Social media has been abuzz this week about the Northpark Drive entry to Kingwood. As contractors removed trees from the north side of the road to make room for a detention pond, many people complained.
But it’s important to remember why we’re improving Northpark: to accommodate increased traffic and to create a reliable, all-weather evacuation route. In that regard, the Lake Houston Redevelopment Authority (LHRA) must balance three conflicting needs: flood mitigation, saving trees and cost. Let’s look at how each relates to the objectives.
Reliable, All-Weather Evacuation Route
During Harvey, Hamblen Road, Kingwood Drive and Northpark were all blocked by rising floodwaters. That forced many people to try to snake out of Kingwood through Porter…if they could get there. Many couldn’t.
For decades, we’ve also worried about the possibility of a train disaster that could block off Kingwood’s exits. The longer trains that Union Pacific runs now can block multiple exits simultaneously. The longest trains stretch for more than three miles. And if there were a derailment or toxic spill, it would be difficult getting people to safety.
Raising the elevation of Northpark between Bens Branch and the Kingwood Diversion Ditch eliminates the first problem. And building the bridge over the tracks at 494 eliminates the second.
Finally, widening the road will enable more vehicles to evacuate faster.
Flood-Mitigation Enhancements
All that extra concrete to expand the road, however, reduces rainwater infiltration and increases runoff. To keep the road from flooding, engineers calculated they needed 22 acre feet of stormwater detention capacity near US59.
The solution: build two permanent ponds, one each on the north and south sides of 59 where the groves of trees were. TxDoT already owned the land. So it was available at no cost.
Looking N toward Kroger Center. Clearing for N pond completed. Clearing for S pond (bottom right) begins next week.
Water will permanently fill the ponds, just like those at Kingwood Drive. The difference between the normal water surface elevation and the lip of the ponds will equal 22 acre feet. The size of the ponds will keep that gap at an aesthetically pleasing level.
Looking S. Note the protective fencing around the remaining trees. Additional trees may be stored temporarily in the foreground.
Said another way, the ponds will look like decorative enhancements but serve a vital purpose that few realize.
The outline you see in the photo below will match the perimeter of the pond.
No more trees will be cut for this pond. The area cleared represents the final outline of the pond.
The layout below shows how the ponds should look when completed.
According to Ralph De Leon, project manager, “Enough trees will remain to form a pleasing backdrop for the pond, screen the visually noisy area behind them, and create a good first impression for visitors.”
From 30 feet, you can barely see the shopping center behind the trees. From ground level, it will be completely screened.
It’s important to remember that when KSA revised the Kingwood entries after TxDoT widened 59, many people wanted ponds at Northpark. They complained that KSA was neglecting Northpark compared to Kingwood Drive.
Many trees are being transplanted. But that’s an expensive proposition; the trees have grown since LHRA first prepared estimates two years ago.
“We’ve already identified the trees that will be saved,” De Leon continued. “Some will move to their permanent location immediately. Others will be stored temporarily at staging locations until the road construction gets further along. Then they’ll be moved to their permanent positions.”
The landscape architects, contractor, and LHRA are evaluating each tree individually. Their objective is to save as many as possible. But dollars pose a constraint.
Cost Limitations
De Leon also says “The cost to move each tree is roughly $11,000. We can’t afford to move the truly huge trees. They cost up to $100,000 per tree. And we just don’t have a budget for those.”
Machines like these will move trees that range from 4″ to 17″ in diameter.Photo courtesy of Davey Tree Company.
To maximize aesthetics, the Redevelopment Authority will relocate a mix of trees, such as oaks and pines.
The trees that will move have already been inventoried and tagged.
Update on Water-Line and Utility Conflicts
In my last Northpark post, I pointed out two conflicts holding up construction of the median farther east – one with a water line to a new church near Russell-Palmer Road and a second with CenterPoint.
The City of Houston has agreed to let the Redevelopment Authority’s contractor design a workaround for the water line that interfered with the placement of box culverts. Contractors left a gap big enough for two sections of culvert and a coffer dam to keep dirt from collapsing into the hole.
Because the culvert is tongue-in-groove, contractors also left enough room for a collar. That will allow the two new sections to slide into place. It will also prevent leaks in any gap that remains.
