On Dec. 2, I printed a story about an upcoming virtual community meeting on Taylor Gully. At the time, Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD) had not yet released details yet on how to attend. They have now. See their press release below. Please share it with family, friends and neighbors if you live anywhere along Taylor Gully. That includes parts of Sherwood Trails, all of Elm Grove, all of North Kingwood Forest, parts of Mills Branch, Woodstream Forest, and even parts of Porter in Montgomery County. Yes, plans will affect Porter also.
Virtual Community Engagement Meeting for the Taylor Gully Flood Risk Reduction Project
HCFCD PROJECT G103-80-03.1-E001
BOND PROJECT F-14
The Harris County Flood Control District will hold a community engagement meeting for the Taylor Gully Flood Risk Reduction Project. The purpose of this meeting is to inform residents about the project’s status, share project information and gather important community input on this effort.
The Taylor Gully Flood Risk Reduction Project focuses on improvements to Taylor Gully and the mitigation required to build the project. This project will be partly funded through the 2018 Bond Program, which was approved by Harris County voters on August 25, 2018. Community engagement is a foundational component of the Bond Program, and we invite your participation and input as projects are implemented.
Register Now
The virtual community engagement meeting will be held on:
Or by phone* at 855-925-2801 with Meeting Code: 3364
The meeting will begin with a brief presentation to share project updates, followed by a moderated Q&A session with Flood Control District team members. Residents will be able to submit questions, comments and input before, during and after the meeting, which will be considered during project development. Any comments not addressed during the Q&A session will receive a response at the conclusion of the public comment period.
Even if you are unable to attend the live meeting, residents are encouraged to register for the meeting to receive future project updates. A recorded version of the meeting will be available on the Flood Control District’s website and YouTube channel after the event. Meeting accommodations can be made for those with disabilities. If needed, please contact 346-286-4040 at least three business days prior to the meeting. For questions, please contact the Flood Control District at 346-286-4000, or fill out the comment form online at hcfcd.org/taylor.
Esta reunión de participación comunitaria se llevará a cabo en inglés; sin embargo, el Flood Control District proporcionará intérpretes de idiomas y materiales traducidos a pedido. En caso de necesidad, comuníquese al 346-286-4040 al menos tres días hábiles antes de la reunión.
*If you attend by phone only, maps and other exhibits will not be visible. However, information will be available after the meeting on the project webpage at hcfcd.org/taylor.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 12/8/2022based on a press release from HCFCD
1927 Days since Hurricane Harvey and 1176 since Imelda
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/20221206-Taylor-Gully.jpg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=112001200adminadmin2022-12-08 07:25:162022-12-08 07:36:21Save the Date: HCFCD Releases Details of Taylor Gully Meeting
During Harvey, 16,000 homes and 3,300 businesses in the Lake Houston Area flooded. Local leaders identified the disparity in release capacities between the Lake Conroe and Lake Houston Dams as one of the contributing factors to the severity of flooding. The floodgates on Lake Conroe can release water 15 times faster than the gates on Lake Houston. So, adding more floodgates to Lake Houston became one of the area’s primary mitigation goals.
New gates would let the City rapidly lower the water level of Lake Houston in advance of a storm to prevent or reduce upstream flooding.
Lake Houston (l) and Lake Conroe gates (r). Conroe release capacity is 15X greater.
While the City of Houston initially obtained a $50 million grant from FEMA to add gates, two problems became apparent. The project cost more than anticipated and the benefits delivered did not justify the cost – at least the way FEMA was initially calculating them. However, a huge hurdle has been cleared.
The City of Houston has finally secured a favorable ruling from FEMA on a benefit-to-cost ratio, according to a press release from Mayor Pro Tem Dave Martin’s office on 12/7/2022. The key was the FEMA administrator’s decision to allow the inclusion of social benefits, for instance, avoidance of disruptions to business, commerce, schools and the area’s tax base. Those brought the BCR up to 2.88, according to Martin.
Martin, Mayor Sylvester Turner and Chief Recovery Officer Stephen Costello met with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator to discuss the inequities of the Federal BCR formula associated with incorporation of social benefits.
As a result, Martin and Turner have announced that a large hurdle has been removed. The revised draft BCR for the Lake Houston Spillway Dam Improvement Project has been determined to be “federally compliant and is very favorable.”
