Last Wednesday, 11/1/23, Houston City Council approved an agreement with the Union Pacific railroad that will give contractors the right of entry so that private utilities can continue to relocate their facilities. Utility work must be completed before construction of two at-grade crossings over the UP tracks at Loop 494. Now that City Council has approved the agreement, the Mayor and UP need to approve it. That will likely happen before next week.
The at-grade crossings are a separate issue from the bridge that will be built over UP’s tracks. TxDoT requires ground-level turn lanes for motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians who want to turn onto and off of 494 from Northpark and vice versa.
Utility Work Already Making Way for Extra Turn Lanes
Contractors have already started rerouting utilities for the extra turn lanes on both sides of Northpark.
Looking N across Northpark along UP tracks.Note utility work on right on each side of Northpark.Looking SE from over railroad tracks. Closer shot of utility work.Looking E from over tracks down Northpark shows current extent of utility work.
Change in Plans: 3-Day Road Closure
The at-grade crossings will require new traffic control gates and signals. Given the longer trains that UP is running these days, UP wants to coordinate the Northpark signals with those at crossings from Kingwood Drive all the way north into Porter. But the new one-piece system will stretch cross both east and westbound lanes of Northpark.
That will require shutting the entire road down for three-days at some point in the future. This represents a change in plans. Earlier, LHRA/Tirz 10 indicated that Northpark would also have at least one lane of traffic open in each direction.
However, the new system should improve safety for both the railroad and the public.
Sidewalk Extension West of 59
De Leon indicated that the signing of the agreement with the railroad should accelerate construction in this area.
Farther west, sidewalk construction has started on both sides of Northpark immediately west of US59.
Looking West from over 59. North sidewalk almost complete. South sidewalk is being prepped.Closer shot of south sidewalk.
Next Up
In the meantime, contractors are:
Continuing work on the 6×5 RCB at Outfall B
Continuing work on the 8″ waterline south of Northpark from the Railroad tracks east to King’s Mill
Continuing work on the sidewalks west of I-69
In other developments, the Redevelopment Authority website shows:
12″ waterline testing has been pushed to the last week of November
8″ waterline will be tested the week before Thanksgiving
Work will begin on the temporary detours on LP 494 the week before Thanksgiving.
Excavation of Detention Basins at Northpark Not Yet Started
Excavation of two stormwater retention basins at Northpark has not yet begun. Contractors will not start excavation until they start to build the new lanes between 494 and Russell-Palmer Road. They will use the recycled dirt to fill in under the two new lanes. If they started excavation now, they would have to store the dirt somewhere and move it twice, or pay to have it hauled off and then purchase more dirt when it’s needed.
Dirt from stormwater retention basin excavation at entry will fill in over concrete culverts in the median east of 494 (top center).
The Lake Houston Redevelopment Authority (Authority), and Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone Number Ten, Lake Houston Zone (Zone), will hold a joint board meeting on November 9, 2023, at 8:00 a.m., at the Kingwood Community Center, 4102 Rustic Woods Drive, Kingwood, Texas 77345, and is open to the public.
This board packet contains three change orders. One calls for a temporary stoplight at Russell-Palmer. The reason: contractors must remove the existing pole in the center so that they can continue installing culvert. The temporary light will serve the intersection until a new permanent one on an arm which extends over the roadway can be fabricated. Those reportedly take months.
Another change order increases the amount allocated for tree transplantation by $239,000.
Have questions or concerns? Voice them at the meeting.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 11/5/2023
2259 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/20231105-DJI_0770.jpg?fit=1100%2C733&ssl=17331100adminadmin2023-11-05 19:37:152023-11-05 19:44:48City Council Approves Northpark Expansion Agreement with Union Pacific
On Tuesday, 10/31/23, Harris County Commissioner’s court took no action on a request from Commissioner Tom Ramsey PE to abide by a pre-election promise to voters re: the 2022 Road and Parks Bonds. Ramsey could not even find a second for his motion on Agenda Item #418, which would guarantee the promised minimum of $220 million for Precinct 3.