Regarding the CenterPoint gas line running down the center of the ditch at different depths, CenterPoint decided to move the whole line out of the culvert to the south side of the road. Inbound drivers may notice long lengths of welded blue pipe stacked up between Russell-Palmer and Kings Mill. That’s what that is for.
Next Steps
Contractors will start removing trees for the south entry pond at 59 during the week of 9/24/23. Here is the latest revised schedule. Check back often for more updates as they happen.
In northeast Houston, where residents and activists frequently chant “historic disinvestment,” I accidentally stumbled onto a much more likely cause of the frequent flooding than systemic racism. It happened while browsing a GIS database with hundreds of layers containing a broad range of information. The instant I saw it, it unlocked a mystery. Tumblers suddenly aligned that unlocked the mystery. But let’s start this story with accusations that made no sense to me.
Accusations of Systemic Racism Not Supported by Spending Data
Three years ago, I joined the Harris County Community Flood Resilience Task Force. Ever since, I have heard a constant drumbeat of “historic disinvestment” by many members who believe they are victims of systemic racism by Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD).
They claim that they aren’t getting their fair share of flood-mitigation funds when, in fact, financial analysis reveals the opposite. They get the lion’s share.
LMI vs. Non-LMI flood-mitigation funding through Q3 2021.
Eight watersheds with a majority of low-to-moderate income residents have received almost two thirds of the funding going back to 2000. That’s out of a total of 23 watersheds. The money has flowed to damage – as it should.
Many people, however, don’t believe that. The loudest complaints have come from the Northeast Action Collective. They waged a battle to remove flood-control executives from office who were working tirelessly on their behalf.
Regardless, falsehoods repeated often enough eventually rose to the level of “accepted truth.” Even experts can be fooled. Jim Blackburn, the renowned professor of engineering at Rice, repeated the “historic disinvestment” claim without presenting any proof in a Houston Chronicle story last week.
He claimed residents of Halls and Greens Bayou watersheds weren’t getting their “fair share” of flood mitigation money. In fact, Greens Bayou ranks #2 in terms of money received. Only Brays Bayou has received more.
Spending by Watershed from 2000 through 2023Q1. Source: Harris County Flood Control District via FOIA request.
And tiny Halls Bayou ranks #2 in spending per capita. Together, the two bayous have received more than $390 million to date.
And they could soon receive another $466 million out of the $750 million that the GLO and HUD recently granted Harris County for flood mitigation. If HUD approves the recommended projects totaling $466 million, Halls and Greens will have received $856 million – far more than any other watershed. (Technically Halls is a sub-watershed of Greens, but HCFCD tracks spending as if it were separate.) This is hardly historic disinvestment.
More Likely Cause of Flooding Overlooked by Critics Crying Racism
Today, while learning a new (to me) geographic information system, I randomly clicked on a “wetland” layer. Boom! Guess where the largest concentration of wetlands in Harris County is. The northeast!
Note Lake Houston in the upper right, once home to untold acres of wetlands before the dam was built in the 1950s.
As a reminder of what these wetlands once looked like, see the photos of Emily Murphy who kayaks along the shores of Lake Houston.
Photo Courtesy of Emily Murphy
Regulations discourage building in wetlands for good reasons. Water collects there. The soil is less permeable. They are low, poorly drained, and unstable.
In addition, USGS points out the many positive benefits of wetlands. “Wetlands provide habitat for thousands of species of aquatic and terrestrial plants and animals. Wetlands are valuable for flood protection, water quality improvement, shoreline erosion control, natural products, recreation, and aesthetics.”
But because they’re cheap land and available, some less-than-scrupulous developers often try to build in them. I’m told by engineers I trust that that has always been the case and always will be.
Back in the 1950s, farms and ranches occupied most of the northeast Houston area. Here’s what it looked like then.
Note the San Jacinto River in the upper right in this 1953 pre-Lake Houston aerial image from Google Earth.
And here’s what the same area looks like today.
Note the presence of Lake Houston in the upper right in this 2022 image.
There are still big undeveloped areas in the image above. But many developments have also filled in large parts of the northeast that were once wetlands in the 1950s image.
Dangers of Building Over Wetlands
According to USGS, “Wetlands are transitional areas, sandwiched between permanently flooded deepwater environments and well-drained uplands, where the water table is usually at or near the surface or the land… The single feature that most wetlands share is soil or substrate that is at least periodically saturated with or covered by water.”
