Matthew Lopez

Precinct Coordinator

Harris County Flood Control District

9900 Northwest Freeway

Houston, TX 77092

matthew.lopez@hcfcd.org

Jamila Johnson, P.E.

Managing Engineer

Flood Plain Management Office

City of Houston

fmo@houstontx.gov

June 11, 2018

Dear Ms. Johnson and Mr. Lopez:

We wish to express our concern regarding the un-permitted building of a wall in the floodway area of Buffalo Bayou adjacent to 8843 Harness Creek Lane. Our neighborhood, consisting of Bayou Timbers, Green Tree and Pine Shadows, is that immediately south across Buffalo Bayou from the construction. Many of our homes flooded during Hurricane Harvey for the first time and we are concerned about the change that the construction on Harness Creek Lane is causing to the flow of Buffalo Bayou.

The construction that we refer to is a multi-tiered wall along the peninsula adjacent to 8843 Harness Creek Lane that juts into a bend in Buffalo Bayou. In addition to the wall, the owner brought in dirt, concrete and culverts to fortify the wall and drain his property into the Bayou. Upon investigation we learned that none of the construction was permitted, and the Harris County Flood District has indicated that such an imposition in the floodway would never have been permitted. Additionally, we learned that the land is not part of 8843 Harness Creek, but rather is public floodway. Despite the un-permitted nature of the construction, and the fact that the wall is in the public floodway, the land and the wall remain in place. We understand construction has been stayed since January while the homeowner is given time to submit a proposal, but no deadline has been set for the submission of such proposal. Given that the construction is in the floodway, and would never have been permitted in the first place, it seems odd to us that the builder has been given six months thus far to submit a proposal and has no deadline by which to do so. We see no reason for the Flood District to continue to allow the builder time. With hurricane season upon us, and many homes opposite the bayou at stake, we would like the wall removed immediately and the land restored to its prior condition.

We have observed that the flow of Buffalo Bayou has changed dramatically since the addition of the wall and land. There is now a right-angle kink in the Bayou such that the water flow juts to the opposite southern bank, carving out more of that bank than it did prior to the construction of the wall and land backfill. Additionally, because of the kink angle caused by the wall, the water stalls before continuing to flow downstream. In the past, in a big rain the Bayou typically completely submerged the peninsula – sometimes reaching depths of over 15-30 feet. With the wall and added land, we are uncertain of what will happen in a similar flood. We can observe, with the rains we have had thus far this year, that the wall holds off the Bayou to a certain degree, thus pushing it to the opposite bank and downstream.

Under the statutes of Texas and the Ordinances of Harris County and the City of Houston, the Harris County Flood Control District and the Flood Plain Management Office are charged with preserving the flood plain areas and the bayous. The egregious construction at Harness Creek, undertaken in secret absent any consult with your agencies and in the public floodway, is a prime example meriting your intervention and enforcement. Absent your interference, this construction could set a precedent of “act first, seek forgiveness later.” Other homeowners may construct similar walls and backfills reclaiming floodway land absent permits. Moreover, we are at the mercy of Mother Nature and we must be constantly prepared for the possibility of a torrential rainstorm and flooding. We are asking you to prepare as well. The homes in our neighborhood may flood due to the failure of your agencies to protect the floodway from obstruction.

For these reasons, we request that no further delay be allowed and that you please remove the wall from the floodway immediately and restore the peninsula to its previous condition.

Sincerely,

The Residents of Bayou Timbers, Green Tree Property Association and Pine Shadows Property Association.

cc: Mayor Sylvester Turner;

County Judge Edward Emmett