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WE, WE, UH, WE REALLY, WE, WE REALLY ARE EXCITED, UH, UH, THAT YOU'RE HERE TODAY.
AND WE WERE JUST WAITING A LITTLE BIT BECAUSE IRONICALLY, IT WAS THE RAIN THAT WAS HOLDING EVERYBODY BACK.
AND
AND, UM, UH, IT'S SUCH AN INTERESTING TOPIC BECAUSE YESTERDAY WE HAD A PANEL ON LIKE, UH, THAT, UM, CAROL, UM, UH, PARTICIPATED ON AND, AND LIKE, WHAT DO WE DO WHEN WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH DRINKING WATER? AND TODAY WE'RE GONNA BE TALKING ABOUT WHAT DO WE DO WHEN WE HAVE TOO MUCH WATER ALL AROUND? SO, UM, QUITE THE TOPIC.
UM, I WANTED, I'M LAUREN HOPKINS.
I'M THE CHIEF, UM, ENVIRONMENTAL, UH, SCIENCE OFFICER FOR THE CITY OF HOUSTON.
AND, UM, I WANTED TO, UH, INTRODUCE THE PANEL THIS MORNING.
UM, IT'S, IT'S GONNA BE MODERATED BY OUR PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR, CAROL HADDOCK.
BUT LET ME START WITH, UM, STEVE ELLO, STEVE THERE.
UM, HE'S OUR CHIEF RECOVERY OFFICER, UM, AND HE ENGAGES, UM, ON THE MAYOR'S BEHALF WITH GOVERNMENTS AT ALL LEVELS, PRIVATE, NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS, INTEREST GROUPS, INDIVIDUALS, AS WELL AS MAYOR STAB AND CITY DEPARTMENTS ON BASICALLY A TWOFOLD MISSION, WHICH IS TO ENSURE A RAPID QUALITY RECOVERY FROM HURRICANE HARVEY AND OTHER, UH, LEGACY DISASTERS AND POSITION THE CITY TO BE LESS VULNERABLE TO THE NEXT RECORD-BREAKING STORM.
SO HE'S REALLY IMPORTANT, UM, IN, UM, MAYOR TURNER'S ADMINISTRATION, AND WE'RE LUCKY TO HAVE HIM HERE TODAY.
UM, UH, THE NEXT PERSON I WANNA INTRODUCE IS DR.
UM, HE IS THE HERMAN BROWN PROFESSOR OF ENGINEERING AND, UM, ONE OF THE DIRECTORS OF THE SEVERE STORM PREDICTION EDUCATION AND EVACUATION FROM DISASTER CENTER, UM, CALLED THE SPEED CENTER.
AND THEY HAVE THEIR OWN CONFERENCES.
UM, MANY OF YOU WHO ARE HERE PROBABLY ARE, HAVE BEEN, UM, KEEPING UP ON THEIR WORK THROUGH THE YEARS.
BETT REALLY, UH, HAS EVALUATED FLOOD ISSUES IN TEXAS, CALIFORNIA, FLORIDA, LOUISIANA, TENNESSEE, INCLUDING, UH, SIX OF THE LARGEST AND MOST DEVASTATING FLOODS THAT HIT THE US BETWEEN 2001 AND 2017.
AND, UM, AS PART OF HIS DUTIES AT THE SPEED CENTER, HE IS CURRENTLY WORKING ON A LOT OF WATERSHED PROJECTS RELATED TO IMPACTS AND FUTURE MIGRATION FROM HURRICANES.
AND NEXT, I'D LIKE TO INTRODUCE JIM BLACKBURN.
HE'S, UH, ALSO, UM, AT RICE UNIVERSITY.
OH, AND MAYBE I DIDN'T MENTION THAT DR. BEAN IS ACTUALLY A PROFESSOR AT RICE.
ANYWAY, UM, JIM IS ALSO AT RICE UNIVERSITY.
HE TEACHES ENVIRONMENTAL LAW AND, UM, UH, BUT, AND HE'S CO-DIRECTOR OF THE SPEED CENTER.
SO YOU HAVE THE TWO DIRECTORS HERE TO TALK ABOUT THINGS.
UM, JIM DOES, UH, UH, HE'S ALSO A FACULTY AND SCHOLAR AT THE BAKER INSTITUTE.
AND, UM, HE IS A LEADER IN, UM, UM, BAYOU PRESERVATION AND, UH, UM, UH, BAYOU, UH, BY YOU, UH, CONSERVATION INITIATIVES.
SO, AND HE LEADS LITIGATION AND WORKS ON SUSTAINABILITY AND PLANNING AT HIS FIRM, AND ANYTHING RELATED TO AN ENVIRONMENT, UM, THAT JIM, UH, DEEPLY CARES ABOUT.
AND THEN, UM, THE LAST, WE INTRODUCED THE MODERATOR, CAROL HADDOCK, WHO IS OUR DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS.
UM, SHE HAS A TALENTED TEAM THAT WORKS REALLY HARD OVER, UH, TWO, UH, TO PROVIDE CLEAN WATER TO OVER 2 MILLION PEOPLE.
SO IT TURNS OUT THAT THESE FOUR PANELISTS HAVE KNOWN EACH OTHER FOR, SHALL I SAY, AT LEAST 30 YEARS.
UM, AND, UM, LONG TIME PRIVILEGED TO HAVE KNOWN THEM THAT LONG MYSELF.
I'M GONNA TURN IT OVER TO CAROL TO, UH, MODERATE THIS SESSION ON WATER, WATER EVERYWHERE.
UH, THANK YOU FOR JOINING US THIS MORNING, UH, PARTICULARLY, UH, SINCE WE GOT WEATHER THAT SETS US UP PERFECTLY FOR TODAY,
UH, THIS IS GONNA BE, THIS IS GONNA BE A FUN DAY THIS MORNING.
UH, SO WE'VE ASKED JIM TO, TO SET THE STAGE FOR THIS CONVERSATION, UH, TO JUST GIVE US A LITTLE BIT OF BACKGROUND ON, UM, ON WHERE WE'VE BEEN AND WHERE WE ARE.
UH, THANKS CAROL, AND GOOD MORNING EVERYBODY.
UH, WANNA START OFF WITH, UM, WELL, THAT ONE DIDN'T.
WE WERE SUPPOSED TO BE ADVANCING WHILE WE WERE INTRODUCING, AH, USER ARROW NUMBER ONE.
DEFINITELY BEEN, I'VE BEEN PUSHING
THIS IS A, A MAP, UH, THAT CAME OUT, UM, YOU KNOW, SOMEWHAT AFTER, UH, HURRICANE, UH, AFTER TOPICAL STORM.
HARVEY, UH, PROBABLY CAME OUT IN 2018.
UM, AND IT IS A MAP SHOWING ESSENTIALLY WHAT THE NEW A HUNDRED YEAR RAINFALL LEVEL OVER 24 HOURS WERE.
UH, IT'S A DOCUMENT CALLED NOAA ATLAS 14.
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OF US WERE, YOU KNOW, ONE THOUGHT IT WAS COMING, KIND OF KNEW IT SHOULD BE COMING, BUT IT KIND OF CAUGHT US ALL, YOU KNOW, KIND OF, WOW, THIS, THESE, THIS IS ACTUALLY WHAT THE NEW NUMBERS LOOK LIKE.WE'RE, YOU KNOW, STATISTICS THAT WE HAVE RELIED UPON FOR A LONG TIME ARE NO LONGER RELIABLE IN TERMS OF PREDICTORS OF THE FUTURE.