Four years ago, I posted about the disadvantages of building over wetlands. Pictures of the Woodridge Village property, then under development by Perry Homes, dramatized how unstable the soils were. Dangers of building over wetlands include shifting slabs, cracked driveways, mold, erosion, clogged storm drains, flooding and more.
Unsuspecting buyers of former wetlands can literally get sucked in by low prices. Seventy years later, the original builders and buyers are long gone. And pre-digital soil samples and drainage analyses (if they were ever done) have long since disappeared into the fog of history or a dusty warehouse.
Wetland-mitigation banks near a development should raise red flags to buyers today. There’s one on the northeast corner of Beltway 8 along, you guessed it, Greens Bayou. There are also two in Colony Ridge: the Houston-Conroe and Tarkington Bayou Mitigation Banks.
In conclusion…
Today’s residents in such areas pay for previous owners’ lack of knowledge – not because of historic disinvestment.
I’m not saying early owners didn’t exercise due diligence. We just didn’t know then what we know now.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/22/23
2215 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/2023/09/20230922-Screenshot-2023-09-22-at-12.29.43-PM.jpg?fit=1100%2C717&ssl=17171100adminadmin2023-09-22 17:58:482023-09-22 18:17:41GIS Data Reveals Likely Source of NE Houston Flooding Unrelated to Historic Disinvestment
Updated 3/7/26 – I wrote my first post about Colony Ridge in May 2020. Since then, I have written more than 80 about the controversial, Liberty County colonia that’s now 50% larger than Manhattan. Virtually all of them cover aspects of drainage, wetlands and flooding, as well as the development’s impact on people, the environment and surrounding areas.
The articles also include stories on surrounding developments by the same developer, but operating under different names. But you do not need those to support the 50% larger calculation above.
I’m listing all of my Colony-Ridge-related stories here to make them easier for readers to find.
Colonia Now Drawing National Attention
During the past 3+ years, the growth of Colony Ridge, an unincorporated development, has overwhelmed smaller incorporated areas around it such as Plum Grove and Cleveland.
As a result, fast-growing Colony Ridge has attracted national attention by numerous journalists, not all of it welcomed by the developer. My focus has been almost exclusively on flooding, drainage and water quality issues. Other journalists have focused on crime, cartels, drugs, illegal immigration, overwhelmed schools, predatory lending practices, evictions, the marketing practices of the developer and more.
Here is a list of the drainage related articles. I’ve also taken thousands of pictures – far too many to insert them all here. But I have included a few. See more when you follow the links below.
2020
Due to failure to follow drainage regulations, erosion is eating people’s yards.Note gap under new fence.
I took this shot shortly before Christmas. Poverty in Colony Ridge is heartbreaking. Note the food still on the table. Residents say multiple families often live in such a home.
Dirt often piled by the sides of ditches erodes back into the ditches and gets carried downstream. There, it can reduce conveyance and must be dredged to control flood risk.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/20/2023and updated on 3/7/26
2213 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/2023/09/20210101-RJR_4808.jpg?fit=1100%2C733&ssl=17331100adminadmin2023-09-20 11:56:412026-03-07 04:52:58History of Heartbreak: A Colony Ridge Chronicle
Northpark Entry Plan Balances Flood Mitigation, Saving Trees, Cost
Social media has been abuzz this week about the Northpark Drive entry to Kingwood. As contractors removed trees from the north side of the road to make room for a detention pond, many people complained.
But it’s important to remember why we’re improving Northpark: to accommodate increased traffic and to create a reliable, all-weather evacuation route. In that regard, the Lake Houston Redevelopment Authority (LHRA) must balance three conflicting needs: flood mitigation, saving trees and cost. Let’s look at how each relates to the objectives.
Reliable, All-Weather Evacuation Route
During Harvey, Hamblen Road, Kingwood Drive and Northpark were all blocked by rising floodwaters. That forced many people to try to snake out of Kingwood through Porter…if they could get there. Many couldn’t.
For decades, we’ve also worried about the possibility of a train disaster that could block off Kingwood’s exits. The longer trains that Union Pacific runs now can block multiple exits simultaneously. The longest trains stretch for more than three miles. And if there were a derailment or toxic spill, it would be difficult getting people to safety.
