change. The new plan will start within the next two to three weeks. The steps outlined below should be substantially completed by December.
Unfortunately, they could involve fewer lanes for a period a time and will cause a total closure of Northpark for three days. The original plan kept two lanes of traffic open in both directions at all times. But that is no longer possible.
Reason for Changes
Due to highly publicized delays caused by utility conflicts, project planners started building pieces of the project out of sequence to keep crews busy.
“We are now out of sequence globally,” said De Leon. “That will never change. So throw out everything you knew in the past. We will publish a new schedule this week or next.”
A complex series of signal changes for traffic, railroad and pedestrian crossings also contributes to the schedule changes. And they will need to be built twice: once for temporary traffic and again for permanent traffic.
Electronics are driving the new Northpark construction sequence more than concrete at this point, according to De Leon. “Boring and installing communication cables to temporary, then permanent signals is the difficult part,” he said.
The schedule changes will not affect what is being built, just when. Nothing has changed regarding the goals. Additional lanes and the planned bridge over 494 and the railroad will still be built.
New Sequence Affects Planned West- and Eastbound Feeder Roads
This new Northpark construction sequence affects how and when the west- and eastbound feeder roads will be constructed. The old plan called for both to be constructed at the same time.
Then traffic was to have been rerouted to the new feeders while contractors demolished the middle. However, that is no longer viable as you can see from photos below.
Instead, Harper Brothers will construct eastbound feeder roads on the south side as they place culverts west to east along the north side. They will start at the Shell station on the northwest corner of Loop 494 and Northpark and work their way down to the area by the Quick Quack Car Wash.
De Leon’s goal is to keep the existing at-grade railroad crossing intact and use that for west bound traffic. The new feeder road on the south side will handle eastbound traffic.
However, that could still change. “We could have to switch everybody (both directions) to the new feeder road. That would mean a single lane for both east- and westbound traffic until the second westbound feeder road is constructed on the north side.”
Pictures Taken Friday 8/17/24
Looking W at Northpark Expansion Project. Previously, planners hoped to install drainage east to west. Now they will move west to east to accommodate UnionPacific which must reroute traffic during its busy season. Still looking west over 494. Contractors are already beginning to work on drainage that will go under 494 and the railroad tracks. Looking east. Two more feeder lanes will be built for east bound traffic south of Northpark.
UPRR will construct a crane on top of the rail tracks needed to install 200 feet of track panel. For that to happen they must rip out the existing rail tracks and reroute all traffic to rail lines that parallel the Hardy Tollroad.
The panel is in a single section that will stretch across ten lanes. UPRR needs that for track stability. However, its length will mean totally closing Northpark for three days.
Still looking east toward Russell Palmer and Kingwood Diversion Ditch. Crews have finished installing culvert and are now building up the center. To see how high, look at the height of manhole covers already installed.
While painful now, when finished, this project will give Kingwood its first all-weather evacuation route. It could save lives in the future.
For More Information
For more information about Northpark Drive expansion and a history of the project, see these posts on ReduceFlooding.
8/17/24 – The clearing of trees blocking streams and channels in the Lake Houston Area has begun. The clearing began after a coordinated inventorying and reporting effort.
According to Chris Bloch, a member of the Bear Branch Trail Association Board, FEMA contractors working for Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD), were seen this morning clearing trees blocking Bens Branch. The stream cuts diagonally through the middle of Kingwood.
Fallen trees blocking Bens Branch
If left in the stream, the trees can catch other debris floating downstream and create log dams that back floodwater up into streets and homes. So, contractors are cutting the fallen trees into sections and removing them.
This morning, I found them hauling the logs and underbrush out of the woods with a Bobcat fitted with grappling jaws. They stacked the debris near Woodland Hills Drive to be hauled away.
However, in coming days, contractors will be using much larger equipment and actually going down into the channel to remove logs and haul them off.
According to Bloch, just cutting the logs into small sections and letting them float away in the next flood is not the answer. They could still harm unsuspecting boaters and waterskiers in Lake Houston.
Beware of Heavy Equipment with Limited Visibility
It’s unclear at this time how long the clearing operation will take. But Bloch estimates that it could easily take a week or more to get all the way down Bens Branch.
Other contractors may be working on other channels simultaneously. However, I have been unable to verify that at this time.