AND WE'RE ALL STRUGGLING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO PREDICT THE FUTURE.
THIS IS AN, I WOULD SAY, ONE OF THE FIRST EFFORTS TO DO THAT.
UM, I WANNA HIGHLIGHT, UH, THE, THE 24 HOUR, UH, A HUNDRED YEAR STORM, UH, IN YELLOW OVER THERE IS, UH, THERE ARE GOLD IS THE OLD A HUNDRED YEAR STORM, UH, WHICH WAS ABOUT 13 INCHES.
UH, NOAH ATLAS, 14, 17, 18, UH, INCHES ACROSS THE HOUSTON AREA.
IT CHANGES, BUT WE'VE ALSO HAD A LOT OF STORMS THAT ARE BIGGER THAN THAT.
UH, WE'VE HAD A LOT OF 20 INCH AND 24 HOUR STORMS, AND I THINK THAT'S PROBABLY THE THING THAT WORRIES ME THE MOST IS YEAH, HOW ARE WE DOING ON PREDICTING THE FUTURE OF THESE BIG STORMS? AND I WOULD TELL YOU, WE'VE GOT A LOT OF WORK TO DO, AND I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING WE CAN TALK ABOUT IN, UM, KIND OF TURQUOISE.
YOU SEE THE EXISTING HUNDRED YEAR, UH, FLOOD PLAIN IN, UM, IN THE COUNTY.
IT'S BASED ON THE OLD NUMBERS, THE 13 INCHES AND 24 HOURS NUMBERS.
FLOOD CONTROL DISTRICT IS REDOING OUR FLOODPLAIN MAPS.
I THINK BECAUSE OF HARVEY AND WHAT WE LEARNED ABOUT INCREASES, WE HAVE CHANGED THE REGULATORY STRUCTURE IN HOUSTON WHERE WE'RE NOW REGULATING BASED ON THE 500 YEAR STORM ON THIS MAP, WHICH WILL LIKELY BE VERY SIMILAR TO THE UPCOMING HUNDRED YEAR FLOOD THAT WE'LL SEE IN THE FUTURE.
BUT I THINK THERE'S A LOT OF ISSUES ABOUT THESE NEW MAPS AND KIND OF WHERE WE'RE HEADED.
UM, PHIL AND I ARE DOING A LOT OF WORK ON COASTAL FLOODING.
IT'S PROBABLY SOMETHING THAT CITY OF HOUSTON HASN'T FOCUSED ON A LOT IN THE PAST.
BUT, UH, WE'VE GOT STORM SURGE THAT CAN COME INTO THE EAST SIDE OF HOUSTON, COME INTO THE CLEAR LAKE AREA, AND CERTAINLY INUNDATE THE HOUSTON SHIP CHANNEL.
THIS IS A STORM ABOUT 15% BIGGER THAN IKE.
UH, WE'RE WORKING ON STORM 36, I THINK IS WHAT PHIL AND I WORK ON MOST OF THE TIME.
THE WORST CASE FOR US IS A STORM COMING DOWN THE COAST ABOUT 80 MILES SOUTH OF GALVESTON, 50 MILES SOUTH OF GALVESTON, DOWN AROUND SAN LUIS PASS.
AND IT WILL BE DEVASTATING IF WE GET IT BEFORE WE GET COASTAL PROTECTION.
WE'VE GOT THE COASTAL BARRIER BEING PROPOSED BY THE CORPS OF ENGINEERS.
WE AT RICE ARE WORKING ON SOMETHING CALLED THE GALVESTON BAY PARK PLAN.
HOPEFULLY WE'LL TALK ABOUT THAT A BIT.
AND FINALLY, I WANT TO TALK ABOUT THE, UM, POVERTY AND, UH, KIND OF, IF YOU WILL, EQUITY ISSUES ABOUT FLOODING.
THIS IS, UH, SOMETHING THAT WE HAVEN'T NECESSARILY FOCUSED ON A LOT OVER THE PAST 50 YEARS, UH, AS AN ISSUE.
I THINK IT'S AN INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT ONE.
UM, POVERTY, RACIAL DISTRIBUTION, ETHNIC DISTRIBUTION, AND HOW THE VARIOUS PARTS OF TOWN ARE FAIRING RELATIVE TO OTHER PARTS OF TOWN, I THINK IS PROBABLY MORE THAN EVER A CONCERN FOR EVERYONE.
SO I WOULD SAY THOSE ARE THE ISSUES.
I MEAN, THIS IS A, I THINK WE'VE GOT PLENTY TO TALK ABOUT THERE TO TALK ABOUT.
SO KIND OF WITH THAT, UM, WE'LL GO BACK TO CAROL.
SO I DON'T WANT TO SPEND A WHOLE LOT OF TIME, I JUST WANT TO JUMP INTO THE CONVERSATION TO BE HONEST WITH YOU.
SO PHIL, I'M GONNA START WITH YOU AND I'M GONNA SAY TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE SPEED CENTER, UM, AND TELL US, UH, I KNOW THAT YOU'RE WORKING WITH THE CITY OF HOUSTON ON SOME PREDICTION MODELS AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE.
UM, SO, SO THE DATA IS GETTING BETTER EVERY DAY.
UH, THANK YOU, UH, AND THANKS TO ALL OF YOU FOR COMING OUT, UH, ON A RAINY DAY.
OH, WAIT, I'VE GOTTA INTERRUPT REAL QUICK.
WE'VE BEEN JOINED BY COUNCIL MEMBER ROBINSON THIS MORNING, AND I, I DO WANNA ACKNOWLEDGE THE SUPPORT WE HAVE FROM OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS, UH, HERE IN HOUSTON, HELPS MAKE WHAT WE DO IN THESE PARTNERSHIPS BETTER EVERY SINGLE DAY.
SO, YES, AT THE SPEED CENTER, UH, AND WE'VE BEEN RUNNING THE SPEED CENTER, UH, LITERALLY ABOUT A YEAR AFTER HURRICANE IKE, WE FORMED THAT CENTER AND RECEIVED FUNDING FROM THE HOUSTON ENDOWMENT FOR MORE THAN A DECADE TO BEGIN STUDYING COASTAL PROBLEMS IN HOUSTON.
BUT THEN HARVEY HIT IN 2017, AND WE BEGAN STUDYING INLAND FLOOD PROBLEMS IN A BIG WAY BECAUSE, UH, HARVEY WAS OF COURSE, THE MOST DEVASTATING AND MOST, ONE OF THE MOST DAMAGING FLOODS TO EVER HIT THE US AS PART OF THAT.
AND WITH FUNDING, UH, DURING THE COVID ERA, IRONICALLY, UM, WE BEGAN A PROJECT ON A FLOOD INFORMATION RESPONSE SYSTEM, A REAL-TIME FLOOD WARNING SYSTEM.
NOW, WE HAD HAD A SYSTEM IN PLACE FOR THE TEXAS MEDICAL CENTER ON BRAZE BAYOU FOR MORE THAN 20 YEARS.
IT STARTED ALL THE WAY BACK, UH, POST ALLISON IN ABOUT 2000, 2001.
UH, BUT THE NEW SYSTEM IS DESIGNED FOR FOUR WATERSHEDS IN HOUSTON.