Raising the elevation of Northpark between Bens Branch and the Kingwood Diversion Ditch eliminates the first problem. And building the bridge over the tracks at 494 eliminates the second.
Finally, widening the road will enable more vehicles to evacuate faster.
Flood-Mitigation Enhancements
All that extra concrete to expand the road, however, reduces rainwater infiltration and increases runoff. To keep the road from flooding, engineers calculated they needed 22 acre feet of stormwater detention capacity near US59.
The solution: build two permanent ponds, one each on the north and south sides of 59 where the groves of trees were. TxDoT already owned the land. So it was available at no cost.
Water will permanently fill the ponds, just like those at Kingwood Drive. The difference between the normal water surface elevation and the lip of the ponds will equal 22 acre feet. The size of the ponds will keep that gap at an aesthetically pleasing level.
Said another way, the ponds will look like decorative enhancements but serve a vital purpose that few realize.
The outline you see in the photo below will match the perimeter of the pond.
The layout below shows how the ponds should look when completed.
Saving Trees
According to Ralph De Leon, project manager, “Enough trees will remain to form a pleasing backdrop for the pond, screen the visually noisy area behind them, and create a good first impression for visitors.”
It’s important to remember that when KSA revised the Kingwood entries after TxDoT widened 59, many people wanted ponds at Northpark. They complained that KSA was neglecting Northpark compared to Kingwood Drive.
Many trees are being transplanted. But that’s an expensive proposition; the trees have grown since LHRA first prepared estimates two years ago.
“We’ve already identified the trees that will be saved,” De Leon continued. “Some will move to their permanent location immediately. Others will be stored temporarily at staging locations until the road construction gets further along. Then they’ll be moved to their permanent positions.”
The landscape architects, contractor, and LHRA are evaluating each tree individually. Their objective is to save as many as possible. But dollars pose a constraint.
Cost Limitations
De Leon also says “The cost to move each tree is roughly $11,000. We can’t afford to move the truly huge trees. They cost up to $100,000 per tree. And we just don’t have a budget for those.”
To maximize aesthetics, the Redevelopment Authority will relocate a mix of trees, such as oaks and pines.
Update on Water-Line and Utility Conflicts
In my last Northpark post, I pointed out two conflicts holding up construction of the median farther east – one with a water line to a new church near Russell-Palmer Road and a second with CenterPoint.
The City of Houston has agreed to let the Redevelopment Authority’s contractor design a workaround for the water line that interfered with the placement of box culverts. Contractors left a gap big enough for two sections of culvert and a coffer dam to keep dirt from collapsing into the hole.
Because the culvert is tongue-in-groove, contractors also left enough room for a collar. That will allow the two new sections to slide into place. It will also prevent leaks in any gap that remains.
Regarding the CenterPoint gas line running down the center of the ditch at different depths, CenterPoint decided to move the whole line out of the culvert to the south side of the road. Inbound drivers may notice long lengths of welded blue pipe stacked up between Russell-Palmer and Kings Mill. That’s what that is for.
Next Steps
Contractors will start removing trees for the south entry pond at 59 during the week of 9/24/23. Here is the latest revised schedule. Check back often for more updates as they happen.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/23/23
2216 Days since Hurricane Harvey
GIS Data Reveals Likely Source of NE Houston Flooding Unrelated to Historic Disinvestment
In northeast Houston, where residents and activists frequently chant “historic disinvestment,” I accidentally stumbled onto a much more likely cause of the frequent flooding than systemic racism. It happened while browsing a GIS database with hundreds of layers containing a broad range of information. The instant I saw it, it unlocked a mystery. Tumblers suddenly aligned that unlocked the mystery. But let’s start this story with accusations that made no sense to me.
Accusations of Systemic Racism Not Supported by Spending Data
Three years ago, I joined the Harris County Community Flood Resilience Task Force. Ever since, I have heard a constant drumbeat of “historic disinvestment” by many members who believe they are victims of systemic racism by Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD).
They claim that they aren’t getting their fair share of flood-mitigation funds when, in fact, financial analysis reveals the opposite. They get the lion’s share.
Eight watersheds with a majority of low-to-moderate income residents have received almost two thirds of the funding going back to 2000. That’s out of a total of 23 watersheds. The money has flowed to damage – as it should.