Photograph taken 8/17/24 near St. Martha School at Bens Branch and Woodland Hills Drive.
Residents should exercise caution when using greenbelt trails during the removal operation. Operators maneuvering in tight spaces have limited visibility when transporting logs and brush. They will use greenbelt trails in some places and CenterPoint easements in others.
Residents who use the trails to get to school or for recreation should consider wearing brightly colored shirts or reflective vests to increase their visibility.
Members of the Bear Branch Trail Association Board met with the contractor last night to show them where obstructions are in Bens Branch and other channels.
Note the size of some of those logs. The pile is 6-8 feet tall.
Inventorying the blockages was difficult. Now comes the really hard part.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 8/17/24
2545 Days since Hurricane Harvey and 40 since Beryl
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/20240817-DSC_0213.jpg?fit=1100%2C733&ssl=17331100adminadmin2024-08-17 15:50:282024-08-17 16:12:00HCFCD Contractors Begin Clearing Trees Blocking Streams, Channels
8/16/24 – Today, thanks to an anonymous tip by a fisherman, I observed an instance of sand-pit capture between White Oak and Caney Creeks in the headwaters of Lake Houston.
The sand pit in question used to be known as the Triple PG Mine, but is now being operated under a different name.
Alleged environmental violations caused the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to sue the mine and its owners through the Texas Attorney General’s Office in 2019.
The conditions that exist today are virtually identical to those that existed in 2018 when I previously observed another instance of sand-pit capture between White Oak and Caney Creeks in the same location.
Then as now, instead of following its normal course, White Oak Creek flows in one side of the mine and out the other into Caney Creek.
2019 satellite image. Red line shows path of White Oak Creek (left), then crossing pit to Caney Creek (right).
Pictures Taken 8/16/24
Pictures taken today show that two new breaches happened in the same locations (see below) as 2019.
2024 breach shows White Oak Creek entering pond in same place as in 2019...…and exiting pond to Caney Creek via another breach in same location on opposite side of pond as in 2019.
I do not know the exact date the breaches occurred.
There is one visible difference though. The pond where the two breaches occur today has been sealed off from other ponds in the mine by an internal dike that is not visible in earlier satellite photos.
Note dike now crossing mine (center L to R). New breaches occurred around dikes of pond in foreground.
The Texas Attorney General sued the mine in 2019 for a million dollars plus $25,000 per day for every day the breaches remained open.
Guniganti has denied all charges by the TCEQ and Attorney General.
Multiple Changes in Ownership Delay Trial
However, through a series of legal maneuverings that included multiple changes in attorneys and ownership (through shell companies), the case in Travis County District Court still has not come to trial five years later. After all this time, we are pretty much right back where we started – with pit capture between White Oak and Caney Creeks.
Prabakar Guniganti, a cardiologist from Nacogdoches, has transferred ownership of most of the mine to shell companies. The Montgomery County Appraisal District shows that the Guniganti 1999 Children’s Trust and the Guniganti 1992 Credit Shelter Trusts now own most of the mine. Some parcels rotated through different shell companies three times within two years.
The portion of the mine where the breaches occurred in 2019 and 2024 is in Harris County, just inside the Montgomery County Line. The Guniganti Children’s 1999 Trust now owns that.
Change in Mine Operator, Too
The sign at the mine entrance now reads “Texas Fracsand Materials,” a company reportedly hired to operate the mine. Sam Kurre serves as CEO of Texas Frac Sand Materials Inc. It was established in 2019, the same year as the AG’s lawsuit against Guniganti.
Entrance sign shows operator of the mine owned by Guniganti shell companies.
Kurre claims his company operates mines with more than a $100 million in reserves. But real estate records show the mine claims ag and timber exemptions.
In stark contrast, a 10-acre sliver of the mine within Harris County does not get the ag/timber exemption and appraises for virtually the same amount – $78,829.
No wonder Montgomery County attracts so many sand mines! Compared to Harris County, 800 acres of prime, income producing land are going untaxed.
Sand Subsidized by Other Property Owners
Kurre’s website claims he produces 2 million tons of sand annually from Guniganti’s location. However, appraisal district records show that Montgomery County classifies most of it as pastureland.
Guniganti should be able to afford some pretty good lawyers with numbers like these. Maybe that’s why he’s strung this out for five years…despite no lasting improvement to the dikes.
