Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD) delivered its March 2022 Flood Bond Spending Update yesterday to Commissioners Court. It shows $226,476,745 dollars worth of active capital construction projects underway throughout the county. But only two of those valued at a grand total of $2,000 are in the Lake Houston Area.
That’s less than one-tenth of one percent, despite the fact that the Lake Houston Area was one of the most heavily damaged in the county during Harvey.
The update also includes active maintenance projects. However, those are grouped in ways that make it difficult to determine the exact cost of each. The Lake Houston Area had 3 out of 36 of those. At least one of the three is now complete. It consisted of cleaning a block-long stretch of the drainage ditch that parallels Stonehollow Drive in Kingwood. Judging by the group costs, none of the three qualifies as major.
The update does not disclose the value of past projects. Nor does it break out the value of studies, right-of-way acquisition, or future improvements.
19.7% of the bond work has been completed as of the end of March. That’s up from 19.4% at the end of February. That percentage should increase faster as HCFCD completes more preliminary studies and moves into the expensive phases of projects, such as right-of-way acquisition and construction.
Of 1175 buyouts identified, 457 have completed – 39%.
Biggest winners to date in the flood-bond, mitigation-funding sweepstakes have been:
Brays Bayou – $173.1 million
Cypress Creek – $87.4 million
Greens Bayou – $82.7 million
Addicks Reservoir – $75.4 million
Little Cypress Creek – $53.7 million
White Oak Bayou – $53.2 million
Clear Creek – $38 million
Halls Bayou – $35.4 million
Hunting Bayou – $34.1 million
Willow Creek – $33.5 million
The San Jacinto River watershed has received $20.7 million despite being the largest in the county.
HCFCD completed two projects during the month and began construction on one other.
Eight other projects changed stages, i.e., from feasibility study to preliminary engineering.
“Partner Funds” To Date Virtually Equal “Bond Funds”
Virtually half of flood bond spending through the end of March 2022 came from partner funds. Local funds plus grants totaled $483 million. Money spent out of the bond itself has totaled $492 million. So, 49.5% of spending to date came from partner funds. It has gone largely to watersheds supposedly disadvantaged by partnership requirements. A popular political narrative claims low-to-moderate income watersheds get no partner funding and more affluent watersheds get it all. But that simply isn’t true.
49.5% of mitigation dollars to date have come from partners. 50.5% came from the bond itself.
Glaring $750 Million Omission
Although the March update contained a discussion of several partnership grants, it failed to mention $750 million allocated to Harris County by HUD and the GLO for flood mitigation on March 18. The March update did, however, discuss several smaller grants, earmarks and partner funds. Those took up two and a half pages.
The $750 million, together with the flood resilience trust approved last year, would fully fund the flood bond. That means that no watershed should have to wait on partner funding for construction projects to begin once engineering is completed.
Only one step remains before Harris County can start using the money – approval of a “method of distribution.” That’s a final plan for how and where the money will be used.
Posted by Bob Rehak on May 11, 2022
1716 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/2022/05/20220511-Screen-Shot-2022-05-11-at-4.51.43-PM.jpg?fit=1200%2C912&ssl=19121200adminadmin2022-05-11 17:06:202022-05-12 10:50:43Of Active HCFCD Bond Construction Spending Totaling $226 Million, Lake Houston Area Has $2 Thousand
Last month, the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) approved a $2,208,906 grant from the State’s Flood Infrastructure Fund (FIF) to the Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD) for expansion of the Lauder Stormwater Detention Basin.
The detention basin will eventually hold 1,260 acre-feet of stormwater in Aldine along Greens Bayou. The project will help reduce repetitive flooding in that area. It is one of dozens of such projects under construction in the watershed.
“We are extremely thankful for this funding and for the support of the Texas Water Development Board to improve flood resilience for residents in the Greens Bayou Watershed,” said Tina Petersen, Harris County Flood Control District Executive Director.
HCFCD estimates the total cost of Phase 2 will be approximately $20.5 million. The additional capacity in Phase 2 will hold excess stormwater during heavy rain events and then release it slowly back to the channel when the threat of flooding has passed.