IT COVERS ALL FOUR, AND IT'S ON OUR WEBSITE.
IT COMES IN EVERY 15 MINUTES, UH, FOR BRAISE SIMS,
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WHITE OAK AND HUNTING BAYS.AND WITHIN THOSE WATERSHEDS, WE HAVE ALSO IDENTIFIED ALL OF THE CRITICAL FACILITIES SUCH AS SHELTERS, HOSPITALS, FIRE STATION, ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS, ET CETERA.
AND I'M GONNA ADD WATER, WASTEWATER, THOSE, THOSE F FOUNDATIONAL THINGS FOR DAILY LIFE.
SO THESE ARE ALL THE LOCATIONS THAT ARE OUTSIDE, IF YOU WILL, OUTSIDE OF THE BAYOU, OUT INTO THE HINTERLAND THERE.
AND, AND SO THE WAY WE BUILT THIS SYSTEM VERY BRIEFLY, AND THEN THERE'LL BE A QUIZ ON THIS A LITTLE BIT LATER, BUT THE, THE WAY WE BUILT THIS IS FOR EACH OF THESE WATERSHEDS, WE LOOKED AT FIVE INCHES OF RAIN UP TO 18 INCHES OF RAIN, THE HUNDRED YEAR.
AND WE DID THIS IN COMBINATIONS UPSTREAM, DOWNSTREAM.
SO WE ENDED UP WITH 50 FLOODPLAIN MAPS AND THOSE MAPS.
THEN AS THE RADAR FALLS IN REAL TIME, THOSE MAPS ARE SELECTED AND ARE SHOWN ON THE WEBSITE TO ALLOW MANAGERS AND USERS AND THE PUBLIC TO HAVE A SENSE OF EXACTLY WHERE THE FLOODING IS OCCURRING.
IN ADDITION, IN ADDITION, THE WATERSHEDS LIGHT UP LIKE A CHRISTMAS TREE WITH THE AMOUNT OF RAIN THAT'S FALLEN IN THE LAST 15, 30 MINUTES, AN HOUR, SO THAT YOU HAVE A SENSE OF WHERE THE FLOODING IS OCCURRING IN REAL TIME.
AND SO THESE ARE THE SYSTEMS THAT WE'VE BUILT, AND WE'RE VERY PROUD OF THAT, AND WE HOPE TO EXPAND THIS, UH, TO OTHER AREAS IN THE CITY, ESPECIALLY THE NEXT EXPANSION NEEDS TO BE GREEN SPA.
SO LET'S JUMP OVER A LITTLE BIT.
SO WE'VE TALKED ABOUT, UM, BEFORE THE STORM, DURING THE STORM, LET'S JUMP OVER TO RECOVERY FOR A FEW MINUTES.
AND NOTICE THAT WAS ONLY FOUR MINUTES IMPRESSED.
WE'RE ALL, BY THE WAY, NORMALLY WE 45, WE SIT, TALK FOR HOURS AND HOURS AND HOURS,
WE KNOW, AND A LOT OF TIMES WE'RE EITHER ON THE SAME SIDE OR WHEN JIM WAS PRACTICING, UH, WE WERE ON OUTSIDE, MAYBE ON THE OTHER SIDE.
BUT THE GOOD NEWS IS HE'S NO LONGER PRACTICING.
SO FIRST, FIRST, FIRST QUESTION ON THE QUIZ, HOW MANY OF US KNOW WHAT WATERSHED WE LIVE IN? THAT'S SAD.
SECOND QUESTION, HOW MANY OF US HAVE FLOOD INSURANCE? GOOD.
IT NEEDS TO BE HIGHER, BUT THAT'S MORE THAN PEOPLE THAT KNEW WHAT WATERSHED THEY LIVED IN, WHICH IS ACTUALLY A GOOD SIGN.
SO, SO OUR, OUR ROLE HERE ON THE CITY SIDE IS MORE RELATED TO STREAM FLOODING RATHER THAN COASTAL SPINE.
AND, UH, WE'RE VERY INTERESTED IN TRYING TO SOLVE THE NOMINAL RAINFALL EVENTS, GETTING WATER OUT OF THE SYSTEM INTO THE BAYOU AND KEEPING IT AWAY FROM OUR HOUSES.
UH, SO IT'S, IT'S A MUCH BIGGER CHALLENGE FOR US ON A DAY-TO-DAY BASIS.
AND A LOT OF IT HAS TO DO WITH THE FACT THAT, UM, COMING FROM PRIVATE PRACTICE NOW BEING A PURE BUREAUCRAT, I THINK $10 MILLION IS NOT A LOT OF MONEY ANYMORE.
UH, BUT THE PROBLEM IS, IS THAT WE CAN'T GET THE PUBLIC TO BE CONVINCED THAT THEY HAVE TO INVEST IN THE SYSTEM.
AND, AND THAT'S REALLY FRUSTRATING ON THE GOVERNMENTAL SIDE.
UH, YOU KNOW, WE, WE GET ACCUSED OF, WELL, NO NEW TAXES.
WELL, AT THE END OF THE DAY, WE CAN'T RELY ON THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OR THE STATE GOVERNMENT TO FUND US, EVEN THOUGH THAT'S ONE OF THE ROLES I HAVE IS TRYING TO GET THOSE FUNDS INTO THE COMMUNITY.
AND THE OTHER PROBLEM THAT WE HAVE IS DELIVERING OUR PROJECTS.
OUR PROJECTS TAKE YEARS, AND YET HERE WE ARE WITH THE ADVENT OF THIS, AND WE WANTED INSTANTANEOUS RESULTS.
SO YOU'LL HEAR, AND YOU'RE GONNA HEAR IT DURING THE NEXT MAYORAL RACE, YOU KNOW, ARE YOU ANY BETTER TODAY THAN YOU WERE EIGHT YEARS AGO? WELL, IT TAKES US SIX TO EIGHT YEARS TO DELIVER LARGE PROJECTS.
AND WHAT THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION DECIDED TO DO BACK IN 2017 IS TO SAY, WELL, LET'S TRY TO DO SMALLER PROJECTS THAT WE CAN GET IN AND OUTTA NEIGHBORHOODS AND SHOW SOME RESULTS OF WHAT WE'RE DOING.
AND THAT WAS THE SWAT PROGRAM THAT THE MAYOR CREATED IN 2017, STARTED OUT WITH A $7 MILLION, YOU KNOW, KICKOFF, WE'LL KICK OFF $7 MILLION WORTH OF WORK, WE'LL DISTRIBUTE ACROSS 11 DISTRICTS, WHICH IS, YOU KNOW, REALLY THAT'S, THAT'S HOW MUCH MONEY AT ALL NOW? IT'S $40 MILLION.
UH, YOU KNOW, IT'S TAKEN SOME OF THE MONEY AWAY FROM CAROL'S CAPITAL PROJECTS, BUT IT'S ACTUALLY SHOWING THE PUBLIC THAT, HEY, WE'RE ACTUALLY DOING STUFF WITH YOUR, WITH YOUR MONEY.
NOT THAT IT'S COMING INTO THE CITY, BUT IT'S, IT'S A LITTLE CHALLENGING TO CONVINCE THE PUBLIC TO HELP US.
