It was about a year ago that New Caney ISD cleared land for its third high school between Sorters-McClellan Road and US 59 south of Kingwood Drive. Today, the site is a beehive of activity. Construction crews have erected walls that will eventually define the shape of High School #3. I took the pictured below on 5/26/2021.
New Caney ISD Campus #3 on Sorters McClellan Road south of Kingwood Drive.
The New Caney ISD says that as of May 2021, “The site work at Comprehensive High School #3 includes storm drainage which is 95 percent complete. The sanitary sewer is 85 percent complete. The electrical is 98 percent complete and the water is 90 percent complete. The concrete slab on the building is 85 percent complete. The form and pour tilt-up panels are 95 percent complete. The erect panels are 80 percent complete and the structural steel is five percent complete.”
New Caney ISD’s enrollment grew 31 percent between 2011 and 2016. That ranked NCISD first in the greater Houston area and fourth in the state for percentage enrollment growth. Eventually, the high school will hold 2,250 students. However, the school will open with only 1,350 in August 2022.
FEMA’s National Flood Hazard Layer Viewer shows that the extent of the floodplain in this area roughly parallels Sorter’s McClellan Road. The high school property falls roughly within the red circle.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 5/29/2021
1369 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/20210526-RJR_8088.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=18001200adminadmin2021-05-29 15:38:242021-05-29 15:43:16New Caney High School #3 Taking Shape
This week, the Railroad Commission of Texas finished plugging three abandoned oil wells in the Forest Cove townhome complex near Marina and Timberline Drives. The Commission cited the owner for leaks in the past. However, the owner, Noxxe Oil & Gas, went bankrupt in 2020. That put the responsibility for remediation on the Railroad Commission. The Commission began plugging earlier this month and finished in this location on Wednesday afternoon. See photos below.
About Plugging
The National Petroleum Council says that a well is plugged by setting mechanical or cement plugs in the wellbore at specific intervals to prevent fluid flow. The plugging process usually requires a workover rig and cement pumped into the wellbore. The plugging process can take two days to a week, depending on the number of plugs to be set in the well.
Oil and gas can not only seep up through the well’s pipe, but also through the annulus. The annulus is the area between the outside of the pipe and the surrounding earth. Therefore, plugging often involves perforating pipe and forcing cement into the annulus, too.
First of three wells being plugged. Photographed on Sunday May 9, 2021. The larger townhome complex in the background was torn down on Wednesday, May 26, 2021.Pump jack from second well ready to haul away. Photographed on May 26, 2021. Note West Fork bridge in background.Railroad Commission contractors plugging third of three wells near townhomes on Wednesday, 5/26/2021 at 8am.
Photo taken at noon on May 26, 2021. Contractors packing up. Note location of previously demolished townhomes to left of rig and top center. Water in foreground is the San Jacinto West Fork.
Plans For Rest of Wells Remain Unclear
The Railroad Commission has not returned multiple calls or emails regarding its plans for other Noxxe wells near the Forest Cove little league fields. Earlier this year, the Commission said that someone might buy those wells and try to produce oil from them, using the tanks already on the property.
Approximately 10 wells remain on the portion of the old Noxxe lease between the Forest Cove Little League fields and the San Jacinto West Fork at the top of the frame.Photo taken on 5/26/21 around noon.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 5/28/2021
1368 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/2021/05/20210509-DJI_0778.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=19001200adminadmin2021-05-28 14:14:482021-05-28 14:23:24Railroad Commission Plugs Three Abandoned Wells Near Forest Cove Townhomes
5/26/21 – Tonight, Texas General Land Office (GLO) announced that it would support a direct allocation to Harris County from HUD Mitigation funds for $750 million.
On May 21, the GLO announced winners of US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) grants totaling more than a billion dollars for Hurricane Harvey flood mitigation. Only problem: little went to Harris County Flood Control or the City of Houston despite the fact that we experienced half of the statewide damage in Harvey. Only $90.4 million went to small cities in Harris County. (See below)
Harvey at Peak Intensity
Ever since GLO’s announcement, Harris County Commissioners have been scrambling, trying to figure out how to fill a funding shortfall. That’s because they were counting on attracting matching grants that didn’t materialize. Without the grants, some of the projects could be delayed – especially those in low-to-moderate income neighborhoods, which HUD targets – until alternative sources of funding can be identified.
Yesterday’s Harris County Commissioner’s Court Meeting spent more than four hours on the dilemma. Commissioners arranged for angry residents to call in and each testify for 3 minutes. At the end of their allotted time, they were thanked and asked to call the Texas General Land Office (GLO).