Phase 2 will be broken into two compartments.
Compartment 1 will bid later this month. Construction will start later this year and finish in 2024.
Compartment 2 (which TWDB is funding) is currently will be in design until 2023. Construction will begin in April 2024 and complete in early 2025.
Photos of Areas Involved
Phase 1 included a wet-bottom stormwater detention basin, with a permanent pool and features designed to improve stormwater quality.
Lauder Detention Basin Phase 1 on Greens Bayou (right) as of 10/12/2021. Looking SSW toward Lauder Road.
Phase 2 will be a dry-bottom stormwater detention basin with opportunities for recreational development by other entities. It will be in the wooded area (top center) of the photo below.
HCFCD will construct Phase 2 of the HCFCD Lauder Detention Basin in the wooded area (top center) along Greens Bayou (upper right). Looking northwest toward Greenspoint area.
Garcia Lauds Lauder Progress
“Reducing chronic flooding has been my main priority since taking office. This Lauder Stormwater Detention Basin project represents the kind of progress residents expect and need to see, and we are grateful for the Texas Water Development Board’s support in making this critical project possible,” said Harris County Precinct 2 Commissioner Adrian Garcia.
“Making Harris County businesses and homeowners safer from flood events requires a commitment to make smart investments, like the TWDB’s. If we want to see our community thrive, we have to ensure families and companies can confidently grow in areas where their businesses and homes are free from flood fears,” he continued.
Relief from Repetitive Flooding
TWDB Chairwoman Brooke Paup said, “We’re proud to provide grant funding for this much-needed project, which has been a team effort, and to partner with our good friends at the Harris County Flood Control District. The TWDB works diligently to help communities across the state, but it’s especially fulfilling to be a partner in helping an area see some relief after experiencing repetitive flooding.”
Absorbs a Foot of Rain Falling Over 2 Square Miles
The two basin phases will hold at least 1,260 acre-feet, or 391 million gallons, of excess stormwater that might otherwise flood homes and businesses.
Another way to think about that is to visualize water spreading out horizontally. 1260 acre feet would would be a little less than two square miles. (A square mile comprises 640 acres.) So the two basins would hold a foot of rain falling over two square miles!
Looking at the Atlas 14 Rainfall Probability table below, the two phases would hold a 24-hour, 25-year rain falling over 2 square miles.
Atlas 14 rainfall probabilitiesfor northern Harris County
Flood-Risk Reduction Status
But the service area for the basins is bigger than 2 square miles. So the ponds won’t be enough by themselves to provide protection in a 25-year flood. That’s when other Greens Bayou projects will help. Together, the projects in the Greens Bayou Mid-Reach Program, when all are complete, should protect residents in a ten-year rain. See 10-year column in table above.
The two phases of the Lauder basin by themselves should reduce the risk of flooding for more than 4,500 structures in the 100-year floodplain. Learn more about the Lauder Basin at www.hcfcd.org/C34.
Overall, the flood bond allocated $280 million for Greens Bayou improvements. So far, HCFCD has spent $104 million in bond funds on those projects. So 63% the planned budget remains.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 5/10/22
1715 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/20210724-DJI_0225.jpg?fit=1200%2C799&ssl=17991200adminadmin2022-05-10 13:29:562022-05-10 14:38:35TWDB grants HCFCD $2,208,906 to Expand Lauder Basin
Ironically, Hurricane Harvey united us in disaster and divided us during recovery. Perhaps that is the storm’s most lasting insult.
United by Disaster
1,714 days ago, Hurricane Harvey ravaged Harris and surrounding counties. The storm dropped the greatest rainfall in the history of the North American continent. It flooded 154,000 homes in Harris County and destroyed 300,000 vehicles.
In the months that followed, HCFCD organized meetings in each watershed to gather input from residents on what it would take to reduce flood risk in their neighborhoods. At the meetings, HCFCD also discussed what professionals thought it would take. Out of that dialog came a project list with a hefty $5 billion price tag.