SO I, AND I DO WANT TO ADD TO, TO WHAT STEVE'S TALKING ABOUT HERE IN THE SENSE THAT WHAT MOST PEOPLE DON'T REALIZE IS WE GOT OUR FIRST FLOODPLAIN MAPS IN THE LATE SEVENTIES, EARLY EIGHTIES.
AND IF YOU LOOK CITYWIDE, THE NUMBER OF STRUCTURES THAT ARE CURRENTLY IN TODAY'S MAPPED FLOODPLAIN, NEARLY 80% OF THOSE STRUCTURES WERE BUILT BEFORE THOSE FIRST FLOODPLAIN MAPS BECAME AVAILABLE.
SO THEY WERE BUILT WITHOUT THE KNOWLEDGE OR THE REGULATION THAT WE HAVE TODAY.
AND SO IT IS NOT ANYBODY'S FAULT THAT THEY ARE IN A PLACE WHERE THEY'RE EXPERIENCING FLOODING.
AND SO IT BECOMES A, A, A PARTNERSHIP WITH THE COMMUNITY ON HOW, ON HOW WE ADDRESS THAT.
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THE, THE STRUGGLE OF WANTING TO FUND IT, WE ALSO HAVE THE STRUGGLE OF SOME, SOME COMMUNITIES ARE IN, IN AREAS, AND HOUSES ARE BUILT IN THOSE AREAS IN WAYS, UH, THAT THERE'S NOT REALLY A GOOD INFRASTRUCTURE SOLUTION FOR THAT.AND SO WE HAVE TO HAVE ALL THE TOOLS IN THE TOOLBOX TO MAKE THAT HAPPEN.
SO JIM, I WANNA, I WANNA TOSS OVER TO YOU BECAUSE WE HAVE, UM, WE, YOU, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF THE TOOLS THAT WE HAVE, AND YOU, YOU'RE, YOU'RE REALLY BOOTS ON THE GROUND IN TALKING WITH MANY OF THESE COMMUNITIES.
OH, I, I WORKED WITH A LOT OF COMMUNITIES AND, YOU KNOW, THERE'S AN INTERESTING, UH, CONFLICT OUT THERE, YOU KNOW, THAT WE ALL KIND OF UNDERSTAND BETTER NOW THAN WE DID BEFORE.
YOU HAVE A FLOOD, LIKE YOU'RE SAYING, CAROL, A LOT OF THESE ARE LEGACY HOMES THAT ARE RIGHT UP NEXT TO THE BAYOU.
WE ALWAYS WANTED TO BE NEXT TO THE BAYOU.
UH, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE THAT PATTERN.
A HOME GETS FLOODED, BUT THERE'S NO MONEY FOR BUYOUT AT THE TIME THAT THE FLOOD OCCURS.
AND PEOPLE WOULD BE WILLING TO SELL AT THAT POINT.
IF THERE'S MONEY FOR BUYOUT, IT USUALLY COMES, WHAT, THREE YEARS LATER, RIGHT? SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
THEY, YOU HAVE ABOUT 30 DAYS TO MAKE A DECISION AS A HOMEOWNER, AM I GONNA REPAIR OR AM I GONNA SELL AT A LOSS? OR WHAT AM I GONNA DO? MOST EVERYBODY I'VE TALKED TO WANTS TO STAY IN THE SAME GENERAL PART OF TOWN.
WE GET TO KNOW A PART OF TOWN, WE FEEL COMFORTABLE THERE, DON'T WANNA LEAVE, DON'T WANNA BE FLOODED, DON'T WANNA LEAVE, AND THERE'S NO MONEY TO BUY YOU OUT AT THAT TIME.
SO WE GET LOCKED INTO A PATTERN OF REPAIR, FLOOD, REPAIR, FLOOD, WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO BUY OUT A LOT OF HOUSES.
I, YOU KNOW, THE DUTCH HAVE A SAYING ABOUT MAKING ROOM FOR THE WATER.
I THINK IF THERE'S ONE THING TO WALK AWAY FROM HERE TODAY, WE'RE GONNA BE DEALING WITH A LOT OF WATER IN THE FUTURE FOR SHORT TERMS. WE MAY HAVE LONG TERM WATER SUPPLY PROBLEMS WITH DROUGHTS AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
WE'RE GONNA SEE MORE AND MORE HIGHLY INTENSE RAINFALL EVENTS.
WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO LIVE WITH THEM.
THAT'S GONNA MEAN MAKING MORE ROOM FOR THE WATER PROBABLY MEANS MORE BUYOUTS.
I THINK IT'S GONNA BE INEVITABLE.
BUT WE OUGHT TO COMBINE HOUSING CONCEPTS WITH THE BI WITH THE THINKING ABOUT FLOODING SOMETHING WE'VE NOT DONE A WHOLE LOT OF, I THINK YOU'VE TRIED TO DO SOME OF THAT THESE DAYS, BUT I JUST THINK WE'RE TALKING ABOUT KIND OF RETHINKING A LOT OF THE TRADITIONAL WAYS WE'VE DONE THINGS.
AND IT'S NOT EASY TO CHANGE SOMETHING LIKE A CITY OF HOUSTON, AND IT'S KIND OF LIKE A LARGE TANKER.
AND I GUESS IN A LOT OF RESPECTS, CAROL, YOU PROBABLY KNOW THAT AS WELL AS ANYONE WITH THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT.
UM, SO, BUT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I, I LIKE WHERE WE ARE IS, UH, THE CITY, UM, PUBLISHED A FRAMEWORK CALLED RESILIENT HOUSTON.
AND ONE OF THE GREAT THINGS ABOUT RESILIENT HOUSTON, WHEN, UH, THE, THE RESILIENCY OFFICER AT THE TIME CALLED ME AND SAID, HEY, I WANNA COME MEET WITH YOU ABOUT THIS AND, AND GET PUBLIC WORKS' INPUT.
THE FIRST THING I SAID WAS, I DON'T WANT A CHAPTER ON INFRASTRUCTURE.
I THOUGHT I WAS GONNA HAVE TO TAKE SIX MONTHS TO CONVINCE YOU OF THAT.
'CAUSE INFRASTRUCTURE IS INTEGRAL TO EVERYTHING.
UH, YOU KNOW, AND IT NEEDS TO BE, IT NEEDS TO BE THAT FOUNDATION, UM, THAT EVERYTHING ELSE IS BUILT ON.
AND ONE OF THE THINGS I LOVE ABOUT RESILIENT HOUSTON IS, IS IT, IT LOOKS AT ALL OF THESE THINGS ACROSS HEALTH, ACROSS INCOME, ACROSS ACCESS, ACROSS MOBILITY, ACROSS ALL OF THESE THINGS IN THERE.
AND, AND STEVE, HOW DO WE, HOW DO WE TAKE THIS, THIS APPROACH TO ADDRESSING FLOODING, INTO CREATING RESILIENCE AND ACTUALLY IMPROVING HOUSTON? SO IT WAS INTERESTING 'CAUSE THE RESILIENCY OFFICER WAS SHARING OFFICE SPACE WITH ME AT THE TIME, AND BEFORE SHE WENT TO GO TALK TO CAROL.
AND WE, WE KIND OF EARMARKED A PLACE UP BY THE AIRPORT CALLED GREENS POINT.
AND IN GREENS POINT IS AN AREA ALONG GREENS BAYOU, WHERE WE HAVE PROBABLY 2,500 APARTMENT UNITS THAT ARE SUBJECT TO FLOODING WHEN THEY'RE ORIGINALLY BUILT.