During debate on the topic:
Only one of the four Democrats on Commissioners Court agreed with the idea that “we need to deliver on what we say.”
One confused the 2022 road and parks bond for the 2018 flood bond.
Two claimed they had already spent their allocation; so they couldn’t re-allocate the money even if they wanted to (which they didn’t).
One claimed “everybody” lost track of $110 million.
Two claimed that allocating the money to poor areas was more important than an equal split or honoring promises.
Screen capture from 10/31/2023 Commissioners Court Meeting at start of debate on Item #418.
When they talked about allocations to poor areas, they did not mention the percentage of county-maintained parks or roads in their precincts. Nor did they take into account the percentage of their precincts inside incorporated areas, such as the City of Houston. Municipalities are already responsible for maintaining roads and parks within their boundaries.
Bait-and-Switch Tactics
BEFORE the 2022 election, commissioners voted to allocate a minimum $220 million from the 2022 Road and Parks Bonds to each precinct. The county then trumpeted that promise in:
Pre-election publicity
Postings on county websites
Speeches and handouts at community meetings.
Voters approved the bonds on the basis of that promise.
Then, in January 2023. shortly AFTER the election, the Democrats on commissioners court broke that promise. They voted to adopt a different formula that resulted in drastically less money than promised for Precinct 3, the only Republican-led precinct remaining in Harris County.
Precinct 3 received $187.5 million – $32.5 million less than promised.
Meanwhile, the Democrats voted to award themselves far more than Ramsey’s Precinct 3 which contains the highest percentage of unincorporated areas in the county.
Precinct
Minimum Promised Before Election
Allocated After Election
Difference
% of Allocated $
One
$220 million
$269 million
$49 million MORE
27%
Two
$220 million
$293 million
$73 million MORE
30%
Three
$220 million
$188 million
$32 million LESS
19%
Four
$220 million
$239 million
$19 million MORE
24%
Promised vs. Actual funding from 2022 Road & Parks Bonds
The FTC calls this “bait-and-switch” advertising. It’s illegal. In a commercial context, intentionally advertising a product or service with the intent to lure customers in, only to then provide a different, less desirable offering is considered a deceptive trade practice and fraudulent. The FTC often forces companies caught in bait-and-switch schemes to refund money.
Ironically, had Precinct 3 voters realized the bait and switch, they could have defeated the bonds.
Was There Intent to Break the Promise?
In my opinion, it would be easy to prove intent in this case. Before the election, Commissioners Ellis and Garcia talked for months about how they wanted to apply so-called “equity” and “social vulnerability” factors to the distribution of proposed bond funds…without identifying projects or nailing down a formula.
Then on August 2, 2022, they relented and consented to a $220 million per precinct minimum. After voters approved the bonds and Lina Hidalgo won re-election, the Democrats changed the deal back. We got exactly what Ellis and Garcia argued for all along – an SVI-based formula that radically skewed the distribution of bond funds.
So, in the end, after redistricting (which packed more roads and parks into Precinct 3 than any other precinct), and after an election in which voters were deceived…
Precinct 3 gets 19% of the funding, yet has 47% of the County’s roads and 35% of its parks to maintain.
Some would say Democrats planned that all along.
What Democrats Said During Debate on Ramsey Motion
Precinct 4 Commissioner Leslie Briones
The newly elected Briones, a lawyer by trade, was not part of the pre-election promises. She said, “I agree fundamentally that we need to deliver on what we say and need to be transparent in doing so.” However, she later added that rectifying such situations is important … on a ‘go forward’ basis.
Precinct 2 Commissioner Adrian Garcia
Garcia said, “In terms of Precinct 2, I’ll say that our projects have already been lit. So we’re already, you know, our funding is already committed. We got our project partnership commitments already out. And so the funding is already allocated and you know … I absolutely love leveraging equity. Otherwise I wouldn’t have the 30%, uh, the precinct to, uh, needs it because we’re down to the downstream side of five counties, not just Harris County. Um, and but I am open to seeing if there’s another way of, of getting there, because flooding is flooding regardless of its downstream side or wherever. But right now, of the allocation that I’ve got, my guys have already let that out the door. Yeah.”
