Entergy power poles sit on City of Houston (COH) rights-of-way. The company also runs underground wires in an easement near US59. Yet after years of discussion, the company still has not moved them to make room for the widening of Northpark Drive. Nor did the company comply with a request by the City to say how it would move them by a March 8th deadline.
The Northpark project is intended, in part, to create an all-weather evacuation route for 78,000 people who live in the Kingwood area. Rising floodwaters during Hurricane Harvey cut off escape routes along Hamblen Road, Kingwood Drive, and West Lake Houston Parkway.
Offending Entergy poles where Northpark will be widened for turn lanes next to the bridge over UP railroad tracks.
So, COH put Entergy on notice. It wrote a letter, discussed in last week’s LHRA board meeting, that was dated 2/6/24. The letter requested Entergy to submit a proposed scheduleand plan by last Friday detailing how it would relocate its facilities within 30 days.
That letter was dated 2/6/24, meaning the equipment should be moved and out of the way by 3/8/24.
Entergy Response Contained Only Hypothetical Schedule
ReduceFlooding.com has learned that Entergy replied to COH Public Works by last Friday as requested. But the reply did not indicate how they would move their equipment by 3/8/24. Nor did it address why Entergy could not meet the 30-day deadline or why the company has taken no action since 2020.
Instead the response suggested Entergy needed many more months, but committed to no firm deadline, according to a COH spokesperson.
Entergy and LHRA had already worked through potential conflicts with other utilities. So, resolving conflicts was not the issue.
I do not have a copy of the Entergy letter to reprint at this time; an Entergy spokesperson refused to provide it, citing potential legal concerns. As a result of the Entergy letter, LHRA has now asked to meet with the City Attorney.
Cost Escalation Possible
Continued delays are escalating the stakes. The Lake Houston Redevelopment Authority (LHRA), which is acting as an agent of the City, has costly contractual obligations to its contractors.
Given the rate of inflation, delays could also reduce the purchasing power of LHRA’s budget. In the last four years, inflation in the construction sector has totaled 15-20%. And this project costs more than $75 million. Yet the original budget included only $3 million for change orders.
A legal battle could take years to resolve. That could needlessly put lives at risk and inconvenience tens of thousands of people daily.
Entergy Motive, Next Steps Unclear
It’s not clear what Entergy – a $4 billion company in Texas alone – hopes to gain through continued delays.
In the past, Entergy asked for compensation to move its poles. But according to an LHRA spokesperson, compensation is not allowable under Texas law because the poles were in a City right of way and not covered by an easement. Thus, any payment would have constituted a “gift of public funds,” which the Texas Constitution prohibits.
Entergy was, however, legally entitled to compensation for moving buried wires in an easement near the Exxon station at US59. Entergy had agreed to move them for $711,000.
Then, within days after the disagreement about payment for relocating the poles, Entergy’s asking price to move the underground wires mysteriously increased by half a million dollars. Simultaneously, their cost estimate went from line item to lump sum – without itemization. Since then, the asking price has increased another $200,000 without explanation.
LHRA has asked to meet with the City Attorney to discuss options and next steps. More news to follow.
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/2024/02/20240113-RJR_3079.jpg?fit=1100%2C733&ssl=17331100adminadmin2024-02-20 09:51:222024-02-27 11:27:37Entergy Escalates Battle with COH over Northpark
At the abandoned Williams Brothers sand mine on the San Jacinto West Fork, a strip of land – approximately 400 to 500 feet long and up to 50 feet wide – collapsed into the river during the flood in late January.
The dramatic erosion, during a relatively minor (2-5-year) rain event, dramatizes the destructive power of moving water and the need for greater setbacks from the river for sand mines. It also raises questions about abandonment plans for sand mines.
Resident Photo From Boat Shows Collapse
A resident who frequently boats the river and wishes to remain anonymous supplied the picture below. As the resident said, “All that dirt went somewhere. And it didn’t go upstream.”
Looking upstreamadjacent to Williams Brothers Mine south of Kingwood Drive
Aerial Shots Show Extent of Damage
From the air, the same location looks like this.
Williams Brothers Mine on right. Eagle Sorters Mine top left. Note extent of fresh sand on left.Same area from lower angle. Note how trees collapsed into river.Note also how erosion has eaten half of maintenance road around mine.
Where Trees Once Stood
Compare that with the satellite image below from Google Earth taken last year. Note how there used to be a row of trees on each side of the road. Now, trees remain only on one side.
The measuring tool Google Earth shows the width of the eroded strip was approximately 50 feet.
Most of the trees on the river side of the road are now floating down the river somewhere.