Despite the price, exactly one year after Harvey, voters approved a historic flood bond by 86%! People came together and recognized the need to address flooding to ensure the future of their homes, businesses, and communities.
I contacted Matt Zeve, then the Deputy Executive Director of the Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD), immediately after the vote tally to congratulate him on the outcome. He was already hard at work on projects. Within seconds, I received this response.
Matt Zeve, Former Deputy Executive Director of HCFCD after passage of bond, 8/25/2018
It was a rare moment of unity. Then the backbiting started as factions jockeying for a greater share of funding.
Soon, Russ Poppe, HCFCD’s executive director, and Zeve would be hounded from office, despite their contributions in architecting the bond.
Divided by Recovery
Since passage of the bond, a contentious recovery process – driven by partisan politics – has divided us.
Initially, questions centered around which projects HCFCD would implement first. After promising to fix the “worst first” (but never defining what “worst” meant). The three Democratic members of Commissioners Court pushed through an “Equity Prioritization Framework.”
The framework prioritized projects in watersheds with a high Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) and high percentage of Low-to-Moderate Income (LMI) residents. Said another way, they defined the “worst” flooding as flooding that affected LMI neighborhoods. This is not necessarily where the deepest flooding, the most frequent flooding or the most damaged homes are.
Since then, the three Democrats recommended changing the framework several times. For example:
Despite promises that all projects in the flood bond would eventually be completed, Commissioners Ellis and Garcia have also voted to cancel projects that voters approved. For instance, they tried to defund $191 million of flood-mitigation projects in Cedar Bayou and transfer the money to Garcia’s new Precinct 2.
Garcia has also suggested fixing 500-year flooding in LMI neighborhoods before more frequent flooding elsewhere. Together with other changes to the equity formula, that could mean certain projects in outlying neighborhoods never get built for lack of enough money.
Now the mostly Democrat-appointed Community Flood Resilience Task Force has recommended more changes to the formula. They include cherry-picking certain flood-risk reduction investments for a proposed Flood Mitigation Benefit Index. The apples-to-oranges comparison would make it look as though some watersheds were underfunded compared to others.
Who Would Favor Another Bond at this Point?
The new changes would apply to the flood resilience trust as well as any future flood bonds which do NOT have defined project lists approved by voters. Thus, a majority of commissioners could move dollars freely to the projects of their choice.
Throughout the constant changing of priorities, Commissioners Ellis and Garcia have sent signals that the amount of money in the bond isn’t enough to fix our flooding problems. Without mentioning any specific projects, defining costs, estimating benefits, or promising how the money would be spent, they have suggested they want another $50 to $60 billion from voters.
That’s a pretty big ask before we know what the first $5 billion has achieved – or even where the most frequent flooding occurs.
Democratic commissions say all the money to date has gone to affluent watersheds and LMI watersheds have received none. But people in neighborhoods like Kingwood can see the money going to LMI watersheds. This has created a “confusion” disaster that undermines trust in government – perhaps the biggest disaster of all.
Funding since 2000 in all 23 Harris County watersheds through end of 2021.
Net: everyone believes they are getting nothing from the first flood bond. So, why would they vote for a second?
Ultimately, the partisan dialog now dividing us could make everyone in the county more vulnerable to the next big flood. This is part of the reason why disasters repeat themselves.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 5/9/22
1714 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/Harvey-Peak-Intensity.jpg?fit=1500%2C843&ssl=18431500adminadmin2022-05-09 17:50:272022-05-09 20:12:51United by Disaster, Divided by Recovery
Back in 2019, portions of Elm Grove and North Kingwood Forest Villages flooded twice. The first time occurred on May 7th. According to Harris County Flood Control District’s (HCFCD) report on the storm, “A 30-min rate of 2.9 inches was recorded at US 59 and the West Fork of the San Jacinto River and a 1 hour rate of 4.0 inches.”
“380 structures were flooded in the Elm Grove Village subdivision and other nearby subdivisions in the northern portions of Kingwood.”
Escape. In Elm Grove on Shady Maple the night of the May 7, 2019 flood.
