8/11/24 – Tree Lane Bridge repairs are finally starting…again. By my count, this will make the fifth time if you include the 2020 and 2022 repairs that each failed within months, and two aborted starts earlier this year. Hopefully, Houston Public Works will complete the repairs this time and they will stick.
Third Round of Repairs in Five Years
The current rehab project is the third in five years. That speaks to the quality of engineering, contracting and supervision in Houston Public Works. See the list of my articles about Tree Lane Bridge problems below. I’ve listed them in reverse chronological order.
Construction of the most recent repair project was to have started in February this year. But contractors finally showed up 1.5 months later in early April. They did some tree trimming, parked their equipment and disappeared.
The project was to have been completed by 6/28 this year. But on 6/28, the job site was vacant, except for the equipment which had been parked months earlier. The biggest visible change: additional erosion, most likely due to the May flood, threatened a giant excavator that had been parked close to Bens Branch.
Erosion creeped toward parked excavator. Photo taken 6/17/24.
In June, I asked about delays and was informed by the project manager that they were waiting on unspecified utilities to move newly discovered utility lines.
In fairness, on 6/17/24, I did observe a utility crew burying cable in the vicinity. Public Works said on 7/2/24 that “all utility relocates have been completed.” However, as of 8/11, a water line and a cable are still clearly visible at the bottom of the creek and in the way of the project. See below.
Photo taken 8/11/24, six months after project start. Those exposed lines show up in photos taken in 2019.
The announcement of the most recent delay was even more vague. It announced “changes” due to “unforeseen circumstances” as the cause. I emailed and went online to find specifics. But not a clue!
Was it weather? Management? Engineering? Priorities? More utility conflicts? War in Ukraine? The school lunch menu?
Are the contractors even working off the right plans? The plans currently posted on Engage Houston have three different dates on them: 2018, 2022 and 2023. But I see nothing dated 2024. What delayed the project six months?
Contractors Return Just in Time for Back-to-School Traffic
After equipment sat idle virtually all summer, contractors returned to the job site just in time for the start of school. The bridge sits next to Bear Branch Elementary, which more than 600 students attend.
Last week, I made the mistake of trying to cross the bridge at 8AM. After project managers promised that construction activity would NOT interfere with school traffic, there the contractors were…with traffic at a standstill and backed up five blocks.
Later that afternoon, I received an email from the project manager. This email announced that the project would finish in “Fall 2024.” I would remind you that technically Fall lasts through December 21. That’s more than 4 months away. And more than 4 years after the 2020 repairs. But who ‘s counting?
Photos as of 8/11/2024
I took the photos below this afternoon so you can see how much progress has been made since February.
Looking N from S side of bridge at work on E wall.
Note all the construction debris piled in the middle of the creek, waiting for more heavy rain.
Looking N.Looking S from N side of bridge at W side work.
Vegas is taking odds on whether Public Works will be able to live within its $909,000 estimate for this job.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 8/11/24
2539 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/2024/08/20240811-DJI_20240811165724_0569_D.jpg?fit=1100%2C619&ssl=16191100adminadmin2024-08-11 20:16:162024-08-11 21:40:18Tree Lane Bridge Repairs Finally Starting Again…Hopefully For Last Time
8/10/2024 – Sometimes Randy Reagan must feel that he has struggled for most of his adult life against rising floodwaters, sand mines and the San Jacinto River Authority (SJRA). He has flooded six times in the last nine years. Still, he’s rebuilding on a lot he bought 30 years ago. But he’s doing it differently this time.
May 2024 Flood. Reagan property in background. Note roof of submerged vehicle in foreground.
Erosion of Country Lifestyle
Reagan grew up not far from the San Jacinto West Fork. He remembers a time as a child before Lake Conroe when the river ran clear and teemed with fish.
His wife grew up in the same neighborhood. Her parents were the first settlers in an area that came to be known as Bennett Estates between FM1314 and the San Jacinto West Fork.
They loved living near the river and all the abundant wildlife. So Reagan bought 5.5 acres for $10,000 back in the mid-’90s. He put a mobile home on it and started raising a family. He hunted all the meat his family ate from his own property and the surrounding forests. Life was good.
The 1994 flood was the highest ever in that area. The SJRA released 56,000 cubic feet per second (CFS) from Lake Conroe during the storm. So Reagan elevated his home a foot above the high water mark from that storm and figured he was safe.