The phones must have rung off the hook at the GLO today, because by the end of the day, GLO Commissioner George P. Bush punted the decision for the next round of funding to HUD.
Below is the full text of a GLO press release sent out at 6:28 PM this evening.
GLO Press Release
“Today, Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush announced his request to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for Harris County to receive a direct allocation of $750 million for mitigation efforts.”
“I have heard the overwhelming concerns of Harris County regarding the mitigation funding competition,” said Commissioner Bush. “The federal government’s red tape requirements and complex regulations are a hallmark of President Biden’s administration. I am no stranger to standing with the people of Texas as we fight against the federal government. As such, I have directed the GLO to work around the federal government’s regulations and allocate $750 million for mitigation efforts in Harris County.”
“An amendment to the state action plan regarding the administration of Community Development Block Grants for Mitigation (CDBG-MIT) in the State of Texas will be submitted to HUD by the General Land Office to implement these changes. A final mitigation competition will be held for the other 48 eligible counties at a later date.”
“Although Hurricane Harvey made landfall in August 2017 and Congress appropriated these mitigation funds several months thereafter, the GLO’s hands were tied waiting for HUD to publish the rules regulating the use of these funds until they were published in a Federal Register notice, which did not happen until August 30, 2019 – two years after the storm and 19 months after the appropriation. The scoring criterion required by HUD to be included in the state action plan for distribution of the funds was approved by HUD on March 27, 2020.”
Flood Mitigation Should be Non-Partisan
I don’t want to get in the middle of the cross-fire on this. One of my biggest concerns is that flood mitigation remain non-partisan.
So rather than speculate about people’s motives and try to decipher where things went awry, I will simply post the following documents:
Regarding the last item, the copy is from a draft circulated before the meeting. However, reportedly, Commissioners made no changes. They approved it (or something very close to it) unanimously.
Before the end of the meeting, Commissioners had also resolved to meet with the Governor, HUD, President Biden, Congressmen, Senators and the tooth fairy. One thing is certain. Harris County is not taking this lying down.
One strange thing that several people have commented on: approximately a quarter of all the grants awarded went to improve water and sewage treatment plants – not flood mitigation projects. As one Congressional aid said today, “Separate grants are available for those. That took a lot of money out of circulation.”
Projects Awarded within Harris County but Not to HCFCD
In fact, three of the four projects awarded to cities in Harris County fell into that category.
City of Pasadena: Flood Mitigation Project – $47,278,951.21 LMI Percentage: 65.37%
City of Baytown: East District Wastewater Treatment Plant Phase II – $32,394,113.86 LMI Percentage: 52.29%
City of Galena Park: Water Plant Improvements Project – $5,482,123 LMI Percentage: 60.22%
Almost as much is going to water and wastewater plant improvements as flood mitigation.
Posted by Bob Rehak on May 26, 2021
1366 days after Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/Harvey-Peak-Intensity.jpg?fit=1500%2C843&ssl=18431500adminadmin2021-05-26 21:18:192025-08-03 16:08:10GLO’s Bush Requests Direct Funding from HUD for Harris County Flood Mitigation
New Caney High School #3 Taking Shape
It was about a year ago that New Caney ISD cleared land for its third high school between Sorters-McClellan Road and US 59 south of Kingwood Drive. Today, the site is a beehive of activity. Construction crews have erected walls that will eventually define the shape of High School #3. I took the pictured below on 5/26/2021.
The New Caney ISD says that as of May 2021, “The site work at Comprehensive High School #3 includes storm drainage which is 95 percent complete. The sanitary sewer is 85 percent complete. The electrical is 98 percent complete and the water is 90 percent complete. The concrete slab on the building is 85 percent complete. The form and pour tilt-up panels are 95 percent complete. The erect panels are 80 percent complete and the structural steel is five percent complete.”
New Caney ISD’s enrollment grew 31 percent between 2011 and 2016. That ranked NCISD first in the greater Houston area and fourth in the state for percentage enrollment growth. Eventually, the high school will hold 2,250 students. However, the school will open with only 1,350 in August 2022.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 5/29/2021
1369 Days since Hurricane Harvey
Railroad Commission Plugs Three Abandoned Wells Near Forest Cove Townhomes
This week, the Railroad Commission of Texas finished plugging three abandoned oil wells in the Forest Cove townhome complex near Marina and Timberline Drives. The Commission cited the owner for leaks in the past. However, the owner, Noxxe Oil & Gas, went bankrupt in 2020. That put the responsibility for remediation on the Railroad Commission. The Commission began plugging earlier this month and finished in this location on Wednesday afternoon. See photos below.