High water rescue
Rustling Elms Bridge in Elm Groveunderwater as school bus tries to cross it.
Water rising at night in Keith Stewart’s home on Shady Maple after May 7th flood in 2019.
Catalog of Flood Mitigation Efforts
Ever since the Elm Grove floods, Harris County, HCFCD, the City of Houston, Congressman Dan Crenshaw’s team and others have worked diligently to reduce future flood risk.
On this Mother’s Day weekend, it may bring flooded families comfort to understand how far we have come. Much remains to do, but much has already been done, or at least started.
HCFCD working to remove sediment buildup in Taylor Gully near the Maple Bend Bridge in January of 2021.The work began upstream near Rustling Elms in July 2019.
Kingwood Area Drainage Analysis and Taylor Gully Study
In 2019-20, HCFCD, Lake Houston Redevelopment Authority (TIRZ 10), and City of Houston teamed up to conduct a drainage analysis for all streams in the Kingwood area. A recommendation to prioritize engineering of drainage improvements along Taylor Gully (including Woodridge) came out of that study.
The Flood Control District began preliminary engineering study on the Taylor Gully improvements in 2021. HCFCD anticipates presenting results during late summer or early fall this year.
Purchase of Woodridge Village By County and City
In early 2021, the Flood Control District and the City of Houston partnered to acquire the 267.35-acre Woodridge Village property for approximately $14 million.
Houston Mayor Pro Tem Dave Martin lobbied the City to purchase about 70 acres of the property.
HCFCD will use the remaining 194.35 acres of the Woodridge site for stormwater detention. That will help reduce flood risk.
Crenshaw Earmarks
Congressman Dan Crenshaw secured an earmark for $1.6 million for engineering of flood mitigation improvements along Taylor Gully. The engineering should shrink the floodplain. That will effectively remove 387 structures from the floodplain and has the potential to remove another 62.
Crenshaw also has another earmark pending for $10 million to actually construct the improvements recommended by the study.
Local groups must spend earmarks during the fiscal year in which Congress approves them. So funding can’t get too far ahead of the engineering.
Taylor Gully Preliminary Engineering Study
The Taylor Gully study will look at Woodridge in conjunction with other potential Taylor Gully improvements. However, HCFCD must perform additional preliminary engineering to further evaluate specific alternatives for Woodridge and determine the best.
During each study, HCFCD will hold Community Engagement Meetings to present alternatives and gather feedback.
Start of the new floodwater detention basin that could double the capacity on Woodridge Village.This pond should ultimately expand beyond the lone trees in the middle of the frame near the top.Photo taken 4/30/22.
E&R projects provide a head start on the excavation process and risk reduction. They can start before the design of a stormwater detention basin. Contractors excavate a set amount of material within an agreed-upon timeframe and general area.
The excavation can also potentially provide interim stormwater storage while awaiting the design and construction of the final stormwater detention basin.
As of April 30, 2022, 36,421 cubic yards of material has already been removed from the site. See photo above taken that day. The project will remove as much as 500,000 cubic yards of soil and other material.
Woodridge will remain an active construction zone for up to three years.
Have a Happy Mother’s Day this weekend.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 5/6/2022
1711 Days since Hurricane Harvey and 1096 Days since May 7, 2019
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/2019/05/Escape-e1588895116724.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=19001200adminadmin2022-05-06 19:52:552022-05-09 20:21:03Mitigation Update: 3rd Anniversary of First Elm Grove Flood
Less than six months ago, Guefen started clearing land for the Preserve at Woodridge. Plans showed that the Preserve would contain 131 Lilliputian-sized homes for rent, some as large as 668 square feet. Already, more than half the homes are framed out. And one fifth have roofs. I counted 73 homes either completely or mostly framed in the photos below.
Photos Taken April 30
Here are some pictures taken of the Preserve at Woodridge last week.