But gradually, his dream of peaceful, country living turned sour. In the mid-2000s, two companies started mining sand near his home – one a few blocks north, the other immediately south of his property.
The mines accelerated runoff and erosion. They also changed local drainage patterns in ways that flooded his property.
In the meantime, upstream areas grew, also increasing runoff. And by the time I first met Reagan in early 2020, his property had flooded five times in four years. The worst: Harvey in 2017. Ninety-three inches of water invaded his home. That’s almost 8 feet! See that story here.
Eventually, Reagan tore down the mobil home. Repeat flooding had caused the foundation to shift and destabilized it. He and his wife began living in his workshop or with relatives.
Reagan tried to get a low-interest SBA loan through FEMA to rebuild. But they denied him because he had “let his flood insurance lapse after Harvey.”
“Of course I let it lapse,” said Reagan. “There was nothing left to insure. The home was gone.”
Fast Forward Four Years
The May flood this year swamped his property again after the SJRA opened the gates on Lake Conroe and began releasing 72,000 CFS, the second highest release rate in SJRA history.
Reagan points to high water mark on his shop from May 2024 flood – 52 inches.
Only Harvey exceeded that rate. SJRA released 79,000 CFS in 2017 during Harvey.
Since then, Reagan began planning his comeback against Mother Nature, the sand mines and SJRA.
His dream now is to build a foundation for a new home up 10 feet above the original level of the land. That would make the land higher than the Harvey high-water mark.
Then he wants to build a new home up on stilts, another ten feet above the elevated foundation. It would be elevated 20 feet above his first home on the property and more than 10 feet above Harvey. Hopefully, that will keep him safe for a few years.
The retired oil-field worker and bull rider is looking at designs from UB Homes. He also hired a MoCo excavation company, Graham Land Services, to excavate a pond at the back of the property.
Dirt from pond excavation (background) is being used to build up home pad (foreground).
Dirt from the pond is building up the foundation where his new home will go.
Pros and Cons of Rebuilding in Location that Floods
On the plus side:
Mining behind his property has ceased. He now has a 42-acre pond behind him. No one will ever build behind him and spoil his view.
He can still hunt on his property.
Despite the flooding, property values have appreciated. Not far away, a home recently went up for sale at $1.4 million.
Development in surrounding areas has brought shopping, services and hospitals closer to home without changing his country-living atmosphere.
The May flood deposited fish in Reagan’s pond, which are now thriving.
Randy Reagan property lower right.
On the minus side:
All the tractor work has taken a toll on Reagan’s aging body. He complains of aching joints and bulging disks in his back and neck. He’s also fighting knee and shoulder pain from a lifetime of backbreaking work in the oil fields and on his property.
He wishes SJRA would pre-release water from Lake Conroe at much slower rates in advance of major storms, but has little hope that they will. “This May flood could have been totally avoided if they would have let water out sooner,” said Reagan. “SJRA needs to start operating the Lake Conroe Dam a lot better than what they’re doing.”
Reagan feels SJRA places Lake Conroe recreation above the protection of downstream property.
He feels he would have to move north of Huntsville to find the kind of flood-safe country living he once enjoyed. “It’s hard to get a piece of country living anymore in Montgomery County. It’s all going away,” said Reagan.
A Pioneer Spirit
Reagan typifies the struggle many Houstonians feel. He loves nature and living near water – until floods exact their terrible price. Still, he returns. To fight for a life he loves.
Reagan takes a break from moving in front of the property being raised for a new home.
I admire the fact that he’s not waiting for others to protect him from the ravages of West Fork flooding. By elevating his property and home, he’s protecting himself and his family.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 8/10/24
2538 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/20240810-440497047_452461260667459_6359157880369095417_n.jpg?fit=1100%2C825&ssl=18251100adminadmin2024-08-10 18:05:542024-08-10 18:36:31One Man’s Struggle Against Rising Floodwaters, Sand Mines and SJRA
8/9/24 – Here’s an unsolicited idea that could help improve efficiency of the Beryl recovery process: inventorying channel blockages in your area. Then supply Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD) with a comprehensive, consolidatedlist. It could save them time when time is critical as we head into the peak of hurricane season.