The change affected the Lake Houston Gates and several other Houston stormwater projects including the massive, new Inwood Forest detention basin.
New BCR Based on Eleven Gates
Atkins, a City of Houston consultant, revised the BCR for an eleven-gate structure. The eleven gates will be built into the existing embankment on the east side of the Lake Houston Spillway Dam.
New gates would be added to the earthen portion of dam in foreground, not spillway at far end as originally planned.
Building the new gate structure in the east embankment removes the high construction risk of modifying the existing gate structure. It also allows continued use of the existing gate structure during construction, and eliminates the need for a coffer dam in the lake, according to Martin.
The new gates would likely align with the original course of the San Jacinto River, the channel on the left.
Cost Quadruples: Additional Funding Sources Now Necessary
The new preliminary cost estimate of $200 million exceeds the City’s original FEMA grant of $48 million.
Martin, Costello, and State Representative Dan Huberty have already met with the Texas House of Representatives Speaker Dade Phelan’s Director of Finance regarding additional funding. They have positioned the project as a “life and safety initiative” that affects the survival of the community and economy of the Lake Houston Area.
Martin has bi-partisan support already lined up for financing. Key partners this legislative session include:
Congressman Dan Crenshaw
State Senator Brandon Creighton
State Senator John Whitmire (who has already announced his intention to run for Houston mayor after Turner retires)
Speaker of the Texas House Dade Phelan
State Representative & Chair of Appropriations Dr. Greg Bonnen
State Representatives Charles Cunningham and Armando Walle.
Martin plans to work with Federal and State partners to ensure the cost of the Lake Houston Spillway Dam Project is fully funded before he leaves office in December 2023.
Said Martin, “Today a significant obstacle has been surpassed as this project moves forward through the financial process.” The new BCR should let federal, state, and local partners work toward fortifying the Lake Houston Area against future storms.
It would be unfair to call this a “start over.” A huge amount of engineering and analysis has gone into the project. However, challenges turned out to be greater than anyone anticipated after Harvey.
The original timetable from 12/16/19 showed the project completed by now. The fact that it is still alive is a tribute to the persistence of Martin, Turner, Costello and others.
Let’s look forward to the benefits, not backwards to the problems. People are working in the right direction. A huge obstacle has been eliminated. We just need to keep tackling new obstacles as they occur. Next step: the House and Senate.
I will post construction plans for the 11 gates and the Atkins’ BCR analysis as soon as the City supplies them; they promised they would.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 12/7/22
1926 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/20220722-RJR_0770-2.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=18001200adminadmin2022-12-07 10:55:302022-12-07 16:56:23City Gets Favorable Ruling on BCR for Lake Houston Gates Project
In the last 1924 days, I’ve researched, written, photographed and posted more than 2,093 stories about flooding and flood mitigation in the Houston region.
Recurring Themes Gradually Became Apparent
As I dug deeper and deeper into the causes of flooding, certain themes became apparent. They include, but are not limited to:
The complexity of coordinating federal, state, county and local governments to address watershed-level issues.
Fragmented and often conflicting priorities among local governments within the same watersheds.
Political processes that sometimes seem to favor growth over protection of existing residents.
Insufficiently mitigated upstream development that often offsets downstream mitigation investments.
Environmental destruction.
The tug-of-war for limited mitigation funding.
Disaster relief dollars that still can’t seem to find their intended targets.
The back-seat role that preservation and conservation often play.
People building in risky places using assumptions that later prove to be invalid.
I have hundreds of examples of each of these and more. Frankly, the examples are becoming too redundant. And their sheer volume deters new readers from getting the big picture.
Forest-For-The-Trees Dilemma Prompts Changes
It’s a classic forest-for-the-trees dilemma. There’s so much detail, it’s often hard to see the patterns. Therefore, changes are coming to ReduceFlooding.com.
Effective immediately, I’m going to start weaving those details into a book about flooding in Harris County. It will be a more manageable size than the website which now contains more than 1.5 million words and 8,785 images.
To make time for writing the book, I plan to cut back on daily website posts. Posts will become weekly or whenever major news breaks. So if you don’t see me everyday, please don’t think I’ve abandoned the cause.
I also hope to reorganize the website to make existing content support the themes above.