According to plans, the vertical wall behind the homesites will be a retaining wall. In the pond itself, contractors are to install a 2-foot thick clay liner in 8″ lifts, each compacted to 95%.As of last Saturday, contractors were still pumping silty stormwaterinto this channel which empties into Bens Branch at Northpark Drive.Looking SW across 17 acre site toward Northpark Drive and St. Martha Catholic Church.Not much grass will grow between these homes.It will be in shade most of the day.Looking east from over Woodridge Parkway toward Kingwood Park High School and KSA’s Northpark Recreation area.
The developer claimed 65% impervious cover. But work to date appears much denser.
Preserve at Woodridge Detention Pond Progress Much Slower
If only the pace of work on the detention pond went as fast! Instead, contractors have treated it like an afterthought. They still haven’t come close to finishing it. And grass lining? Plans don’t mention it as far as I can see.
“The erosion potential for a detention basin is similar to that of an open channel. For this reason the same types of erosion protection are necessary, including the use of backslope swales and drainage systems (as outlined in SECTION 6), proper revegetation, and pond surface lining where necessary.”
The wording in 7.2.7 leaves room for interpretation. It’s not clear whether engineers must specify all or one of the alternatives listed.
“A good grass cover must be established on all areas within the right-of-way (except the channel bottom) disturbed by channel improvements or by any type of construction. An adequate grass stand on the banks helps stabilize the channel and minimizes erosion caused by overbank flow and high velocities in the channel.”
There’s certainly a lot of ambiguity in these specifications. Montgomery County has not yet responded to a complaint about the pumping of the silty stormwater down Ben’s Branch. And the only plans the engineering department supplied are those linked above.
Best Practices Vs. Industry Standard Vs. Minimum Requirements
A source knowledgeable about construction reminded me of the tremendous difference that exists between Best Practices, Industry Standards, and Minimum Requirements. Few companies will follow best practices if it costs them money, said the source. Even industry standard practices are optional. Most just follow the minimum requirements.
And even if the engineering plans comply with those requirements, there’s no guarantee contractors will follow the plans.
So understand your local regs. And report corner cutting when you see it.
Best practices call for detention ponds to be among the first things finished on a construction site. MoCo doesn’t mandate that, however. Grass would certainly help reduce erosion here.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 5/4/2022
710 Days after 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/2022/05/20220430-DJI_0338.jpg?fit=1200%2C799&ssl=17991200adminadmin2022-05-05 18:35:392022-05-06 22:36:59Half of Preserve at Woodridge Already Framed Out.
I last updated Humble ISD’s Kingwood Middle School (KMS) and New Caney ISD’s West Fork High School construction projects in mid-March. Since then, KMS contractors have continued work to finish the exteriors while beginning interior work.
Humble ISD has not updated its web page on KMS construction details, but some changes are visible from the exterior.
South side of building now almost all “glassed in.”Ditto for north side.Roof is substantially complete, though some work remains on AC units.West side looking east from over Woodland Hills Drive.SW side looking NE. Most of the heavy equipment is gone.Looking NW from SE side. Old building in foreground will be demolished to make way for athletic fields. Easternmost building still has the longest way to go.
New Caney ISD posted this April update on work to date for its new West Fork High School. The high school is south of the HCA Kingwood Medical Center between Sorters McClellan Road and US59.
“Overall completion of the buildings and site work is 78 percent complete. The main building and athletic support facilities are dried in with portions of the main building being air conditioned. All interior partitions are complete with finishes such as painting and ceramic tile in progress. The electrical, plumbing, and HVAC rough-in work is 85 percent complete. The ceiling grid is being installed, allowing the installation of light fixtures, A/C grills, life/safety devices, data, and sound systems to progress. The artificial turf for the football field is 80 percent complete with turf at the baseball and softball fields to follow. The general contractor is distributing topsoil in preparation to begin irrigation and landscaping.”
Here’s what all of that looks like.
Looking SE across front of campus. Sorters McClellan Road is on right. West Fork is in background out of sight.Looking NE from over Sorters-McClellan Road. Field house and football field.It’s starting to feel like fall and it’s not even summer yet.Looking north. Campus is out of frame on left. 59 is out of frame on right.Looking NW across front of field house toward high school and Sorters-McClellan Road. Looking N toward northern entrance off Kingwood Place Drive.