Many people, however, don’t believe that. The loudest complaints have come from the Northeast Action Collective. They waged a battle to remove flood-control executives from office who were working tirelessly on their behalf.
Regardless, falsehoods repeated often enough eventually rose to the level of “accepted truth.” Even experts can be fooled. Jim Blackburn, the renowned professor of engineering at Rice, repeated the “historic disinvestment” claim without presenting any proof in a Houston Chronicle story last week.
He claimed residents of Halls and Greens Bayou watersheds weren’t getting their “fair share” of flood mitigation money. In fact, Greens Bayou ranks #2 in terms of money received. Only Brays Bayou has received more.
And tiny Halls Bayou ranks #2 in spending per capita. Together, the two bayous have received more than $390 million to date.
And they could soon receive another $466 million out of the $750 million that the GLO and HUD recently granted Harris County for flood mitigation. If HUD approves the recommended projects totaling $466 million, Halls and Greens will have received $856 million – far more than any other watershed. (Technically Halls is a sub-watershed of Greens, but HCFCD tracks spending as if it were separate.) This is hardly historic disinvestment.
More Likely Cause of Flooding Overlooked by Critics Crying Racism
Today, while learning a new (to me) geographic information system, I randomly clicked on a “wetland” layer. Boom! Guess where the largest concentration of wetlands in Harris County is. The northeast!
As a reminder of what these wetlands once looked like, see the photos of Emily Murphy who kayaks along the shores of Lake Houston.
Regulations discourage building in wetlands for good reasons. Water collects there. The soil is less permeable. They are low, poorly drained, and unstable.
In addition, USGS points out the many positive benefits of wetlands. “Wetlands provide habitat for thousands of species of aquatic and terrestrial plants and animals. Wetlands are valuable for flood protection, water quality improvement, shoreline erosion control, natural products, recreation, and aesthetics.”
But because they’re cheap land and available, some less-than-scrupulous developers often try to build in them. I’m told by engineers I trust that that has always been the case and always will be.
Back in the 1950s, farms and ranches occupied most of the northeast Houston area. Here’s what it looked like then.
And here’s what the same area looks like today.
There are still big undeveloped areas in the image above. But many developments have also filled in large parts of the northeast that were once wetlands in the 1950s image.
Dangers of Building Over Wetlands
According to USGS, “Wetlands are transitional areas, sandwiched between permanently flooded deepwater environments and well-drained uplands, where the water table is usually at or near the surface or the land… The single feature that most wetlands share is soil or substrate that is at least periodically saturated with or covered by water.”
Wetlands are almost always terrible places to build houses.
Four years ago, I posted about the disadvantages of building over wetlands. Pictures of the Woodridge Village property, then under development by Perry Homes, dramatized how unstable the soils were. Dangers of building over wetlands include shifting slabs, cracked driveways, mold, erosion, clogged storm drains, flooding and more.
Unsuspecting buyers of former wetlands can literally get sucked in by low prices. Seventy years later, the original builders and buyers are long gone. And pre-digital soil samples and drainage analyses (if they were ever done) have long since disappeared into the fog of history or a dusty warehouse.
Wetland-mitigation banks near a development should raise red flags to buyers today. There’s one on the northeast corner of Beltway 8 along, you guessed it, Greens Bayou. There are also two in Colony Ridge: the Houston-Conroe and Tarkington Bayou Mitigation Banks.
In conclusion…
I’m not saying early owners didn’t exercise due diligence. We just didn’t know then what we know now.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/22/23
2215 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.
History of Heartbreak: A Colony Ridge Chronicle
Updated 3/7/26 – I wrote my first post about Colony Ridge in May 2020. Since then, I have written more than 80 about the controversial, Liberty County colonia that’s now 50% larger than Manhattan. Virtually all of them cover aspects of drainage, wetlands and flooding, as well as the development’s impact on people, the environment and surrounding areas.
The articles also include stories on surrounding developments by the same developer, but operating under different names. But you do not need those to support the 50% larger calculation above.
I’m listing all of my Colony-Ridge-related stories here to make them easier for readers to find.
Colonia Now Drawing National Attention
During the past 3+ years, the growth of Colony Ridge, an unincorporated development, has overwhelmed smaller incorporated areas around it such as Plum Grove and Cleveland.