IN THE SEVENTIES, THERE WASN'T EVEN A FLOODPLAIN OR FLOOD MAP AVAILABLE.
AND THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN THE FLOOD MAPS COME OUT, THEY'RE IN THE FLOODPLAIN.
AND OVER THE YEARS, THESE MAPS HAVE CHANGED.
SO THEY WENT FROM IN THE FLOODPLAIN TO DEEPER IN THE FLOODPLAIN TO NOW IN THE FLOODWAY.
AND SO THE IDEA WAS, WELL, WE'VE GOTTA MOVE THESE PEOPLE OUT OF THIS HARM'S WAY, BECAUSE A LOT OF THESE PEOPLE ARE IN EITHER SUBSIDIZED HOUSING, THE NUMBER ONE ASSET IS THEIR CAR.
THEIR CAR GETS FLOODED, THEY CAN'T GO TO WORK, THEY LOSE THEIR JOBS.
SEE WHAT I'M SAYING? SO IT'S KIND OF LIKE A CIRCLE EVENT.
WE WENT UP TO GREENS POINT, AND WE, WE KNEW ONE BUSINESS OWNER WHO OWNED ABOUT 500 UNITS, AND WE WENT UP TO HIM AND SAID, WE WANNA BUY YOUR APARTMENT COMPLEX.
AND HE SAID, WHY? HE SAID, 'CAUSE IT'S IN THE FLOODWAY AND WE THINK WE'LL BE WILLING TO PAY MARKET RATE.
AND IF WE'RE ABLE TO COME TO AN AGREEMENT TO PURCHASE YOUR APARTMENT COMPLEXES, THEN IT'LL BE A CATALYST FOR US TO TALK TO YOUR OTHER BUSINESS OWNERS.
WE WENT TO HUD AND WE SAID, WE WANT TO USE CERTAIN AMOUNT OF MONEY FOR HUD FUNDS.
AND THEN WE HAD SOME OTHER MONEY FROM DISASTER RECOVERY, AND WE BOUGHT A 500 UNIT APARTMENT COMPLEX, WHICH WAS AT THE TIME,
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FULLY OCCUPIED.AND SO WE ACTUALLY PARTICIPATED IN RELOCATING THOSE RESIDENTS OUTSIDE OF HARM'S WAY.
WE'RE GONNA TEAR DOWN THE APARTMENT COMPLEX AND WE'RE GONNA CREATE THE GREEN SPACE, WHICH IS STARTING TO MAKE ROOM FOR WATER, MAKE ROOM FOR IT, WHICH IS, IT'S, IT'S A SLOW PROCESS, BUT WE, WE SEE THE BEGINNINGS OF IT.
AND THAT WAS MY COMMITMENT TO THE RESILIENCY DIRECTOR AT THE POINT AT THE TIME.
WE'LL IMPLEMENT THAT PROJECT UP THERE AND WE'LL SEE HOW MUCH, HOW MUCH PROGRESS WE MAKE.
SO IT'S, IT'S KIND OF REFRESHING TO SEE THAT MM-HMM
AND A LONG TERM EXAMPLE OF THAT IS ACTUALLY ON HALLS BAYOU, RIGHT? BY, UH, JENSEN AND 59 MM-HMM
WHERE THERE WAS A SUBDIVISION THAT, THAT IT WAS FLOODED UP TO THE ROOF IN HURRICANE OR TROPICAL STORM.
WE USED, UH, RECOVERY MONDAY FROM IKE TO FINISH THE BUYOUTS UP THERE IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE HARRIS COUNTY FLOOD CONTROL DISTRICT AND BEGIN DIGGING DETENTION.
WE'VE CONTINUED TO USE ADDITIONAL STORMS BEYOND THAT TO CONTINUE TO DATE DETENTION.
AND WHEN, WHEN HARVEY HAPPENED, THERE WAS NOBODY IN HARM'S WAY IN THOSE PARTICULAR SUBDIVISIONS THAT HAD BEEN FLOODED SO, SO, SO BAD IN, IN THE PAST, BUT THERE WAS A VERY CONSCIENTIOUS EFFORT TO HELP PEOPLE RELOCATE IN THE GENERAL AREA.
SO THAT STAY IN THEIR COMMUNITY, GET TO WHAT JIM WAS TALKING ABOUT IN TERMS OF WE GREW UP HERE, WE WANT TO STAY HERE.
SO WE ARE IMPLEMENTING A STUDY WITH, WITH HUD FUNDS TO DO, WHAT DO WE CALL THE BUYOUT BUYIN, IS TO GO TO THESE PEOPLE THAT ARE IN HARM'S WAY, BUY THEM OUT IN THAT PARTICULAR NEIGHBORHOOD AND RELOCATE THEM IN THE SAME NEIGHBORHOOD.
THAT'S OUT OF THE FLOODWAY AND FLOODPLAIN.
IT'S, IT'S SOON TO BE PUBLISHED.
SO WE WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THAT.
NO, AND I WANNA THROW THIS BACK OVER TO PHIL, BECAUSE I WANNA TALK ABOUT THIS, BUT I ALSO WANNA TALK ABOUT HOW YOU DEAL WITH ALL THE DIFFERENT INFRASTRUCTURE IN YOUR MODELS AS YOU, AS YOU DO THIS.
BEFORE I GET THERE, UH, I WANT TO ANSWER A SIMILAR QUESTION BECAUSE THERE'S A ONE, THERE'S SEVERAL WONDERFUL EXAMPLES, UH, GOING FORWARD OF HOW TO DO THIS AND, AND TO DO IT EVEN IN THE MIDST OF ALL THIS EXCESS FLOODING.
GOOD EXAMPLE IS EXPLORATION GREEN, WHICH IS A, WHICH IS A LARGE DETENTION POND THAT GOT BUILT DOWN IN THE CLEAR LAKE CLEAR CREEK AREA, UH, IN THAT THEY HAD A DEFUNCT GOLF COURSE, AND THEY WENT IN AND GRABBED ALL OF THAT LAND FOR THE GOLF COURSE, BUILT THE POND.
AND, AND ACCORDING TO WHAT I HEARD, THEY SAVED SOMETHING LIKE 200 HOUSES, UH, DURING HARVEY, UH, THAT WOULD'VE FLOODED.
AND SO THESE ARE THE KINDS OF EXAMPLES.
IT'S, IT'S ALL ALL ABOUT MAKE ROOM FOR THE RIVER.
AN INWOOD FOREST IS GOING TO BE THIS, RIGHT, RIGHT.
FOR THE NEXT BIG EVENT, RIGHT? MM-HMM
SO THERE ARE A FEW OF THESE, BUT YOU KNOW, IF, IF UNFORTUNATELY THERE'S, YOU KNOW, THERE'S ONE HERE, THERE'S ONE THERE, THERE'S ONE HERE.
WE NEED TO, WE NEED TO THINK ALONG THE BAYOU.
AND, UH, WITHIN THE MODELING APPROACH, WE'VE JUST CREATED, I JUST FINISHED GRADUATING A STUDENT, UH, THAT DID A MARVELOUS STUDY UP ON WHITE OAK BAYOU.
AND, UH, IN THAT STUDY, SHE TOOK THE, THE TYPICAL SIDE SLOPES THAT YOU SEE ON THE BAYOU THAT HAVE BEEN CHANNELIZED.