Commissioner Garcia evidently confused the 2022 Road and Parks Bonds being discussed with the 2018 Flood Bond.
Precinct 1 Commissioner Rodney Ellis
Ellis said, “Yeah, we’ve already committed our funds as well. And I would say that I’m strongly committed to SVI.” SVI means the CDC’s race-based Social Vulnerability Index as a means of allocating dollars.
County Judge Hidalgo
Judge Lina Hidalgo argued that the $220 million promise was based on faulty math. She said, “We hadn’t thought about … there’s overhead costs of $110 million. And I think that just literally nobody thought about it.”
Hidalgo narrowly won a hotly contested re-election bid on the same ballot as the bond, based in part on her assertion that she represented ALL the people of the county.
Could You Really Spend $562 Million in 10 Months?
With all of the County’s purchasing procedures, could you really spend (or at least commit) $562 million in ten months? That’s the total of Ellis’ and Garcia’s split.
Democrats didn’t approve the SVI-based allocation formula until earlier this year. Then you would have to study projects, rank them, advertise the projects, review qualifications of potential bidders, bid the projects, pick a winner, acquire right of way, sell bonds, and mobilize the projects.
That can take years. For instance, the Northpark Drive expansion project in Kingwood began in 2015 and won’t finish for another 2 or 3 years. And two miles of Loop 494 renovations have taken 4.5 years.
And, perhaps more important, how do you just forget about $110 million in overhead costs? I couldn’t follow the Budget Director’s attempted explanation on that one! Forgetting about $110 million in the private sector would get most people fired.
Think about these issues as you go to the polls and vote on new bond projects next Tuesday.
In the end, Ramsey, the only Republican, couldn’t even get a second for his motion, so the court took no action.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 11/4/2023
2258 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/20231104-Screenshot-2023-11-04-at-3.50.10%E2%80%AFPM.jpg?fit=1100%2C639&ssl=16391100adminadmin2023-11-04 16:26:242023-11-05 07:18:54Four Dems Take No Action to Honor Pre-Election Bond Promise
Today, Comcast contractors occupied both sides of the street in front of my house. This blocked traffic, forcing motorists to drive onto my lawn and my neighbor’s lawn to get around them.
There were no traffic control signs. No warnings. No flag men. No supervisors. No one directing traffic. In fact, no one from the entire crew even seemed to be around … until I started taking pictures. Then I was swarmed.
Pictures of Incident Occurring around 11AM Today
Here’s what I found at the end of my driveway.
No room to park. No problem. New York chutzpah comes to Houston.
As we teach kids in driver’s ed, this is called “driving on the wrong side of the road.”
Police give tickets for it. It illustrates a cavalier attitude toward public safety. Not to mention contempt for the people Comcast hopes will someday buy its services.
But I guess Comcast doesn’t care. They had no supervisors onsite. If you don’t see it, you don’t have to report it.
The trailer contained pipe for the hydro-excavation truck in the background.Opposite angle shows a second hydro-excavation truck. Noise from these trucks reached 96 decibels.Exposure to that level for more than 30 minutes is considered dangerous and can cause hearing loss.When I asked the lady in this car not to drive on my lawn, she turned around. But other drivers just zoomed around me in frustration without stopping.
In fairness, when I told the Comcast contractors to move their trucks, they did. But it’s sad that I should have had to tell them. They had no name badges, no ID and offered no apology.
Had I not questioned the employees, I never would have known from the logos on their trucks that they were affiliated with Comcast.
City Still Says It has Received No Comcast Complaints
Ironically, while I was downloading the images from my Nikon, I got an email from Jessica Beemer, Dave Martin’s Chief of Staff, saying yet again that the City had received NO COMPLAINTS re: Comcast. I responded, “Let me be the first then.”
Our only warning that Team Comcast would be in the neighborhood was a door hanger delivered months ago. Those warnings are supposed to be within 72 hours.
Attention Comcast Shareholders
But in this case, Comcast was a loser, too. My neighbor was hosting a luncheon today for 25 people. Oops. Why alienate one potential customer when you can alienate 25 at once?