Compare with Previous Updates
To see how the project has progressed, compare these previous posts.
Neither of these projects has yet had an impact on local flooding.
KMS built a temporary retention pond. When the old school is torn down, it will be replaced with a larger permanent pond.
West Fork High School already has a permanent pond. It was the first thing to be completed. Grass has been growing in it since March of 2021. This has reduced the threat of sedimentation during construction. I wish all construction projects followed this model.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 5/4/2022
1709 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/20220430-DJI_0312.jpg?fit=1200%2C799&ssl=17991200adminadmin2022-05-04 19:24:072022-05-04 19:28:40Construction Update: KMS and West Fork High School
Houston Community College last week announced what it called a first-in-the-nation Resilience Center. The Center will offer continuing education and certification in seven aspects of resiliency that affect ten industries.
Artist’s rendering.The center will offer “boots on the ground training” in controlled, but authentic field and virtual simulations.
From Virtual to Real-World Similations
Students will experience all the dangers an individual is likely to encounter in a real disaster. Those include “flooded residential streets and commercial areas complete with hazards such as debris, downed power lines, submerged vehicles, and varying light levels that make the challenges all too real.”
Dimensions of resiliency addressed include:
High-water rescue
Incident management
Electricity
Debris removal
IT + drones
Facilities design
Integrated physical infrastructure
Industries include:
Construction
Additive Manufacturing and materials sciences
Health sciences
Engineering
Transportation
Public safety
Natural sciences
Digital and IT
Global energy
Logistics
All Types of Disasters, Not Just Flooding
HCC’s brochure emphasizes that, “Community resiliency is more than responding to major flood events. It includes disasters like fires, oil spills and leaks, pandemics, and freezes. This initiative is about skill mastery for ALL potential disaster scenarios.”
HCC will build the center on its northeast campus. It will accommodate three to four thousand citizens, business people and first responders per year.
“From applied ‘boots-on-the-ground’ training, they’ll experience all the dangers an individual is likely to encounter in a real disaster,” said HCC. “Those dangers include flooded residential streets and commercial areas complete with hazards. Hazards include debris, downed power lines, submerged vehicles, and varying light levels that make the challenges real.” Until the ROC’s completion, HCC will leverage existing facilities, equipment, labs, and classrooms.
Residential Risk Assessment
Students can also sign up for classes in:
Home risk assessment
How to support neighbors during emergencies
The value of insurance.
HCC hopes to complete the $30 million, 65,000 square-foot Resiliency Center in 2024.
Ultimately HCC may offer associate-degree programs around resiliency.
This YouTube video describes the program. It won’t prevent disasters. But it will help us deal with them.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 5/3/2022
1708 days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Screen-Shot-2022-05-02-at-5.00.21-PM.png?fit=1004%2C1000&ssl=110001004adminadmin2022-05-03 11:14:002022-05-03 11:18:02Houston Community College Announces Resilience Center
Since then, dozens of people have contacted me describing the impact of turnover on programs and service.
One manager used the word “chaos” to describe the environment since Lina Hidalgo took office. All of the sources for this post have requested anonymity because they fear reprisals – a chilling comment in itself.
No doubt, many good, talented, hard-working people remain in Harris County government, but the problems described below make it harder for them to do their jobs.
Unexplained Changes in Direction
One person told me about a new Harris County juvenile center that was being planned, due to overcrowding and substandard living conditions at the old center. Then one day, “…like out of nowhere, we got a sense that the whole project was canceled. We tried to explain how far along the project was and why it was necessary. And they didn’t care. It was just like, ‘Well, we [the judge’s office] are not going in that direction.’” The source added, “We had a lot of things in motion that just came to a halt.”
The new center never did get built. It had reportedly gone all the way through the design phase, so the unexplained cancellation was costly.
Not So Resilient Resiliency Plan
Another person mentioned a county-wide resiliency plan. The heads of multiple Harris County departments had worked on it for months. At the eleventh hour, people in Hidalgo’s office with no experience rewrote everything that people withexperience had developed. “It just changed completely,” said one person involved.