THEY'RE ABOUT THREE TO ONE SIDE SLOPES, AND THEY'RE ABOUT LIKE THIS.
AND SHE TOOK THOSE SIDE SLOPES AND ONLY DID ONE CHANGE.
SHE CHANGED THEM TO 10 TO ONE AND LAID THEM BACK.
AND THIS IS SIMILAR TO WHAT WE, WHAT WAS DONE IN, UH, SIMS BAYOU BY THE ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS IN TERMS OF THEIR DESIGN.
AND THEN OF COURSE, IT'S ALL GRASS LINE.
SHE PUT THE GRASS LINE IN AND RERAN THE COMPUTER MODELS.
AND GUESS WHAT? SHE WAS ABLE TO KNOCK DOWN FLOOD LEVELS BY TWO FEET, ALL IN THE MID AND UPPER RANGE OF WHITE OAK.
NOW THE DOWNSTREAM OF WHITE OAK, THAT'S A PROBLEM.
AND THAT'S GONNA, THAT'S GONNA TAKE SOME SPECIAL THINKING LIKE STRAIGHTENING OUT THE BAYOU AND SO ON.
BUT THIS WAS, THIS WAS THE, THE RUNS JUST CAME OUT A MONTH AGO, AND IT WAS AN ASTOUNDING FINDING.
AND IT, IT'S, IT'S BRINGING MAKE ROOM FOR THE RIVER FROM THE DUTCH BACK INTO HOUSTON.
AND I WAS MOST EXCITED BY THE WAY, THIS STUDENT IS GOING ON TO PRINCETON FOR A PHD.
THAT'S THE LEVEL THAT SHE'S AT.
SO I, I'M GONNA BUILD OFF THAT, BUT I AM GONNA THROW BACK OVER TO JIM HERE BECAUSE YOU TALK ABOUT, UM, NOT CHANGING THE INFLOW IN THAT TYPE OF APPROACH.
BUT JIM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT, THAT YOU'RE SO PASSIONATE ABOUT IS, IS HOW WE BUILD NATURE-BASED SOLUTIONS AND, AND HOW WE CREATE SPONGE CITIES AND HOW WE OH, YEAH.
YOU HAVE TO, HOW WE, HOW WE, HOW WE SLOW DOWN THE RUNOFF AND NOT NECESSARILY JUST MOVE A LOT OF WATER.
WELL, I, I THINK, AGAIN, IT'S SORT OF ONE OF THOSE COMBINATIONS OF ALL OF THE ABOVE.
I THINK WE HAVE BEEN DISMISSIVE OF, OF MANY THINGS THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN IN OUR TOOLBOX BACK FROM THE EIGHTIES AND NINETIES.
AND I MEAN, OUR HISTORY OF FLOOD CON OF, OF, OF FLOODPLAINS, FOR EXAMPLE, WAS VERY, VERY HOTLY CONTESTED.
I MEAN, HARRIS COUNTY BECAME THE FIRST COUNTY IN THE UNITED STATES TO DO ITS OWN FLOODPLAIN MAPPING.
IN THE EARLY EIGHTIES, UH, THERE WAS A FIGHT WITH THE CORPS OF ENGINEERS OVER THE MAPPING.
AND SO IT'S ALWAYS BEEN CONTESTED.
AND I THINK PART OF WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT IS NOT ONLY PULLING ALL OF THESE DIFFERENT TOOLS IN AND NATURE BEING A HUGE TOOL THAT
[00:25:01]
WE'VE SORT OF NEGLECTED IN THE PAST, BUT IT REALLY, AGAIN, I THINK DIFFERENTLY ABOUT WATER.IF YOU THINK IN TERMS OF LIVING WITH IT, THESE FLOODPLAIN MAPS ARE JUST NOT SOMETHING THAT ARE A REGULATORY PROBLEM.
THEY'RE NOT RED TAPE, THEY'RE DANGEROUS SIGNS.
I MEAN, THESE ARE AREAS THAT ARE DANGEROUS TO LIVE IN.
WE'VE REALLY NEVER TALKED A LOT ABOUT THAT IN THE HOUSTON COMMUNITY.
I MEAN, DOWN IN CLEAR LAKE, I'LL NEVER FORGET, WE PUT A, A MARKER UP, UH, PARIS COUNTY PUT A MARKER UP AFTER HURRICANE IKE THAT SAID THAT THIS CENTER WAS LIKE BAY AREA AND SATURN, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE BIG INTERSECTIONS, YOU KNOW, CATEGORY FOUR STORM, THE SURGE GETS UP TO HERE, CATEGORY FIVE STORM.
IT WAS UP ABOUT, YOU KNOW, 11 FEET ABOVE THE ROAD.
IT LASTED TWO MONTHS AND WAS TAKEN DOWN BECAUSE IT INTERFERED WITH HOME SALES.
AND YOU GO, WELL, YEAH, YOU KNOW, BUT AS A COMMUNITY, WE VALUED HOME SALES MORE THAN PUTTING GOOD INFORMATION OUT ABOUT FLOODING.
WELL, I THINK THESE ARE THE, THESE ARE THE ISSUES WE'VE GOTTA DEAL WITH.
WE'VE GOT TO TALK MORE, YOU KNOW, THE HANDS SHOWING UP THAT, UH, YOU ASK ABOUT WHO, WHO KNOWS WHICH WATERSHED YOU'RE IN.
THOSE BECOME VITAL SURVIVAL ISSUES.
BUT WE DON'T TALK ABOUT 'EM THAT WAY IN HOUSTON.
AND TO ME, YOU KNOW, THAT THEN OPENS UP WHAT EV YOU KNOW, EVERYTHING'S ON THE TABLE.
I THINK ONCE WE REALIZE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT SURVIVAL, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT STUFF THAT CAN KILL YOU, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THINGS THAT CAN RUIN YOUR FUTURE.
AND WE ALL HAVE TO COLLECTIVELY WORK TOGETHER ON THAT.
AND I THINK WE CAME FROM A POSITION WHERE IT WAS MUCH MORE ADVERSARIAL.
AND, UM, I'VE BEEN A LITIGATOR.
I HAVE RETIRED FROM LITIGATION.
I THINK STEVE AND PHIL ARE VERY HAPPY ABOUT THAT.
AND I THINK WE'RE REALLY AT A VERY DIFFERENT POINT WHERE I THINK THE MORE WE RECOGNIZE THE SCOPE OF THIS PROBLEM THAT WE'VE GOT WITH WATER, I THINK THE MORE WE WILL WORK TOGETHER IN A MORE COHESIVE MANNER.
AND I REALLY BELIEVE THAT, PHIL, YOU WANT TO SAY SOMETHING? YES.
UH, SHE WAS ASKING ABOUT MODELING, UH, A LITTLE BIT.
AND I DO WANNA, I DO WANNA EXPRESS THE FACT THAT STARTING IN 2018, A LOT OF CHANGES TOOK PLACE IN THE MODELING WORLD.
ONE, YOU'VE ALREADY HEARD ABOUT ATLAS 14, WHICH PRODUCED ABOUT A ANOTHER 30% OF RAINFALL FOR THE A HUNDRED YEAR.
WHEN YOU GO FROM 13 INCHES TO 18 INCHES, THAT'S HUGE, BECAUSE MOST OF THOSE BAYOU ARE LUCKY.