HCFCD maintains more than 2,500 miles of bayous, creeks and manmade drainage channels, along with dozens of large stormwater detention basins across Harris County. And damage from Beryl has affected the entire county. Reportedly, the extent of the damage has HCFCD maintenance staff stretched to the max.
Implications for Maintenance
Maintenance has reportedly become HCFCD’s major focus of activity at the moment. No one has bandwidth to spare. So, this may be one of those times when citizens can help. Not by cleaning out ditches and streams themselves; that’s dangerous. But by reporting problems more efficiently and effectively.
Rather than having five different people report five different blockages on the same stream at five different times, so crews make five trips, perhaps one, consolidated report would help.
A consolidated report could:
Reduce the number of phone calls and emails to process, track and respond to
Help prioritize the hardest hit areas
Reduce the number of repeat trips to a single area
Make scheduling crews easier
Improve response time
Reduce flooding from blockages that may not have been reported.
How to Report Problems
Last week, I posted about ways to direct HCFCD to problems quickly, especially when street addresses might not apply. For instance, consider creeks that cut through greenbelt trails.
About that time, Chris Bloch, a board member of the Bear Branch Trail Association (BBTA), sent me a dozen photos of blocked streams within his association.
He had reported them all to HCFCD simultaneously in one consolidated request. That inspired the idea for this post.
I’m sure flood control would like your help identifying blockages any way they can get it, whether requests are individual or consolidated. As a former business owner, I always looked for ways to operate more efficiently. This could be one of those times. Collectively, we have a simple way to help.
Walk your greenbelts looking for problems. Then produce a thorough, consolidated report that identifies channel numbers and locations, and submit it to HCFCD:
The Lake Houston Area has dozens, if not hundreds of community and trail associations that could help with this task.
So thousands of different HCFCD trips could be greatly reduced.
Below are five photos submitted by Bloch from among many more taken on the six miles of channels within BBTA’s boundaries. They come from ONE stretch of ONE creek. And Bloch reported them all at ONCE.
Calling on All HOAs and Trail Associations
Each blockage shown above could catch other trees floating downstream in future storms and create log jams that back water up and flood neighborhoods. They are invisible from the air, hidden by the dense tree canopy.
To help ensure blockages get addressed ASAP, every trail or community association should consider submitting a consolidated list of issues within their respective areas.
Walking 2,500 miles of channels is like walking across America. It ain’t easy.
Think how much time consolidated inventorying of channel blockages could save HCFCD staff who are already stretched thin.
Please share this post with your HOA and Trail Association board members in your area. Perhaps they can help identify volunteers, which may include scouts eager to earn hiking, photography community service and mapping merit badges.
2537 Days since Hurricane Harvey and 30 since Beryl
Posted by Bob Rehak on 8/9/24
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/20240803-Bens-Branch-Obstruction-3.jpg?fit=1100%2C717&ssl=17171100adminadmin2024-08-09 20:34:182024-08-11 21:43:30Inventorying Channel Blockages Could Help HCFCD
Tree Lane Bridge Repairs Finally Starting Again…Hopefully For Last Time
8/11/24 – Tree Lane Bridge repairs are finally starting…again. By my count, this will make the fifth time if you include the 2020 and 2022 repairs that each failed within months, and two aborted starts earlier this year. Hopefully, Houston Public Works will complete the repairs this time and they will stick.
Third Round of Repairs in Five Years
The current rehab project is the third in five years. That speaks to the quality of engineering, contracting and supervision in Houston Public Works. See the list of my articles about Tree Lane Bridge problems below. I’ve listed them in reverse chronological order.
6/28/24 Tree Lane Project Supposed to be Done Today, But Hasn’t Started
4/9/24 City Begins Tree Lane Bridge Repairs
2/21/24 CoH Public Works Kicks Off Tree Lane Bridge Rehab Project
11/28/23 Tree Lane Bridge over Bens Branch Still Standing
6/12/23 Flood Damage To Tree Lane Bridge Over Ben’s Branch Accelerates
1/29/23 Tree Lane Bridge over Ben’s Branch Damaged…Again
3/21/22 How Insufficiently Mitigated Upstream Development Imposes Taxation without Representation on Downstream Residents
3/31/20 City Completes Repairs on Tree Lane Bridge, But Concerns Remain
2/29/20 Tree Lane Bridge over Ben’s Branch: Before and After Repairs
12/2/19 Tree Lane Bridge vs. Power of Moving Water
Unexplained Delays, Changes
Construction of the most recent repair project was to have started in February this year. But contractors finally showed up 1.5 months later in early April. They did some tree trimming, parked their equipment and disappeared.