Transportation Plan Stalled
Yet another person told me, “In Hidalgo’s mind, if you’re building a road, you’re doing taxpayers a disservice. Philosophically, she’s into multi-modal transportation. But a lot of times, she misses the point that the county is only allowed to do what the state of Texas allows it to do. That’s where they’ve had more problems. Their thought process a lot of times was, ‘Well, if they want to sue us for that, then they can.’ We’ve seen that play out several times.”
Other sources told me about progress on various components of Harris County’s Transportation Plan.
Nothing notable has happened lately on Low Impact Development, Green Infrastructure, or other environmentally-friendly projects.
Lack of Clarity, Direction
Another major problem contributing to the chaotic work environment: lack of clarity and direction. One mid-level manager told me, “We would often be moving in a direction when everything kind of went on pause because we were waiting to see which direction to go. But we couldn’t ever narrow down a direction. It felt as if, in every single Commissioners Court meeting, we spent all day watching mommy and daddy fight. Even among the Democrats.”
Lack of Attention to Operational Details
Former managers of various Harris County departments also complained about lack of attention to operational details.
“Ellis’ office and the Judge’s office would work together to develop these big picture concepts of where we were going. But it was never clear how we would get there,” said one person.
“We’d sit there and go, ‘Well, that’s great. But you didn’t set up any funding for it. For example, we talked about big sweeping programs like MWBE – the Minority/Women-owned Business Enterprise program. That was four years ago and it’s still not off the ground.”
Hiring People Without Relevant Experience
They hired Pamela Chan to set up the new Harris County Department of Economic Equity and Opportunity. According to one person I talked to, Chan was a “a great academic,” but had no real-world, operational MWBE experience. Another said, “the guidance and support that Chan got was like almost nil and then she’d get beat up at court.” She soon left. That department has had two executive directors in a little more than a year.
According to many of his employees, Noriega’s lack of IT understanding contributed to high turnover beneath him at multiple levels. And that rapidly compromised the integrity of systems.
Noriega also pushed out people with excellent professional credentials and replaced them with political appointees in many cases.
Not long after Noriega took over the department, he lost his Chief Administrative Officer, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Technology Officer, and Chief of Cybersecurity (twice).
The department also lost 100% of its group directors beneath them and approximately one third of its employees in 17 months.
So many employees have left that the department doesn’t even put names on org charts anymore.
Incomprehensible Org Chart Without Names Revised More than 30 Times
In fact, the department doesn’t even call organization charts ‘org charts’ anymore. It refers to them as its “ecosystem.” See below.
At this point, the chart above has reportedly gone through more than 30 revisions under Noriega. Yet multiple sources told me, “No one understands it.”
Toxic Work Environment Accelerates Already High Turnover
The work environment in Universal Services has become so toxic according to sources that approximately one third of the department has left in 17 months and the rate of attrition is reportedly accelerating.
Universal Services org charts updated the day before Commissioners Court appointed Noriega the permanent department head show everyone who left since his arrival. The source told me that some positions have turned over more than once. So this 12-page chart understates the numbers involved. It shows that at least 134 people have left since Noriega assumed command. That’s out of approximately 400 to 450 total employees. The highlighted names represent people who left the organization in the last 17 months.
One third of a workforce turning over would not be surprising in fast food. But these are professional jobs with highly skilled people doing complex work that few understand.
Noriega reportedly tried to dismiss the turnover. But significantly, 100% of his group directors left, leaving much of the department rudderless, especially since Noriega did not have an IT background himself.
If that percentage holds true in IT, losing one third of your workforce would cost one third of your payroll.
Self-Inflicted Damage
Some damage has been self-inflicted. While most IT companies let employees work remotely, Noriega forces managers to come into the office. This policy goes against the industry norm and has reportedly contributed to several of the departures at the managerial level.
“It’s Scary.”
One former IT employee told me Universal Services has refilled so many positions with inexperienced people that “They can’t even support the simple stuff. It’s scary.” This person called the replacements “Garcia’s puppets.”