IF THEY CAN CONTAIN 10 OR 11 INCHES, YOU GET THE 13, YOU'RE ALREADY WELL OUT OF THE BAYOU.
IT'S A WHOLE, IT'S A WHOLE NOTHER STORY.
BUT THE MODELS HAVE ALSO GREATLY IMPROVED THE NEW TWO DIMENSIONAL MODELS THAT WE NOW USE AND ARE BEING USED IN MAP NEXT AS PART OF THE REMAPPING OF ALL OF HARRIS COUNTY, UH, WATERSHEDS.
THESE MODELS ARE DEAD ON ACCURATE.
THEY, THEY'RE REALLY MUCH BETTER THAN THE OLDER MODELS FROM 2007 AND 2012.
AND THESE MODELS ARE NOW BEING USED TO REMAP ALL OF HARRIS COUNTY.
NOW THE FLOODPLAINS ARE GOING TO BE BIGGER.
THERE'S JUST, THERE'S NO WAY THEY COULDN'T BE.
THAT'S JUST THE LAWS OF PHYSICS.
UH, BUT THE GOOD NEWS IS, IF THERE IS GOOD NEWS, IS WE'RE ABLE TO MUCH BETTER MAP THE FLOODING OUTSIDE THE BAYOU, OUTSIDE THESE FLOODPLAINS AND WHAT WE CALL THE OVERFLOW ZONES.
AND THAT'S WHERE PEOPLE REALLY RUN INTO PROBLEMS, ESPECIALLY WITH, UM, UH, THE, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE OF THE 33 TO 40% OF PEOPLE THAT ARE OUTSIDE THE A HUNDRED YEAR FLOODPLAIN.
AND SO WE'RE ABLE TO BETTER MAP THAT, AND AT LEAST WE WE'RE ABLE TO BETTER EXPLAIN THE RISK THAN TO THE COMMUNITIES THAT ARE A COUPLE OTHER POINTS BEFORE, BEFORE YOU ASK, I, WELL, ACTUALLY, I WANNA ASK A QUESTION.
SO HOW, HOW MANY PEOPLE KNOW, UM, HOW MANY PEOPLE THINK THE FLOODPLAIN MAPS REPRESENT THE FULL FLOODING RISK IN THE HOUSTON AREA? WELL, HOW MANY OF Y'ALL ACTUALLY LOOK AT A FLOODPLAIN MAP? YEAH.
BECAUSE THAT IS A VERY IMPORTANT CONCEPT THAT MOST PEOPLE DON'T REALIZE IS THAT IT IS ONLY ONE RISK.
UH, SO I WANTED TO JUST DOVETAIL WHAT JIM WAS TALKING ABOUT.
THE, YOU KNOW, THE CITY DID THAT ALSO STAKE, PUT STAKES OUT ON BRAISED BAYOU AND INDICATING FLOOD LEVELS.
TWO WEEKS, TWO, YOU KNOW, AND IT WAS, YOU KNOW, ALL HELL BROKE LOOSE.
BUT YEAH, YOU KNOW, THE, I THINK THE THING THAT'S BEEN CHANGING OVER TIME, AND I'VE BEEN IN THE STORMWATER BUSINESS FOR ALMOST 40 YEARS, AND, UH, I REMEMBER WHEN I FIRST STARTED DOING STORMWATER DESIGN, IT WAS CONCRETE LINE, DELIVER THAT WATER, GET IT OUT AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE, AND THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN YOU SAW SORT OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT.
AND I SAID, OKAY, WELL, LET'S JUST PAINT IT GREEN, AND NOW WE'RE GREEN, YOU KNOW, AND LET, AND WE'LL FIX THAT.
BUT NOW WE'RE ACTUALLY LOOKING AT NOT ONLY MAKING ROOM FOR WATER, BUT INTEGRATING IT INTO THE NEIGHBORHOOD SO THAT WE START DESIGNING THESE DETENTION FACILITIES TO WHERE THEY'RE ACTUALLY PART OF A QUALITY OF LIFE.
WE HAVE PARKS AROUND THESE DETENTION FACILITIES.
WE ACTUALLY PUT WETLANDS IN OUR DETENTION BASIN YEAH.
[00:30:01]
TO GET WILDLIFE TO COME TO THOSE AREAS.SO IT'S, IT'S A BIG DIFFERENCE.
BUT THE ONE THING I WANT TO DIRECT THE QUESTION TO, JIM BROUGHT UP THE VERY LAST SLIDE, WHICH I THINK IS, UH, SORT OF, IT'S THE UNSPOKEN WORD RIGHT NOW YEAH.
IS IN INEQUITY OF INVESTMENT IN OUR NEIGHBORHOODS RELATIVE TO STORMWATER, ACTUALLY RELATIVE TO ANY TYPE OF INFRASTRUCTURE, BUT IN PARTICULAR ON STORMWATER.
AND I'LL, I'LL START OFF THE CONVERSATION WITH SOME OF THE CHALLENGES HISTORICALLY THAT HAVE IMPACTED SOME OF THESE NEIGHBORHOODS, PARTICULARLY ON THE FEDERAL SIDE, WAS THE FEDERAL'S REQUIREMENT TO JUSTIFY A PROJECT THROUGH A BENEFIT COST ANALYSIS.
AND AS A RESULT, WHEN YOU'RE IN THESE OLDER NEIGHBORHOODS THAT ARE NOT AS DENSE, AND THE HOUSES ARE NOT AS EXPENSIVE, YOU CAN'T GET THE BENEFIT TO JUSTIFY THE COST.
AND SO A LOT OF THESE NEIGHBORHOODS, PARTICULARLY ON THE NORTHEAST SIDE OF HOUSTON, UH, YOU DON'T SEE A FEDERAL PROJECT OUT THERE BECAUSE IT CAN'T JUSTIFY FOR THE FEDERAL EXPENSE.
AND SO, I DON'T KNOW IF THAT WAS SOMETHING THAT WAS BY DESIGN, I REALLY THINK IT WAS UNINTENTIONAL.
BUT WE'RE STARTING TO RAISE THAT ISSUE WITH THE FEDERAL PEOPLE AND SAYING, HEY, THIS IS NOT THE RIGHT WAY TO EVALUATE THE BENEFIT OF A COMMUNITY TO JUSTIFY THE COST OF THE INVESTMENT.
AND I THINK YOU ACTUALLY EVEN HAVE TO GO BACK BEFORE THIS.
UM, 'CAUSE THIS IS, THIS IS RECENT, RIGHT? THAT, THAT WE'RE SEEING THIS IN THE EQUATIONS.
BUT IF, IF YOU GO FAR ENOUGH BACK, UM, WE FIND THAT MANY OF THESE, THESE COMMUNITIES HAVE, UM, INFRASTRUCTURE THAT WASN'T, UM, BUILT THE SAME WAY TO BEGIN WITH AND HASN'T BEEN INVESTED IN THE SAME WAY.
AND THAT REALLY TRULY GOES BACK TO, UM, FEDERAL AND LOCAL DECISIONS THAT, THAT TRACE ALL THE WAY BACK TO REDLINING, THAT TRACE BACK TO SIGNIFICANT INEQUITIES THAT ARE FUNDAMENTALLY BAKED INTO HOW OUR CITY'S BUILT.
AND THAT CONTINUED FORWARD IN POLICIES, IN EQUATIONS, IN, IN THINGS OF THAT NATURE.