Meanwhile, people downstream of the sand-pit capture between White Oak and Caney Creeks complain of rapidly building sediment in their rivers and streams. They fear it could lead to flooding. As a consequence, they are clamoring for more costly dredging. But, it will be up to ordinary folks in a different county to subsidize that!
Posted by Bob Rehak on 8/16/2024
2544 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.
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/20240816-DJI_20240816101452_0578_D.jpg?fit=1100%2C619&ssl=16191100adminadmin2024-08-16 17:54:462024-08-16 18:00:56Sand-Pit Capture Between White Oak and Caney Creeks
Northpark Construction Sequence Changing
8/18/24 – The sequence and timing of upcoming construction steps for the Northpark Drive Expansion Project is changing. Project Manager Ralph De Leon wants the public to know what will change, why and when between now and the end of the year.
All parties involved in the construction met last week and agreed to the plan outlined below. However, De Leon warned that it could still change. The new plan will start within the next two to three weeks. The steps outlined below should be substantially completed by December.
Unfortunately, they could involve fewer lanes for a period a time and will cause a total closure of Northpark for three days. The original plan kept two lanes of traffic open in both directions at all times. But that is no longer possible.
Reason for Changes
Due to highly publicized delays caused by utility conflicts, project planners started building pieces of the project out of sequence to keep crews busy.
“We are now out of sequence globally,” said De Leon. “That will never change. So throw out everything you knew in the past. We will publish a new schedule this week or next.”
A complex series of signal changes for traffic, railroad and pedestrian crossings also contributes to the schedule changes. And they will need to be built twice: once for temporary traffic and again for permanent traffic.
Electronics are driving the new Northpark construction sequence more than concrete at this point, according to De Leon. “Boring and installing communication cables to temporary, then permanent signals is the difficult part,” he said.
The schedule changes will not affect what is being built, just when. Nothing has changed regarding the goals. Additional lanes and the planned bridge over 494 and the railroad will still be built.
New Sequence Affects Planned West- and Eastbound Feeder Roads
This new Northpark construction sequence affects how and when the west- and eastbound feeder roads will be constructed. The old plan called for both to be constructed at the same time.
Then traffic was to have been rerouted to the new feeders while contractors demolished the middle. However, that is no longer viable as you can see from photos below.
Instead, Harper Brothers will construct eastbound feeder roads on the south side as they place culverts west to east along the north side. They will start at the Shell station on the northwest corner of Loop 494 and Northpark and work their way down to the area by the Quick Quack Car Wash.
De Leon’s goal is to keep the existing at-grade railroad crossing intact and use that for west bound traffic. The new feeder road on the south side will handle eastbound traffic.
However, that could still change. “We could have to switch everybody (both directions) to the new feeder road. That would mean a single lane for both east- and westbound traffic until the second westbound feeder road is constructed on the north side.”
Pictures Taken Friday 8/17/24
UPRR will construct a crane on top of the rail tracks needed to install 200 feet of track panel. For that to happen they must rip out the existing rail tracks and reroute all traffic to rail lines that parallel the Hardy Tollroad.
The panel is in a single section that will stretch across ten lanes. UPRR needs that for track stability. However, its length will mean totally closing Northpark for three days.
While painful now, when finished, this project will give Kingwood its first all-weather evacuation route. It could save lives in the future.
For More Information
For more information about Northpark Drive expansion and a history of the project, see these posts on ReduceFlooding.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 8/18/24
2546 Days since Hurricane Harvey
HCFCD Contractors Begin Clearing Trees Blocking Streams, Channels
8/17/24 – The clearing of trees blocking streams and channels in the Lake Houston Area has begun. The clearing began after a coordinated inventorying and reporting effort.
According to Chris Bloch, a member of the Bear Branch Trail Association Board, FEMA contractors working for Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD), were seen this morning clearing trees blocking Bens Branch. The stream cuts diagonally through the middle of Kingwood.
If left in the stream, the trees can catch other debris floating downstream and create log dams that back floodwater up into streets and homes. So, contractors are cutting the fallen trees into sections and removing them.
This morning, I found them hauling the logs and underbrush out of the woods with a Bobcat fitted with grappling jaws. They stacked the debris near Woodland Hills Drive to be hauled away.
However, in coming days, contractors will be using much larger equipment and actually going down into the channel to remove logs and haul them off.