The neighbor and I haven’t been able to see if someone broke our irrigation systems yet because we’re still under a no watering ban due to the drought. But if they did break them, I think I’ll get angry.
Seriously though, what’s a sprinkler head and some ruts in your lawn compared to some of the horror stories I’ve heard. I talked to several people in Bear Branch with more than a quarter million dollars worth of sewer damage to their homes.
Another lady had her electricity cut. The resulting power surge knocked out a new heating/ac system, a computer, and a double oven. It also fried the circuits in her home.
The Comcast contractor said not to file a claim, that they would pay for it. A month later, they changed their minds and told her to file a claim with her own insurance company. Her insurance company asked, “Why did you wait a month?” Her insurance company also said it could take 1-2 years to work this out. Meanwhile, she’s paying CenterPoint $500 per month to run a temporary electric line to her house.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 11/3/2023
2257 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/2023/11/image011.jpg?fit=1100%2C733&ssl=17331100adminadmin2023-11-03 19:29:392023-11-03 19:45:45Comcast Contractors Force Traffic Across Residents’ Lawns
City Council Approves Northpark Expansion Agreement with Union Pacific
Last Wednesday, 11/1/23, Houston City Council approved an agreement with the Union Pacific railroad that will give contractors the right of entry so that private utilities can continue to relocate their facilities. Utility work must be completed before construction of two at-grade crossings over the UP tracks at Loop 494. Now that City Council has approved the agreement, the Mayor and UP need to approve it. That will likely happen before next week.
The at-grade crossings are a separate issue from the bridge that will be built over UP’s tracks. TxDoT requires ground-level turn lanes for motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians who want to turn onto and off of 494 from Northpark and vice versa.
Utility Work Already Making Way for Extra Turn Lanes
Contractors have already started rerouting utilities for the extra turn lanes on both sides of Northpark.
Change in Plans: 3-Day Road Closure
The at-grade crossings will require new traffic control gates and signals. Given the longer trains that UP is running these days, UP wants to coordinate the Northpark signals with those at crossings from Kingwood Drive all the way north into Porter. But the new one-piece system will stretch cross both east and westbound lanes of Northpark.
That will require shutting the entire road down for three-days at some point in the future. This represents a change in plans. Earlier, LHRA/Tirz 10 indicated that Northpark would also have at least one lane of traffic open in each direction.
However, the new system should improve safety for both the railroad and the public.
Sidewalk Extension West of 59
De Leon indicated that the signing of the agreement with the railroad should accelerate construction in this area.
Farther west, sidewalk construction has started on both sides of Northpark immediately west of US59.
Next Up
In the meantime, contractors are:
In other developments, the Redevelopment Authority website shows:
Excavation of Detention Basins at Northpark Not Yet Started
Excavation of two stormwater retention basins at Northpark has not yet begun. Contractors will not start excavation until they start to build the new lanes between 494 and Russell-Palmer Road. They will use the recycled dirt to fill in under the two new lanes. If they started excavation now, they would have to store the dirt somewhere and move it twice, or pay to have it hauled off and then purchase more dirt when it’s needed.
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:
LHRA/Tirz 10 Board Meeting
The Lake Houston Redevelopment Authority (Authority), and Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone Number Ten, Lake Houston Zone (Zone), will hold a joint board meeting on November 9, 2023, at 8:00 a.m., at the Kingwood Community Center, 4102 Rustic Woods Drive, Kingwood, Texas 77345, and is open to the public.
This board packet contains three change orders. One calls for a temporary stoplight at Russell-Palmer. The reason: contractors must remove the existing pole in the center so that they can continue installing culvert. The temporary light will serve the intersection until a new permanent one on an arm which extends over the roadway can be fabricated. Those reportedly take months.
Another change order increases the amount allocated for tree transplantation by $239,000.