As a result, fast-growing Colony Ridge has attracted national attention by numerous journalists, not all of it welcomed by the developer. My focus has been almost exclusively on flooding, drainage and water quality issues. Other journalists have focused on crime, cartels, drugs, illegal immigration, overwhelmed schools, predatory lending practices, evictions, the marketing practices of the developer and more.
Here is a list of the drainage related articles. I’ve also taken thousands of pictures – far too many to insert them all here. But I have included a few. See more when you follow the links below.
2020
May 3, 2020 Development Watchlist: Perry, Romerica, Colony Ridge and More
June 14, 2020 Rapid Runoff from World’s Largest Trailer Park Wipes Out Plum Grove Road in Liberty County and More
June 15, 2020 World’s Largest Trailer Park Has Only a Handful of Fire Hydrants
June 19, 2020 “The Developers Are Coming! The Developers Are Coming!”
June 23, 2020 48,000 Gallons of Fecal Contamination Found in Liberty County’s Colony Ridge Ditches, Streams; Problems Persist
June 24, 2020 Hidden Cost of Fecal Contamination: Removing It
October 14, 2020 TCEQ Fines Quadvest for 48,000 Gallon Sewage Spill in Colony Ridge
October 15, 2020 Plum Grove Sues Colony Ridge Developer Over Floodwater, Sewage Leaks
October 16, 2020 TCEQ Blasts Colony Ridge, Says Construction Practices Could Adversely Affect Human Health
October 22, 2020 How Loss of Wetlands Led to War
October 25, 2020 New Drone Shots Reveal Need for Better Flood Control in Liberty County
November 12, 2020 Flood Notes: Highlights of Current Happenings
November 20, 2020 Friday Flood Digest
November 27, 2020 Colony Ridge Declares War on Investigative Journalist, Too
December 1, 2020 Flood of Foreclosures: Hundreds to Lose Colony Ridge Homes Tomorrow
December 5, 2020 Colony Ridge Ditches Violate Liberty County Drainage Standards
December 7, 2020 Merry Christmas from Colony Ridge
December 10, 2020 Rivers of Mud: Largest Development in Liberty County Openly Flaunts Drainage Regulations
December 12, 2020 Rivers of Mud, Part Dos: Wayne Dolcefino Uncovers More Liberty County Dirt
December 14, 2020 Liberty County Strategic Plan … Dead On Arrival
December 16, 2020 Liberty County Hazard Mitigation Plan Contains No Mention of Largest, Most Vulnerable Community in County
December 21, 2020 “One of the Best Land Developers in Liberty County”
December 23, 2020 Preserve What Makes Lake Houston Area Unique
December 26, 2020 Colony Ridge Drainage Reports Misrepresent Soil Types, Underestimate Runoff; Many Reports Missing
December 29, 2020 When Developers Claim No Detention Ponds are Necessary…
2021
January 2, 2021 Guess Which Way to Colony Ridge
January 3, 2021 Flooding of the Fifth Kind: By Government Neglect
January 4, 2021 Liberty County Launches Major Investigation into Colony Ridge Irregularities
January 10, 2021 New Wetland Mitigation Bank Proposed for Areas Upstream from Lake Houston
January 11, 2021 Thousands of Acres in East Fork, Luce Bayou Watersheds to be Developed as Part of Kingland
January 17, 2021 Rosemay Fain’s Harvey and Imelda Stories
February 1, 2021 Colony Ridge Developer Sues Critics For More Than Million Dollars Based on Questionable Allegations
March 6, 2021 Photo Essay: How “Backslope Interceptors” Reduce Erosion, Ditch Maintenance, Flood Risk
April 23, 2021 Silence: Liberty County, Colony Ridge, Landplan Engineering Remain Mute on Missing Documents
April 25, 2021 Officials Slapped With Criminal Complaints for Failure to Produce Records in Colony Ridge Investigation
May 3, 2021 Rampaging East Fork Floodwaters Cut New Path Through Plum Grove Sand Mine
May 3, 2021 Floodwaters Converging Downstream on Lake Houston
May 4, 2021 Family Trapped For Three Days As Floodwaters Ripped Through Sand Mine, Then Under Their Home
May 27, 2021 State Highway 99 Construction Pushes South, Opening Vast Areas to New Development
June 5, 2021 Eight TCEQ Investigations Reprimand Colony Ridge Construction Practices
June 9, 2021 Follow-ups: Whatever became of…?