The project was to have been completed by 6/28 this year. But on 6/28, the job site was vacant, except for the equipment which had been parked months earlier. The biggest visible change: additional erosion, most likely due to the May flood, threatened a giant excavator that had been parked close to Bens Branch.
In June, I asked about delays and was informed by the project manager that they were waiting on unspecified utilities to move newly discovered utility lines.
In fairness, on 6/17/24, I did observe a utility crew burying cable in the vicinity. Public Works said on 7/2/24 that “all utility relocates have been completed.” However, as of 8/11, a water line and a cable are still clearly visible at the bottom of the creek and in the way of the project. See below.
The announcement of the most recent delay was even more vague. It announced “changes” due to “unforeseen circumstances” as the cause. I emailed and went online to find specifics. But not a clue!
Was it weather? Management? Engineering? Priorities? More utility conflicts? War in Ukraine? The school lunch menu?
Are the contractors even working off the right plans? The plans currently posted on Engage Houston have three different dates on them: 2018, 2022 and 2023. But I see nothing dated 2024. What delayed the project six months?
Contractors Return Just in Time for Back-to-School Traffic
After equipment sat idle virtually all summer, contractors returned to the job site just in time for the start of school. The bridge sits next to Bear Branch Elementary, which more than 600 students attend.
Last week, I made the mistake of trying to cross the bridge at 8AM. After project managers promised that construction activity would NOT interfere with school traffic, there the contractors were…with traffic at a standstill and backed up five blocks.
Later that afternoon, I received an email from the project manager. This email announced that the project would finish in “Fall 2024.” I would remind you that technically Fall lasts through December 21. That’s more than 4 months away. And more than 4 years after the 2020 repairs. But who ‘s counting?
Photos as of 8/11/2024
I took the photos below this afternoon so you can see how much progress has been made since February.
Note all the construction debris piled in the middle of the creek, waiting for more heavy rain.
Vegas is taking odds on whether Public Works will be able to live within its $909,000 estimate for this job.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 8/11/24
2539 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.
One Man’s Struggle Against Rising Floodwaters, Sand Mines and SJRA
8/10/2024 – Sometimes Randy Reagan must feel that he has struggled for most of his adult life against rising floodwaters, sand mines and the San Jacinto River Authority (SJRA). He has flooded six times in the last nine years. Still, he’s rebuilding on a lot he bought 30 years ago. But he’s doing it differently this time.
Erosion of Country Lifestyle
Reagan grew up not far from the San Jacinto West Fork. He remembers a time as a child before Lake Conroe when the river ran clear and teemed with fish.
His wife grew up in the same neighborhood. Her parents were the first settlers in an area that came to be known as Bennett Estates between FM1314 and the San Jacinto West Fork.
They loved living near the river and all the abundant wildlife. So Reagan bought 5.5 acres for $10,000 back in the mid-’90s. He put a mobile home on it and started raising a family. He hunted all the meat his family ate from his own property and the surrounding forests. Life was good.
The 1994 flood was the highest ever in that area. The SJRA released 56,000 cubic feet per second (CFS) from Lake Conroe during the storm. So Reagan elevated his home a foot above the high water mark from that storm and figured he was safe.
But gradually, his dream of peaceful, country living turned sour. In the mid-2000s, two companies started mining sand near his home – one a few blocks north, the other immediately south of his property.
The mines accelerated runoff and erosion. They also changed local drainage patterns in ways that flooded his property.
In the meantime, upstream areas grew, also increasing runoff. And by the time I first met Reagan in early 2020, his property had flooded five times in four years. The worst: Harvey in 2017. Ninety-three inches of water invaded his home. That’s almost 8 feet! See that story here.
Eventually, Reagan tore down the mobil home. Repeat flooding had caused the foundation to shift and destabilized it. He and his wife began living in his workshop or with relatives.
Reagan tried to get a low-interest SBA loan through FEMA to rebuild. But they denied him because he had “let his flood insurance lapse after Harvey.”