About Plugging
The National Petroleum Council says that a well is plugged by setting mechanical or cement plugs in the wellbore at specific intervals to prevent fluid flow. The plugging process usually requires a workover rig and cement pumped into the wellbore. The plugging process can take two days to a week, depending on the number of plugs to be set in the well.
Oil and gas can not only seep up through the well’s pipe, but also through the annulus. The annulus is the area between the outside of the pipe and the surrounding earth. Therefore, plugging often involves perforating pipe and forcing cement into the annulus, too.
Pumpjacks like the one above represent a form of “artificial lift. They give nature a hand when pressure in the well cannot bring oil and gas to the surface by itself in produceable quantities.
Plans For Rest of Wells Remain Unclear
The Railroad Commission has not returned multiple calls or emails regarding its plans for other Noxxe wells near the Forest Cove little league fields. Earlier this year, the Commission said that someone might buy those wells and try to produce oil from them, using the tanks already on the property.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 5/28/2021
1368 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.
GLO’s Bush Requests Direct Funding from HUD for Harris County Flood Mitigation
5/26/21 – Tonight, Texas General Land Office (GLO) announced that it would support a direct allocation to Harris County from HUD Mitigation funds for $750 million.
On May 21, the GLO announced winners of US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) grants totaling more than a billion dollars for Hurricane Harvey flood mitigation. Only problem: little went to Harris County Flood Control or the City of Houston despite the fact that we experienced half of the statewide damage in Harvey. Only $90.4 million went to small cities in Harris County. (See below)
Ever since GLO’s announcement, Harris County Commissioners have been scrambling, trying to figure out how to fill a funding shortfall. That’s because they were counting on attracting matching grants that didn’t materialize. Without the grants, some of the projects could be delayed – especially those in low-to-moderate income neighborhoods, which HUD targets – until alternative sources of funding can be identified.
Yesterday’s Harris County Commissioner’s Court Meeting spent more than four hours on the dilemma. Commissioners arranged for angry residents to call in and each testify for 3 minutes. At the end of their allotted time, they were thanked and asked to call the Texas General Land Office (GLO).
The phones must have rung off the hook at the GLO today, because by the end of the day, GLO Commissioner George P. Bush punted the decision for the next round of funding to HUD.
Below is the full text of a GLO press release sent out at 6:28 PM this evening.
GLO Press Release
“Today, Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush announced his request to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for Harris County to receive a direct allocation of $750 million for mitigation efforts.”
“I have heard the overwhelming concerns of Harris County regarding the mitigation funding competition,” said Commissioner Bush. “The federal government’s red tape requirements and complex regulations are a hallmark of President Biden’s administration. I am no stranger to standing with the people of Texas as we fight against the federal government. As such, I have directed the GLO to work around the federal government’s regulations and allocate $750 million for mitigation efforts in Harris County.”
“An amendment to the state action plan regarding the administration of Community Development Block Grants for Mitigation (CDBG-MIT) in the State of Texas will be submitted to HUD by the General Land Office to implement these changes. A final mitigation competition will be held for the other 48 eligible counties at a later date.”
“Although Hurricane Harvey made landfall in August 2017 and Congress appropriated these mitigation funds several months thereafter, the GLO’s hands were tied waiting for HUD to publish the rules regulating the use of these funds until they were published in a Federal Register notice, which did not happen until August 30, 2019 – two years after the storm and 19 months after the appropriation. The scoring criterion required by HUD to be included in the state action plan for distribution of the funds was approved by HUD on March 27, 2020.”
Flood Mitigation Should be Non-Partisan
I don’t want to get in the middle of the cross-fire on this. One of my biggest concerns is that flood mitigation remain non-partisan.
So rather than speculate about people’s motives and try to decipher where things went awry, I will simply post the following documents:
Regarding the last item, the copy is from a draft circulated before the meeting. However, reportedly, Commissioners made no changes. They approved it (or something very close to it) unanimously.
Before the end of the meeting, Commissioners had also resolved to meet with the Governor, HUD, President Biden, Congressmen, Senators and the tooth fairy. One thing is certain. Harris County is not taking this lying down.
One strange thing that several people have commented on: approximately a quarter of all the grants awarded went to improve water and sewage treatment plants – not flood mitigation projects. As one Congressional aid said today, “Separate grants are available for those. That took a lot of money out of circulation.”
Projects Awarded within Harris County but Not to HCFCD
In fact, three of the four projects awarded to cities in Harris County fell into that category.
Almost as much is going to water and wastewater plant improvements as flood mitigation.
Posted by Bob Rehak on May 26, 2021
1366 days after Hurricane Harvey