Have questions or concerns? Voice them at the meeting.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 11/5/2023
2259 Days since Hurricane Harvey
Four Dems Take No Action to Honor Pre-Election Bond Promise
On Tuesday, 10/31/23, Harris County Commissioner’s court took no action on a request from Commissioner Tom Ramsey PE to abide by a pre-election promise to voters re: the 2022 Road and Parks Bonds. Ramsey could not even find a second for his motion on Agenda Item #418, which would guarantee the promised minimum of $220 million for Precinct 3.
During debate on the topic:
When they talked about allocations to poor areas, they did not mention the percentage of county-maintained parks or roads in their precincts. Nor did they take into account the percentage of their precincts inside incorporated areas, such as the City of Houston. Municipalities are already responsible for maintaining roads and parks within their boundaries.
Bait-and-Switch Tactics
BEFORE the 2022 election, commissioners voted to allocate a minimum $220 million from the 2022 Road and Parks Bonds to each precinct. The county then trumpeted that promise in:
Voters approved the bonds on the basis of that promise.
Then, in January 2023. shortly AFTER the election, the Democrats on commissioners court broke that promise. They voted to adopt a different formula that resulted in drastically less money than promised for Precinct 3, the only Republican-led precinct remaining in Harris County.
Precinct 3 received $187.5 million – $32.5 million less than promised.
Meanwhile, the Democrats voted to award themselves far more than Ramsey’s Precinct 3 which contains the highest percentage of unincorporated areas in the county.
Before Election
After Election
The FTC calls this “bait-and-switch” advertising. It’s illegal. In a commercial context, intentionally advertising a product or service with the intent to lure customers in, only to then provide a different, less desirable offering is considered a deceptive trade practice and fraudulent. The FTC often forces companies caught in bait-and-switch schemes to refund money.
Ironically, had Precinct 3 voters realized the bait and switch, they could have defeated the bonds.
Was There Intent to Break the Promise?
In my opinion, it would be easy to prove intent in this case. Before the election, Commissioners Ellis and Garcia talked for months about how they wanted to apply so-called “equity” and “social vulnerability” factors to the distribution of proposed bond funds…without identifying projects or nailing down a formula.
Then on August 2, 2022, they relented and consented to a $220 million per precinct minimum. After voters approved the bonds and Lina Hidalgo won re-election, the Democrats changed the deal back. We got exactly what Ellis and Garcia argued for all along – an SVI-based formula that radically skewed the distribution of bond funds.
So, in the end, after redistricting (which packed more roads and parks into Precinct 3 than any other precinct), and after an election in which voters were deceived…
Some would say Democrats planned that all along.
What Democrats Said During Debate on Ramsey Motion
Precinct 4 Commissioner Leslie Briones
The newly elected Briones, a lawyer by trade, was not part of the pre-election promises. She said, “I agree fundamentally that we need to deliver on what we say and need to be transparent in doing so.” However, she later added that rectifying such situations is important … on a ‘go forward’ basis.
Precinct 2 Commissioner Adrian Garcia
Garcia said, “In terms of Precinct 2, I’ll say that our projects have already been lit. So we’re already, you know, our funding is already committed. We got our project partnership commitments already out. And so the funding is already allocated and you know … I absolutely love leveraging equity. Otherwise I wouldn’t have the 30%, uh, the precinct to, uh, needs it because we’re down to the downstream side of five counties, not just Harris County. Um, and but I am open to seeing if there’s another way of, of getting there, because flooding is flooding regardless of its downstream side or wherever. But right now, of the allocation that I’ve got, my guys have already let that out the door. Yeah.”
Commissioner Garcia evidently confused the 2022 Road and Parks Bonds being discussed with the 2018 Flood Bond.
Precinct 1 Commissioner Rodney Ellis
Ellis said, “Yeah, we’ve already committed our funds as well. And I would say that I’m strongly committed to SVI.” SVI means the CDC’s race-based Social Vulnerability Index as a means of allocating dollars.
County Judge Hidalgo
Judge Lina Hidalgo argued that the $220 million promise was based on faulty math. She said, “We hadn’t thought about … there’s overhead costs of $110 million. And I think that just literally nobody thought about it.”