According to Bloch, just cutting the logs into small sections and letting them float away in the next flood is not the answer. They could still harm unsuspecting boaters and waterskiers in Lake Houston.
Beware of Heavy Equipment with Limited Visibility
It’s unclear at this time how long the clearing operation will take. But Bloch estimates that it could easily take a week or more to get all the way down Bens Branch.
Other contractors may be working on other channels simultaneously. However, I have been unable to verify that at this time.
Residents should exercise caution when using greenbelt trails during the removal operation. Operators maneuvering in tight spaces have limited visibility when transporting logs and brush. They will use greenbelt trails in some places and CenterPoint easements in others.
Members of the Bear Branch Trail Association Board met with the contractor last night to show them where obstructions are in Bens Branch and other channels.
Inventorying the blockages was difficult. Now comes the really hard part.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 8/17/24
2545 Days since Hurricane Harvey and 40 since Beryl
Sand-Pit Capture Between White Oak and Caney Creeks
8/16/24 – Today, thanks to an anonymous tip by a fisherman, I observed an instance of sand-pit capture between White Oak and Caney Creeks in the headwaters of Lake Houston.
The sand pit in question used to be known as the Triple PG Mine, but is now being operated under a different name.
Alleged environmental violations caused the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to sue the mine and its owners through the Texas Attorney General’s Office in 2019.
The conditions that exist today are virtually identical to those that existed in 2018 when I previously observed another instance of sand-pit capture between White Oak and Caney Creeks in the same location.
Then as now, instead of following its normal course, White Oak Creek flows in one side of the mine and out the other into Caney Creek.
Pictures Taken 8/16/24
Pictures taken today show that two new breaches happened in the same locations (see below) as 2019.
I do not know the exact date the breaches occurred.
There is one visible difference though. The pond where the two breaches occur today has been sealed off from other ponds in the mine by an internal dike that is not visible in earlier satellite photos.
The Texas Attorney General sued the mine in 2019 for a million dollars plus $25,000 per day for every day the breaches remained open.
Guniganti has denied all charges by the TCEQ and Attorney General.
Multiple Changes in Ownership Delay Trial
However, through a series of legal maneuverings that included multiple changes in attorneys and ownership (through shell companies), the case in Travis County District Court still has not come to trial five years later. After all this time, we are pretty much right back where we started – with pit capture between White Oak and Caney Creeks.
Prabakar Guniganti, a cardiologist from Nacogdoches, has transferred ownership of most of the mine to shell companies. The Montgomery County Appraisal District shows that the Guniganti 1999 Children’s Trust and the Guniganti 1992 Credit Shelter Trusts now own most of the mine. Some parcels rotated through different shell companies three times within two years.
The portion of the mine where the breaches occurred in 2019 and 2024 is in Harris County, just inside the Montgomery County Line. The Guniganti Children’s 1999 Trust now owns that.
Change in Mine Operator, Too
The sign at the mine entrance now reads “Texas Fracsand Materials,” a company reportedly hired to operate the mine. Sam Kurre serves as CEO of Texas Frac Sand Materials Inc. It was established in 2019, the same year as the AG’s lawsuit against Guniganti.
Entrance sign shows operator of the mine owned by Guniganti shell companies.
Kurre claims his company operates mines with more than a $100 million in reserves. But real estate records show the mine claims ag and timber exemptions.
Thus…
The mine’s area exceeds 1,000 acres in total.
In stark contrast, a 10-acre sliver of the mine within Harris County does not get the ag/timber exemption and appraises for virtually the same amount – $78,829.
No wonder Montgomery County attracts so many sand mines! Compared to Harris County, 800 acres of prime, income producing land are going untaxed.
Sand Subsidized by Other Property Owners
Kurre’s website claims he produces 2 million tons of sand annually from Guniganti’s location. However, appraisal district records show that Montgomery County classifies most of it as pastureland.
Guniganti should be able to afford some pretty good lawyers with numbers like these. Maybe that’s why he’s strung this out for five years…despite no lasting improvement to the dikes.
Meanwhile, people downstream of the sand-pit capture between White Oak and Caney Creeks complain of rapidly building sediment in their rivers and streams. They fear it could lead to flooding. As a consequence, they are clamoring for more costly dredging. But, it will be up to ordinary folks in a different county to subsidize that!
Posted by Bob Rehak on 8/16/2024
2544 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.