June 10, 2021 Colony Ridge Expanding North Into More Wetlands
June 20, 2021 What’s Going On in Your Neighborhood?
July 8, 2021 To Reduce Future Flooding, We Need to Focus on BOTH Mitigation AND Root Causes
July 15, 2021 FM1485: What’s Wrong With This Picture?
July 15, 2021 Town Fighting for Survival Stonewalled By County, State Officials at Every Turn
September 3, 2021 TCEQ Again Cites Colony Ridge for Lack of Pollution Controls
November 16, 2021 Sowing the Seeds of the Next Big Flood
November 29, 2021 How to Find and Verify Flood-Related Information: Part II
December 4, 2021 Grand Parkway Extension is Getting There
December 6, 2021 “…Care Will Be Taken to Protect All Vegetation…”
December 31, 2021 Top Stories of 2021 in Review
2022
January 20, 2022 What Does “No Adverse Impact” Really Mean in Drainage Studies?
February 16, 2022 Texas Land-Use Trends: Major Changes Coming
February 23, 2022 How Soon We Forget!
May 17, 2022 Grand Parkway Extension Opens Tomorrow
July 23, 2022 Controversial Colony Ridge Development Doubles in Size
July 29, 2022 Kingland West Clearing 1,123 Acres at FM1010 and Grand Parkway, Using Old Flood Maps
2023
May 31, 2023, How a Controversial, Little Understood Definition Affects Flooding
August 4, 2023 Colony Ridge Buying Up Floodplain Land in Huffman
August 13, 2023 Six Years After Harvey, Bridge Still Blown Out at Colony Ridge
August 16, 2023 Colony Ridge Stormwater Detention Basins, Ditches Fail to Meet Liberty County Standards
August 29, 2023 Harvey Flood’s Sixth Anniversary Passes Virtually Unnoticed
August 30, 2023 As Wildfire Weather Sets In, Fastest Growing Area in Liberty County Fails to Meet Fire-Code Requirements
September 9, 2023 Damn the Downstream Consequences, Colony Ridge Expansion Continues Relentlessly
September 17, 2023 Colony Ridge Now 50 Percent Bigger than Manhattan
October 1, 2023 Entire Texas Republican Congressional Delegation Urges Abbott, Paxton to Investigate Colony Ridge
October 5, 2023 New York Post Publishes Gripping Exposé on Colony Ridge
October 7, 2023 Colony Ridge Karma: Area Floods While Developer Hosts Lawmakers
October 8, 2023 Karma Strikes Again: Colony Ridge Drainage Systems Severely Eroding
October 9, 2023 Recommendations for Special Session of Texas Legislature on Colony Ridge
October 11, 2023 Harris County Commissioners Discuss Colony Ridge but Take No Position Yet
October 19, 2023 Paxton Letter Kicks Colony Ridge Concerns Up a Notch or Ten
October 20, 2023 Search for Sediment Solutions Should Lead Straight to Colony Ridge
December 12, 2023 DOJ, CFPB Sue Colony Ridge for Bait-and-Switch, Predatory Lending and More
2024
January 5, 2024 Harris County to Reconsider Colony Ridge Impacts
January 9, 2024 At Least Seven Investigations Launched into Colony Ridge
March 15, 2024 Paxton Launches Massive, Multi-Count Lawsuit Against Colony Ridge
March 31, 2024 Wildly Divergent Colony Ridge Population Estimates Pose Planning Problems
2025
February 10, 2025 TLDA Email Details Need to Exploit Immigrants
February 12, 2025 Colony Ridge Foreclosure Notices Appear to Routinely Ignore Texas Law
November 20, 2025 Conflict-of-Interest Ridden Colony Ridge Caught Operating without Permit, Polluting
December 24, 2025, Colony Ridge Attempting to Settle Lawsuits, Avoid Trial
2026
February 10, 2026 Colony Ridge Settles Lawsuit with U.S., State of Texas
March 5, 2026 Colony Ridge Victims Protest Settlement That Leaves Them Out
Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/20/2023 and updated on 3/7/26
2213 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.