“Of course I let it lapse,” said Reagan. “There was nothing left to insure. The home was gone.”
Fast Forward Four Years
The May flood this year swamped his property again after the SJRA opened the gates on Lake Conroe and began releasing 72,000 CFS, the second highest release rate in SJRA history.
Only Harvey exceeded that rate. SJRA released 79,000 CFS in 2017 during Harvey.
Since then, Reagan began planning his comeback against Mother Nature, the sand mines and SJRA.
His dream now is to build a foundation for a new home up 10 feet above the original level of the land. That would make the land higher than the Harvey high-water mark.
Then he wants to build a new home up on stilts, another ten feet above the elevated foundation. It would be elevated 20 feet above his first home on the property and more than 10 feet above Harvey. Hopefully, that will keep him safe for a few years.
The retired oil-field worker and bull rider is looking at designs from UB Homes. He also hired a MoCo excavation company, Graham Land Services, to excavate a pond at the back of the property.
Dirt from the pond is building up the foundation where his new home will go.
Pros and Cons of Rebuilding in Location that Floods
On the plus side:
On the minus side:
A Pioneer Spirit
Reagan typifies the struggle many Houstonians feel. He loves nature and living near water – until floods exact their terrible price. Still, he returns. To fight for a life he loves.
I admire the fact that he’s not waiting for others to protect him from the ravages of West Fork flooding. By elevating his property and home, he’s protecting himself and his family.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 8/10/24
2538 Days since Hurricane Harvey
Inventorying Channel Blockages Could Help HCFCD
8/9/24 – Here’s an unsolicited idea that could help improve efficiency of the Beryl recovery process: inventorying channel blockages in your area. Then supply Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD) with a comprehensive, consolidated list. It could save them time when time is critical as we head into the peak of hurricane season.
HCFCD maintains more than 2,500 miles of bayous, creeks and manmade drainage channels, along with dozens of large stormwater detention basins across Harris County. And damage from Beryl has affected the entire county. Reportedly, the extent of the damage has HCFCD maintenance staff stretched to the max.
Implications for Maintenance
Maintenance has reportedly become HCFCD’s major focus of activity at the moment. No one has bandwidth to spare. So, this may be one of those times when citizens can help. Not by cleaning out ditches and streams themselves; that’s dangerous. But by reporting problems more efficiently and effectively.
Rather than having five different people report five different blockages on the same stream at five different times, so crews make five trips, perhaps one, consolidated report would help.
A consolidated report could:
How to Report Problems
Last week, I posted about ways to direct HCFCD to problems quickly, especially when street addresses might not apply. For instance, consider creeks that cut through greenbelt trails.
About that time, Chris Bloch, a board member of the Bear Branch Trail Association (BBTA), sent me a dozen photos of blocked streams within his association.
He had reported them all to HCFCD simultaneously in one consolidated request. That inspired the idea for this post.
I’m sure flood control would like your help identifying blockages any way they can get it, whether requests are individual or consolidated. As a former business owner, I always looked for ways to operate more efficiently. This could be one of those times. Collectively, we have a simple way to help.
Walk your greenbelts looking for problems. Then produce a thorough, consolidated report that identifies channel numbers and locations, and submit it to HCFCD:
Consolidated List Could Improve Efficiency
The Lake Houston Area has dozens, if not hundreds of community and trail associations that could help with this task.
So thousands of different HCFCD trips could be greatly reduced.
Below are five photos submitted by Bloch from among many more taken on the six miles of channels within BBTA’s boundaries. They come from ONE stretch of ONE creek. And Bloch reported them all at ONCE.
Calling on All HOAs and Trail Associations
Each blockage shown above could catch other trees floating downstream in future storms and create log jams that back water up and flood neighborhoods. They are invisible from the air, hidden by the dense tree canopy.
To help ensure blockages get addressed ASAP, every trail or community association should consider submitting a consolidated list of issues within their respective areas.
Walking 2,500 miles of channels is like walking across America. It ain’t easy.
Think how much time consolidated inventorying of channel blockages could save HCFCD staff who are already stretched thin.
Please share this post with your HOA and Trail Association board members in your area. Perhaps they can help identify volunteers, which may include scouts eager to earn hiking, photography community service and mapping merit badges.
2537 Days since Hurricane Harvey and 30 since Beryl
Posted by Bob Rehak on 8/9/24