Sally Geis rescue during Harvey. North of Kingwood Drive about 8 feet above West Lake Houston Parkway.
Not Possible Without Your Support
My goal is to make all these changes before the start of next hurricane season. Thanks for all of your support during the last five years. Without your input, encouragement, and generous sharing of your experiences, none of this would have been possible. Together, we are documenting the many dimensions of flooding that may, just may, help reduce flooding in the future. Here and elsewhere.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 12/5/2022
1924 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/20170829-IMG_9819.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=19001200adminadmin2022-12-05 14:49:122022-12-05 21:58:40Changes Coming to ReduceFlooding.Com
Save the Date: HCFCD Releases Details of Taylor Gully Meeting
On Dec. 2, I printed a story about an upcoming virtual community meeting on Taylor Gully. At the time, Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD) had not yet released details yet on how to attend. They have now. See their press release below. Please share it with family, friends and neighbors if you live anywhere along Taylor Gully. That includes parts of Sherwood Trails, all of Elm Grove, all of North Kingwood Forest, parts of Mills Branch, Woodstream Forest, and even parts of Porter in Montgomery County. Yes, plans will affect Porter also.
Map of Project
Virtual Community Engagement Meeting for the
Taylor Gully Flood Risk Reduction Project
HCFCD PROJECT G103-80-03.1-E001
BOND PROJECT F-14
The Harris County Flood Control District will hold a community engagement meeting for the Taylor Gully Flood Risk Reduction Project. The purpose of this meeting is to inform residents about the project’s status, share project information and gather important community input on this effort.
The Taylor Gully Flood Risk Reduction Project focuses on improvements to Taylor Gully and the mitigation required to build the project. This project will be partly funded through the 2018 Bond Program, which was approved by Harris County voters on August 25, 2018. Community engagement is a foundational component of the Bond Program, and we invite your participation and input as projects are implemented.
Register Now
The virtual community engagement meeting will be held on:
December 14, 2022, 6:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
Join online at: PublicInput.com/taylor
Or by phone* at 855-925-2801 with Meeting Code: 3364
The meeting will begin with a brief presentation to share project updates, followed by a moderated Q&A session with Flood Control District team members. Residents will be able to submit questions, comments and input before, during and after the meeting, which will be considered during project development. Any comments not addressed during the Q&A session will receive a response at the conclusion of the public comment period.
Even if you are unable to attend the live meeting, residents are encouraged to register for the meeting to receive future project updates. A recorded version of the meeting will be available on the Flood Control District’s website and YouTube channel after the event. Meeting accommodations can be made for those with disabilities. If needed, please contact 346-286-4040 at least three business days prior to the meeting. For questions, please contact the Flood Control District at 346-286-4000, or fill out the comment form online at hcfcd.org/taylor.
Esta reunión de participación comunitaria se llevará a cabo en inglés; sin embargo, el Flood Control District proporcionará intérpretes de idiomas y materiales traducidos a pedido. En caso de necesidad, comuníquese al 346-286-4040 al menos tres días hábiles antes de la reunión.
*If you attend by phone only, maps and other exhibits will not be visible. However, information will be available after the meeting on the project webpage at hcfcd.org/taylor.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 12/8/2022 based on a press release from HCFCD
1927 Days since Hurricane Harvey and 1176 since Imelda
City Gets Favorable Ruling on BCR for Lake Houston Gates Project
During Harvey, 16,000 homes and 3,300 businesses in the Lake Houston Area flooded. Local leaders identified the disparity in release capacities between the Lake Conroe and Lake Houston Dams as one of the contributing factors to the severity of flooding. The floodgates on Lake Conroe can release water 15 times faster than the gates on Lake Houston. So, adding more floodgates to Lake Houston became one of the area’s primary mitigation goals.
While the City of Houston initially obtained a $50 million grant from FEMA to add gates, two problems became apparent. The project cost more than anticipated and the benefits delivered did not justify the cost – at least the way FEMA was initially calculating them. However, a huge hurdle has been cleared.
The City of Houston has finally secured a favorable ruling from FEMA on a benefit-to-cost ratio, according to a press release from Mayor Pro Tem Dave Martin’s office on 12/7/2022. The key was the FEMA administrator’s decision to allow the inclusion of social benefits, for instance, avoidance of disruptions to business, commerce, schools and the area’s tax base. Those brought the BCR up to 2.88, according to Martin.
