Thursday, Aug 10, 2023
From: James Rains
Good afternoon Mr. Wormald,
Thank you for reaching out. Our office has requested that TXDOT maintain these ditches, and they have agreed to maintain them and will continue monitor periodically.
Kind regards,
James C. Rains,
Tuesday, August 15, 2023
To: James C. Rains, MPA – Chief of Staff – Office of Council Member Mary Nan Huffman – Houston City Council, District G
James,
I’ve purposely delayed replying to this email until I thought about it and sought other inputs. On the face of it, this is stunning. Perhaps we misunderstood….
While clearing the drains is an important part of the problem, your response does not address the two major problems we addressed in great detail to you, and on the website:
- The westside drainage ditch of Addicks-Howell no longer exists; the developer raised the site above the ditch level, so filling it in. Consequently ALL the floodwater coming off both Memorial Drive and the developer’s site automatically flows to the east side drainage ditch, and into Fleetwood moreso than it ever has. We are asking that the COH re-visit the site design and permit, and require the developer to re-install a ditch alongside the property, on the west side of Addicks Howell.
- The culvert at the south end of Addicks Howell, which takes all the run-off off the site and the road, is inadequate and causes a backup of all the water and further flooding back into Fleetwood. While the road is closed by the developer, this would be an ideal time to install a larger culvert at that point, and we ask that your office liaise with TXDOT to rectify that situation.
Thank You
Monday, August 21st, 2023
From: James C. Rains, MPA – Chief of Staff – Office of Council Member Mary Nan Huffman – Houston City Council, District G
Thank you for checking-in on this matter. In response to item one, I asked that our public works department investigate the matter concerning the drainage ditch along the west side of Addicks-Howell. I received the following response:
“We have inspected this construction site and found that the contractor has a road closure permit for Addicks-Howell Road adjacent to this construction site. He is accessing this site from Addicks-Howell Road and has installed temporary culverts in the ditch. The ditch is open and is not blocked.
At the end of this project, the temporary culverts will be removed, and the ditch restored.”
As for your second concern, I have confirmed with TXDOT that they are planning to maintain this culvert/ditch. I have asked that they expedite this maintenance and that they keep me posted on any additional updates. As I receive any news on this, I will happily keep you posted.
I hope this information is helpful. As always, please let me know if I can be of any additional assistance.
Kind regards,
James C. Rains, MPA
Tuesday, August 22nd, 2023
To: James C. Rains, MPA – Chief of Staff – Office of Council Member Mary Nan Huffman – Houston City Council, District G
James,
Frankly NO, I don’t find this helpful. You repeatedly fail to address the two issues:
1. There is no culvert in the drainage on the west side of Addicks Howell, and if there, it is hidden and/or blocked. You can view the videos on the website from the last storm, and you will clearly see that water is running off the development site, across Addicks Howell into the eastern ditch, piling the volume onto the Fleetwood wall and fence, and into Fleetwood. It seems you are accepting the COH response that after the site is completed, all will be well, and in the meantime, what you have is what you get. Getting placatory answers from COH is not what we need, solving the problem is what we need.
2. You continually refer to TXDOT having agreed to clear the ditches, which is great if they do it, but only a part of the problem. The major problem is the culvert under Addicks Howell, which is undersized compared to the next one further south. No amount of ditch clearing will resolve the blockage and backup at the culvert, with a mixture of debris and trash (mostly from the building site) and vegetation that happens with every storm. Replacing this culvert while the road is closed would be a sensible resolution. PLEASE ADDRESS THIS WITH TXDOT.
Thank You,
Steve Wormald