Commissioner Adrian Garcia recommended Noriega for the job. Another Garcia loyalist, James Henderson, is Universal Services new Deputy Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer. They have reportedly replaced many departing employees with people loyal to Garcia.
Can It Be Saved?
When the department’s crucial JWEB program went down recently, IT staff reportedly worked 8 hours on and 4 hours off around the clock trying to restore the system. But they couldn’t get it back up. So, hundreds of criminal suspects didn’t receive probable cause hearings in time and had to be released.
A former manager in the department told me, “I don’t think enough meat is left on the bone to fix what’s going on there.”
Harris County’s annual budget next year will exceed $3.5 billion. We’re one third of the way through a $5 billion flood bond. And these are the custodians of our tax dollars.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 5/1/2022
1706 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/2022/05/Universal-Services-Ecosystem-V.25-their-version-of-org-chart-e1651429500897.png?fit=1200%2C600&ssl=16001200adminadmin2022-05-01 14:43:572022-05-19 11:32:14Editorial: “Chaos” in Harris County Government
Black spots in the detention pond at the Laurel Springs RV resort at 1355 LAUREL SPRINGS LANE near Kingwood contained measurable oil and grease concentrations.
TCEQ’s Second Investigation of Site
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) received multiple complaints about construction practices at the RV Resort going back to January. The first investigation found sediment discharges stretching approximately 450 feet onto neighboring property.
On March 7, 2022, the TCEQ investigated the site again in response to complaints about shiny black pools on the floor of the same detention pond that discharged the silt into the County’s Edgewater Park.
Mysterious black spots in Laurel Springs RV Resort Detention Pond. Photo taken on 3/05/22.
The investigator noticed several pools of water with dark colors. Some pools had a sheen on top and had bubbles. He used a stick to estimate the depth of the pools and determined that they were about a foot deep.
One pool appeared to leaking into the pond’s standing water, however, the site was not discharging water into the San Jacinto at the time of the investigation so no permit violations could be charged.
Another photo on 3/5/22 showed contractors covering up the black spots.The TCEQ investigation took place 3 days later.
TCEQ confirmed the allegation that the black substance was seeping from the ground. However, samples did not have sufficient concentrations to determine their exact origin. The conclusion stated, “Observations on-site did not indicate that the dark substance was petroleum based even though there was a measurable oil and grease concentration.”
A construction worker claimed earlier that the black goo was “decaying mulch.” However, the word mulch appears nowhere in the final TCEQ report.
Timing is Everything
It’s a shame that bulldozers covered the most concentrated pools before TCEQ investigators arrived. The week after the TCEQ investigation, the black substance re-emerged with a vengeance. See below.
Photo taken on 3/14, one week after TCEQ investigation. “They’re baaaa-aaaack.”
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/2022/03/20220314-DJI_0839.jpg?fit=1200%2C799&ssl=17991200adminadmin2022-04-29 19:59:152022-04-29 20:03:32Mysterious Black Spots in RV Resort Detention Pond Contained Oil, Grease
The Harris County Community Resilience Flood Task Force will meet tonight (4/28/22) from 5:30 to 7:30 via Zoom. You’re invited. Register to attend by visiting the Task Force website.
Status updates from Harris County Community Services, Flood Control District and Infrastructure Resilience Team on:
CDBG-MIT Funding Update
2018 Bond Finances and next steps
Resilience Actions Inventory
Public comments will come at the end of the meeting.
The Community Flood Resilience Task Force (CFRTF) is a multidisciplinary, community-driven body. Harris County’s Commissioners Court established it to ensure the County develops and implements equitable flood resilience projects that reflect community needs.
The meeting will also give you a chance to watch Dr. Tina Petersen in action. Petersen is the new executive director of flood control. She started last month.
Public Comment Period
CFRTF meetings are designed to help Task Force members accomplish their objectives. Therefore public participation is limited. However, members of the public may observe meetings and this meeting will have time available for public comment. If you cannot attend, you may also submit written comments in advance to cfrtf@hcfcd.hctx.net.