Hurdle Removed: Project Now Federally Compliant
Earlier this summer, Martin announced challenges related to the Lake Houston Spillway Dam Improvement Project. The City needed to secure a benefit to cost ratio (BCR) between .75 and 1 and had examined multiple alternatives to find a favorable balance between costs and benefits.
Martin, Mayor Sylvester Turner and Chief Recovery Officer Stephen Costello met with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator to discuss the inequities of the Federal BCR formula associated with incorporation of social benefits.
As a result, Martin and Turner have announced that a large hurdle has been removed. The revised draft BCR for the Lake Houston Spillway Dam Improvement Project has been determined to be “federally compliant and is very favorable.”
The change affected the Lake Houston Gates and several other Houston stormwater projects including the massive, new Inwood Forest detention basin.
New BCR Based on Eleven Gates
Atkins, a City of Houston consultant, revised the BCR for an eleven-gate structure. The eleven gates will be built into the existing embankment on the east side of the Lake Houston Spillway Dam.
Building the new gate structure in the east embankment removes the high construction risk of modifying the existing gate structure. It also allows continued use of the existing gate structure during construction, and eliminates the need for a coffer dam in the lake, according to Martin.
Cost Quadruples: Additional Funding Sources Now Necessary
The new preliminary cost estimate of $200 million exceeds the City’s original FEMA grant of $48 million.
Martin, Costello, and State Representative Dan Huberty have already met with the Texas House of Representatives Speaker Dade Phelan’s Director of Finance regarding additional funding. They have positioned the project as a “life and safety initiative” that affects the survival of the community and economy of the Lake Houston Area.
Martin has bi-partisan support already lined up for financing. Key partners this legislative session include:
Martin plans to work with Federal and State partners to ensure the cost of the Lake Houston Spillway Dam Project is fully funded before he leaves office in December 2023.
Said Martin, “Today a significant obstacle has been surpassed as this project moves forward through the financial process.” The new BCR should let federal, state, and local partners work toward fortifying the Lake Houston Area against future storms.
It would be unfair to call this a “start over.” A huge amount of engineering and analysis has gone into the project. However, challenges turned out to be greater than anyone anticipated after Harvey.
The original timetable from 12/16/19 showed the project completed by now. The fact that it is still alive is a tribute to the persistence of Martin, Turner, Costello and others.
Let’s look forward to the benefits, not backwards to the problems. People are working in the right direction. A huge obstacle has been eliminated. We just need to keep tackling new obstacles as they occur. Next step: the House and Senate.
I will post construction plans for the 11 gates and the Atkins’ BCR analysis as soon as the City supplies them; they promised they would.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 12/7/22
1926 Days since Hurricane Harvey
Changes Coming to ReduceFlooding.Com
In the last 1924 days, I’ve researched, written, photographed and posted more than 2,093 stories about flooding and flood mitigation in the Houston region.
Recurring Themes Gradually Became Apparent
As I dug deeper and deeper into the causes of flooding, certain themes became apparent. They include, but are not limited to:
I have hundreds of examples of each of these and more. Frankly, the examples are becoming too redundant. And their sheer volume deters new readers from getting the big picture.
Forest-For-The-Trees Dilemma Prompts Changes
It’s a classic forest-for-the-trees dilemma. There’s so much detail, it’s often hard to see the patterns. Therefore, changes are coming to ReduceFlooding.com.
Effective immediately, I’m going to start weaving those details into a book about flooding in Harris County. It will be a more manageable size than the website which now contains more than 1.5 million words and 8,785 images.
To make time for writing the book, I plan to cut back on daily website posts. Posts will become weekly or whenever major news breaks. So if you don’t see me everyday, please don’t think I’ve abandoned the cause.
I also hope to reorganize the website to make existing content support the themes above.
Not Possible Without Your Support
My goal is to make all these changes before the start of next hurricane season. Thanks for all of your support during the last five years. Without your input, encouragement, and generous sharing of your experiences, none of this would have been possible. Together, we are documenting the many dimensions of flooding that may, just may, help reduce flooding in the future. Here and elsewhere.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 12/5/2022
1924 Days since Hurricane Harvey