Blankets of Fresh Sand Everywhere
The resident who took the first shot above (the one from the boat) has lived near the river for 40 years. He says he’s never seen so much fresh sand deposited in a flood. See below.
Fresh sand flanks both side of the West Fork.Note trail of trees in water.
The images above show the power of moving water. One cubic foot of fresh water weighs 62.4 pounds. And more than 20,000 cubic feet per second moved down this reach of the West Fork during the peak of the January flood. That’s a lot of force on sandy soil.
We Must Plan for River Migration
That force was magnified by the way a river meanders. On the outside of curves, water accelerates. That extra speed accelerates erosion and creates what geologists call the cut bank.
Conversely, water travels less far and slower on the inside of a curve. As a result, sand is often deposited there in what geologists call point bars. Learn more in this post about Why Rivers Move.
Over time, erosion on one side of a river and deposition on another tends to exaggerate curves. Geologists call that process river migration. River migration already broke through the dike of one sand mine slightly upstream.
During the January flood, water flushing through that mine likely contributed to the buildup of sand blocking the Northpark drainage ditch near Northpark Woods.
Looking upriver along West Fork. Red arrow indicated where West Fork migrated through dike of abandoned sand mine.
Note in the photo above that the Northpark Ditch is now blocked by sand higher than ditch itself. This blockage suddenly appeared during the Jan. ’24 flood. It is backing water up toward Northpark Woods and Oakhurst in the upper right. At least some of the sand was likely flushed out through the breach in the dike above.
Need Greater Setbacks from the River For Sand Mines
As I stated in the beginning, this dramatizes the need for greater setbacks from the river for sand mines. At one time, there was no minimum distance.
In November 2021, after years of work by Bill McCabe and the Lake Houston Flood Prevention Initiative, TCEQ adopted new Best Management Practices (BMPs) for sand mining in the San Jacinto River Basin.
The new rules specify “A minimum 100-foot buffer zone is required adjacent to perennial streams greater than 20 feet wide, 50 feet for perennial streams less than 20 feet wide, and 35 feet for intermittent streams.”
Clearly, that may not be enough. For a list of what other states specify, see the Sand Mining page of ReduceFlooding.com.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 2/27/2024
2363 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/20240216-FullSizeRender.jpg?fit=1100%2C619&ssl=16191100adminadmin2024-02-17 18:29:392024-02-22 08:52:58River Bank Collapses, Taking Half of Sand Mine Road
Since last week’s post about the Northpark expansion project, contractors have made significant progress on the two stormwater detention basins at US59. Contractors are forming concrete retaining walls for both ponds. They have excavated the north pond down to the water table. And, in the south pond, contractors are mounding dirt in three locations for removal and temporary storage.
The ponds are designed to provide storage capacity for excess stormwater that might otherwise flood this crucial intersection. The intersection will provide the final link in the only all-weather evacuation route in Kingwood for 78,000 residents. During Hurricane Harvey, floodwaters blocked both Hamblen Road and Kingwood Drive.
Photos Taken on 2/16/24
I took the following photos at noon on Friday, 2/16/24..
South Pond
Looking NW across the south pond at Northpark and US59. Transplanted trees in foreground.
Contractors are temporarily storying the dirt at the Eagle sand mine on Sorters-McClellan Road. They will later retrieve it to fill in the road bed above the box culverts that are replacing the center ditch down Northpark.
From opposite direction, you can see three mounds of dirt awaiting relocation and the first concrete wall by grass.Ground level shot shows height of pile.
North Pond
Contractors began working on the north pond first, so it is further along. However, excavation is not yet complete. They will do it in two stages. For now, they’ve excavated down to the water table. When pond liners arrive (any day now), contractors will begin the second phase and excavate even deeper.
Looking NNW at north pond. Note wet areas. They indicate level of water table.
The pipe you see lined up in the photo below will help carry excess stormwater in the ponds to Ditch One which parallels Northpark on the north. From there, it will follow gravity to Bens Branch and the Kingwood Diversion Ditch which will carry it to Lake Houston.
Looking SE at retaining wall for what will become the focal point of the North pond.Looking S from over north pond at another retaining wall around a grove of trees.When complete, the ponds should look like this.
CenterPoint Almost Finished Burying New Gas Line
CenterPoint had one westbound lane blocked off at noon today where it was burying a new gas line outside of the City’s easement. Reportedly, the utility is close to finished with the relocation effort. It is replacing one line that used to go down the center ditch with two, one on each side of the expanded roadbed.
As Ralph De Leon, the project manager for the Lake Houston Redevelopment Authority/TIRZ 10 said, “It’s one thing for a company to say they’ll handle something. It’s another for them to show up with giant boring machines to make it happen.” De Leon was happy with the progress they were making.