Hidalgo narrowly won a hotly contested re-election bid on the same ballot as the bond, based in part on her assertion that she represented ALL the people of the county.
Could You Really Spend $562 Million in 10 Months?
With all of the County’s purchasing procedures, could you really spend (or at least commit) $562 million in ten months? That’s the total of Ellis’ and Garcia’s split.
Democrats didn’t approve the SVI-based allocation formula until earlier this year. Then you would have to study projects, rank them, advertise the projects, review qualifications of potential bidders, bid the projects, pick a winner, acquire right of way, sell bonds, and mobilize the projects.
That can take years. For instance, the Northpark Drive expansion project in Kingwood began in 2015 and won’t finish for another 2 or 3 years. And two miles of Loop 494 renovations have taken 4.5 years.
And, perhaps more important, how do you just forget about $110 million in overhead costs? I couldn’t follow the Budget Director’s attempted explanation on that one! Forgetting about $110 million in the private sector would get most people fired.
Think about these issues as you go to the polls and vote on new bond projects next Tuesday.
To see the entire Commissioners Court debate on Item #418, start at 2:30:21 into the video of Departments Part II of IV. The discussion lasts 20 minutes.
In the end, Ramsey, the only Republican, couldn’t even get a second for his motion, so the court took no action.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 11/4/2023
2258 Days since Hurricane Harvey
Comcast Contractors Force Traffic Across Residents’ Lawns
Today, Comcast contractors occupied both sides of the street in front of my house. This blocked traffic, forcing motorists to drive onto my lawn and my neighbor’s lawn to get around them.
There were no traffic control signs. No warnings. No flag men. No supervisors. No one directing traffic. In fact, no one from the entire crew even seemed to be around … until I started taking pictures. Then I was swarmed.
Pictures of Incident Occurring around 11AM Today
Here’s what I found at the end of my driveway.
As we teach kids in driver’s ed, this is called “driving on the wrong side of the road.”
Police give tickets for it. It illustrates a cavalier attitude toward public safety. Not to mention contempt for the people Comcast hopes will someday buy its services.
But I guess Comcast doesn’t care. They had no supervisors onsite. If you don’t see it, you don’t have to report it.
In fairness, when I told the Comcast contractors to move their trucks, they did. But it’s sad that I should have had to tell them. They had no name badges, no ID and offered no apology.
Had I not questioned the employees, I never would have known from the logos on their trucks that they were affiliated with Comcast.
City Still Says It has Received No Comcast Complaints
Ironically, while I was downloading the images from my Nikon, I got an email from Jessica Beemer, Dave Martin’s Chief of Staff, saying yet again that the City had received NO COMPLAINTS re: Comcast. I responded, “Let me be the first then.”
Please follow these procedures if you see concerning behavior or experience damage from Comcast. The house you save could be your own. I reported this incident to multiple people in multiple places: the City, Comcast, Aspen, and Aspen’s parent Company.
No Warning Within 72-Hours
Our only warning that Team Comcast would be in the neighborhood was a door hanger delivered months ago. Those warnings are supposed to be within 72 hours.
Attention Comcast Shareholders
But in this case, Comcast was a loser, too. My neighbor was hosting a luncheon today for 25 people. Oops. Why alienate one potential customer when you can alienate 25 at once?
The neighbor and I haven’t been able to see if someone broke our irrigation systems yet because we’re still under a no watering ban due to the drought. But if they did break them, I think I’ll get angry.
Seriously though, what’s a sprinkler head and some ruts in your lawn compared to some of the horror stories I’ve heard. I talked to several people in Bear Branch with more than a quarter million dollars worth of sewer damage to their homes.
Another lady had her electricity cut. The resulting power surge knocked out a new heating/ac system, a computer, and a double oven. It also fried the circuits in her home.
The Comcast contractor said not to file a claim, that they would pay for it. A month later, they changed their minds and told her to file a claim with her own insurance company. Her insurance company asked, “Why did you wait a month?” Her insurance company also said it could take 1-2 years to work this out. Meanwhile, she’s paying CenterPoint $500 per month to run a temporary electric line to her house.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 11/3/2023
2257 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.