Still No News from Entergy
Entergy had until the close of business today to respond to the City of Houston’s demand for a plan to relocate its electrical services along Northpark. Project coordinators asked Entergy to move its lines in 2020. But the company has not moved anything to date.
It’s not clear at press time, whether Entergy met the City’s deadline. More next week when I learn more from City Hall.
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/2024/02/20240216-DJI_0952.jpg?fit=1100%2C733&ssl=17331100adminadmin2024-02-16 18:44:262024-02-16 18:44:28Excavation of Second Northpark Detention Basin Well Underway
Entergy Escalates Battle with COH over Northpark
Entergy power poles sit on City of Houston (COH) rights-of-way. The company also runs underground wires in an easement near US59. Yet after years of discussion, the company still has not moved them to make room for the widening of Northpark Drive. Nor did the company comply with a request by the City to say how it would move them by a March 8th deadline.
The Northpark project is intended, in part, to create an all-weather evacuation route for 78,000 people who live in the Kingwood area. Rising floodwaters during Hurricane Harvey cut off escape routes along Hamblen Road, Kingwood Drive, and West Lake Houston Parkway.
First Notified in 2020 and Still No Action
On 2/10/24, I detailed how Entergy was first notified about the project in 2020. Yet the company has moved nothing along Northpark to make room for construction. Groundbreaking for the project was last April and construction began last July.
So, COH put Entergy on notice. It wrote a letter, discussed in last week’s LHRA board meeting, that was dated 2/6/24. The letter requested Entergy to submit a proposed schedule and plan by last Friday detailing how it would relocate its facilities within 30 days.
Entergy Response Contained Only Hypothetical Schedule
ReduceFlooding.com has learned that Entergy replied to COH Public Works by last Friday as requested. But the reply did not indicate how they would move their equipment by 3/8/24. Nor did it address why Entergy could not meet the 30-day deadline or why the company has taken no action since 2020.
Instead the response suggested Entergy needed many more months, but committed to no firm deadline, according to a COH spokesperson.
Entergy and LHRA had already worked through potential conflicts with other utilities. So, resolving conflicts was not the issue.
I do not have a copy of the Entergy letter to reprint at this time; an Entergy spokesperson refused to provide it, citing potential legal concerns. As a result of the Entergy letter, LHRA has now asked to meet with the City Attorney.
Cost Escalation Possible
Continued delays are escalating the stakes. The Lake Houston Redevelopment Authority (LHRA), which is acting as an agent of the City, has costly contractual obligations to its contractors.
Given the rate of inflation, delays could also reduce the purchasing power of LHRA’s budget. In the last four years, inflation in the construction sector has totaled 15-20%. And this project costs more than $75 million. Yet the original budget included only $3 million for change orders.
A legal battle could take years to resolve. That could needlessly put lives at risk and inconvenience tens of thousands of people daily.
Entergy Motive, Next Steps Unclear
It’s not clear what Entergy – a $4 billion company in Texas alone – hopes to gain through continued delays.
In the past, Entergy asked for compensation to move its poles. But according to an LHRA spokesperson, compensation is not allowable under Texas law because the poles were in a City right of way and not covered by an easement. Thus, any payment would have constituted a “gift of public funds,” which the Texas Constitution prohibits.
Entergy was, however, legally entitled to compensation for moving buried wires in an easement near the Exxon station at US59. Entergy had agreed to move them for $711,000.
Then, within days after the disagreement about payment for relocating the poles, Entergy’s asking price to move the underground wires mysteriously increased by half a million dollars. Simultaneously, their cost estimate went from line item to lump sum – without itemization. Since then, the asking price has increased another $200,000 without explanation.
LHRA has asked to meet with the City Attorney to discuss options and next steps. More news to follow.
For More Information
For more information about the project including construction plans, visit the project pages of the LHRA/Tirz 10 website. Or see these posts on ReduceFlooding:
Posted by Bob Rehak on 2/20/2024
2365 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.
River Bank Collapses, Taking Half of Sand Mine Road
At the abandoned Williams Brothers sand mine on the San Jacinto West Fork, a strip of land – approximately 400 to 500 feet long and up to 50 feet wide – collapsed into the river during the flood in late January.
The dramatic erosion, during a relatively minor (2-5-year) rain event, dramatizes the destructive power of moving water and the need for greater setbacks from the river for sand mines. It also raises questions about abandonment plans for sand mines.
Resident Photo From Boat Shows Collapse
A resident who frequently boats the river and wishes to remain anonymous supplied the picture below. As the resident said, “All that dirt went somewhere. And it didn’t go upstream.”
Aerial Shots Show Extent of Damage
From the air, the same location looks like this.
Where Trees Once Stood
Compare that with the satellite image below from Google Earth taken last year. Note how there used to be a row of trees on each side of the road. Now, trees remain only on one side.
Most of the trees on the river side of the road are now floating down the river somewhere.
Blankets of Fresh Sand Everywhere
The resident who took the first shot above (the one from the boat) has lived near the river for 40 years. He says he’s never seen so much fresh sand deposited in a flood. See below.
The images above show the power of moving water. One cubic foot of fresh water weighs 62.4 pounds. And more than 20,000 cubic feet per second moved down this reach of the West Fork during the peak of the January flood. That’s a lot of force on sandy soil.
We Must Plan for River Migration
That force was magnified by the way a river meanders. On the outside of curves, water accelerates. That extra speed accelerates erosion and creates what geologists call the cut bank.
Conversely, water travels less far and slower on the inside of a curve. As a result, sand is often deposited there in what geologists call point bars. Learn more in this post about Why Rivers Move.
Over time, erosion on one side of a river and deposition on another tends to exaggerate curves. Geologists call that process river migration. River migration already broke through the dike of one sand mine slightly upstream.
During the January flood, water flushing through that mine likely contributed to the buildup of sand blocking the Northpark drainage ditch near Northpark Woods.
Note in the photo above that the Northpark Ditch is now blocked by sand higher than ditch itself. This blockage suddenly appeared during the Jan. ’24 flood. It is backing water up toward Northpark Woods and Oakhurst in the upper right. At least some of the sand was likely flushed out through the breach in the dike above.
Need Greater Setbacks from the River For Sand Mines
As I stated in the beginning, this dramatizes the need for greater setbacks from the river for sand mines. At one time, there was no minimum distance.
In November 2021, after years of work by Bill McCabe and the Lake Houston Flood Prevention Initiative, TCEQ adopted new Best Management Practices (BMPs) for sand mining in the San Jacinto River Basin.
The new rules specify “A minimum 100-foot buffer zone is required adjacent to perennial streams greater than 20 feet wide, 50 feet for perennial streams less than 20 feet wide, and 35 feet for intermittent streams.”
Clearly, that may not be enough. For a list of what other states specify, see the Sand Mining page of ReduceFlooding.com.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 2/27/2024
2363 Days since Hurricane Harvey
Excavation of Second Northpark Detention Basin Well Underway
Since last week’s post about the Northpark expansion project, contractors have made significant progress on the two stormwater detention basins at US59. Contractors are forming concrete retaining walls for both ponds. They have excavated the north pond down to the water table. And, in the south pond, contractors are mounding dirt in three locations for removal and temporary storage.
The ponds are designed to provide storage capacity for excess stormwater that might otherwise flood this crucial intersection. The intersection will provide the final link in the only all-weather evacuation route in Kingwood for 78,000 residents. During Hurricane Harvey, floodwaters blocked both Hamblen Road and Kingwood Drive.
Photos Taken on 2/16/24
I took the following photos at noon on Friday, 2/16/24..
South Pond
Contractors are temporarily storying the dirt at the Eagle sand mine on Sorters-McClellan Road. They will later retrieve it to fill in the road bed above the box culverts that are replacing the center ditch down Northpark.
North Pond
Contractors began working on the north pond first, so it is further along. However, excavation is not yet complete. They will do it in two stages. For now, they’ve excavated down to the water table. When pond liners arrive (any day now), contractors will begin the second phase and excavate even deeper.
The pipe you see lined up in the photo below will help carry excess stormwater in the ponds to Ditch One which parallels Northpark on the north. From there, it will follow gravity to Bens Branch and the Kingwood Diversion Ditch which will carry it to Lake Houston.
CenterPoint Almost Finished Burying New Gas Line
CenterPoint had one westbound lane blocked off at noon today where it was burying a new gas line outside of the City’s easement. Reportedly, the utility is close to finished with the relocation effort. It is replacing one line that used to go down the center ditch with two, one on each side of the expanded roadbed.
As Ralph De Leon, the project manager for the Lake Houston Redevelopment Authority/TIRZ 10 said, “It’s one thing for a company to say they’ll handle something. It’s another for them to show up with giant boring machines to make it happen.” De Leon was happy with the progress they were making.
Still No News from Entergy
Entergy had until the close of business today to respond to the City of Houston’s demand for a plan to relocate its electrical services along Northpark. Project coordinators asked Entergy to move its lines in 2020. But the company has not moved anything to date.
It’s not clear at press time, whether Entergy met the City’s deadline. More next week when I learn more from City Hall.
For More Information
For more information about the project including construction plans, visit the project pages of the LHRA/Tirz 10 website. Or see these posts on ReduceFlooding:
Posted by Bob Rehak on 2/16/2024
2362 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.