AND SO WE, WE HAVE TO BE WILLING TO STEP IN AND BEGIN TO, TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE HAVE TO BE PART OF CHANGING HOW WE APPROACH THAT IN THE FUTURE.
AND I, AND I WILL TELL YOU, IT'S, FOR ME, THE LAST FIVE OR SIX YEARS HAS BEEN AN, AN AMAZING LEARNING EXPERIENCE BECAUSE AS AN ENGINEER, I REMEMBER I WAS PART OF DEVELOPING HOW WE PRIORITIZE A CIP MM-HMM
AND WE, YOU KNOW, WE WE'RE GONNA TAKE THE POLITICS OUT OF IT, WE'RE GONNA MAKE IT, YOU KNOW, LET'S JUST RATE THE, THE QUALITY OF THE INFRASTRUCTURE AND LET'S FIGURE OUT WHERE TO INVEST THINGS.
AND THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER IS, IS YOU CAN'T IGNORE THAT PAST AND THE UNDERINVESTMENT, UM, AS YOU MOVE FORWARD.
YOU HAVE TO, YOU HAVE TO BRING THAT UP.
AND THESE, AND THIS IS, YEAH, THIS IS AN AREA THAT, THAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH JIM AND THE, THE BAYOU CITY INITIATIVE ON, UH, PARTICULARLY OUT IN THE NORTHEAST AREA OH, ABSOLUTELY.
I MEAN, THAT'S REALLY WHAT WE'VE BEEN FOCUSING ON.
AND YOU KNOW, WHAT STEVE SAYS IS RIGHT.
I MEAN, THE BENEFIT COST RATIO THAT THE CORE OF ENGINEERS HAVE SET UP OVER THE YEARS, I DON'T THINK IT WAS INTENTIONALLY DONE FOR ANY MALICIOUS REASON, IS WE, IF WE SPEND MONEY, WE OUGHT TO, UH, GET MORE BENEFITS THAN WE SPEND WAS WHERE IT STARTED.
WHEN YOU HAVE ESSENTIALLY RELATIVELY LOWER INCOME AREAS, THE HOUSES DON'T COST AS MUCH, BUT THE INFRASTRUCTURE COSTS AS MUCH.
AND SO YOU JUST DON'T HAVE THE, THE NUMBERS TO MAKE IT WORK.
THERE NEEDS TO BE, UH, CHANGES TO THAT.
WELL, WHAT I'VE NEVER SEEN IS A METRIC OF EQUITY.
HOW DO WE DETERMINE WHAT LEVEL OF SERVICE IS EQUITABLE? UM, DOES EVERYBODY FLOOD IN A FIVE YEAR STORM? DO ONLY SOME AREAS FLOOD IN A FIVE YEAR STORM? I, I'VE NEVER SEEN A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS LIKE THAT.
AND I THINK IT COULD BE DONE, BUT IT'S VERY HARD, I THINK, TO TRY TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO EQUALIZE HOW WE VIEW SOMETHING LIKE FLOOD RISK.
I THINK WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO GET THERE.
WELL, I MEAN, CARROLL HAS LIMITED FUNDS.
SO I MEAN, THE CITY HAS TO DECIDE, YOU KNOW, WHAT LEVEL OF SERVICE THEY'RE GONNA I KNOW.
LIKE TO A COMMUNITY, GET A GRAD STUDENT TO DO.
WE ARE, DO SOME RESEARCH ON IT.
BUT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE NEED TO THINK ABOUT WHEN WE'RE, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THIS, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THIS IN IN MODELING.
WE'RE TALKING ABOUT IT IN NUMBERS, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT IT IN FUNDING.
BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, THIS IS ABOUT PEOPLE.
AND ONE OF THE STUDIES THAT THE KINDER INSTITUTE PUT OUT, UM, AND I THINK THIS WAS RIGHT AFTER HARVEY, WAS THAT THE AVERAGE FAMILY DIDN'T HAVE $400 CASH TO HELP RECOVER IMMEDIATELY POST STORM.
I MEAN, THAT'S NOT EVEN TWO NIGHTS IN A HOTEL ROOM.
I MEAN, YOU KNOW, AND OPTIONS ARE LIMITED.
AND SO, SO IT, YOU KNOW, WE CAN TALK ABOUT THIS ALL DAY LONG, BUT AT THE, BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, AN EVENT LIKE THIS CAN COMPLETELY ALTER SOMEONE'S FUTURE.
IF THE ONLY CAR THAT YOU HAVE IS FLOODED IF THE, THE HOUSE OR THE APARTMENT THAT YOU LIVE IN IS FLOODED, ALL OF YOUR CONTENTS ARE GONE.
IT'S A, IT'S A SIGNIFICANT, SIGNIFICANT IMPACT.
AND THAT'S WHY WE'RE PASSIONATE ABOUT DOING IT AND DOING THE, THE WORK THAT WE DO IS BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT THE, THE DAY-TO-DAY IMPACT AND BENEFIT THAT THAT IS THERE, UM, WE FOCUS ON THE PARTS WE
[00:35:01]
CAN FOCUS ON, BUT IT'S FOR THE PEOPLE THAT ARE LIVING HERE IN HOUSTON AND MAKING SURE THAT WE CAN MAKE THOSE IMPROVEMENTS INCREMENTALLY.BUT THERE'S PROBABLY MORE NEW, UM, TO MY MIND, MORE POLICY ISSUES I'VE UNCOVERED IN THE LAST FIVE YEARS THAN I'VE REALLY EVER REALIZED ABOUT.
I MEAN, WE ARE, I THINK WE'RE FACING CHANGE AT A LEVEL THAT I'VE NEVER SEEN.
AND, YOU KNOW, I, I MEAN, I WROTE MY FIRST PAPER, I WROTE, UH, A STUDY OF THE TEXAS LAW OF DRAINAGE AND WITH A CASE STUDY ON HARRIS COUNTY IN 1979.
SO, I MEAN, IT GOES BACK A WHILE WATCHING THESE EVOLUTIONS.
AND I THINK WE'VE GOT MORE, BOTH INTERESTING BUT INCREDIBLY DIFFICULT CHALLENGES IN FRONT OF US NOW THAN WE'VE EVER HAD.
AND SO, UH, I THINK IT'S GONNA TAKE ALL OF US WORKING TOGETHER AS HARD AS WE CAN AND LISTENING TO EACH OTHER.
I THINK IT'S REAL EASY NOT TO LISTEN.
AND I THINK THE HARDEST THING WE CAN DO IS LISTEN.
WELL, LET'S TALK A LITTLE BIT OF POLITICS.
'CAUSE THAT'S WHAT'S REALLY GONNA DRIVE THE, THERE ARE SOME THINGS DRIVE THE MESSAGE
AND SO WE HAVE A CURRENT ADMINISTRATION THAT IS FOCUSING ON INFRASTRUCTURE AS WELL AS ALL THE OTHER ISSUES ASSOCIATED WITH RUNNING A CITY.
AND THE PROBLEM THAT WE'RE HAVING IS, DOES THAT EMPHASIS ON INFRASTRUCTURE SPAN MULTIPLE ADMINISTRATIONS? AND THAT'S THE CHALLENGE THAT YOU HAVE AS A CITY, AS A PUBLIC OFFICIAL.
UH, BECAUSE USUALLY CAROL'S POSITION IS ONE THAT'S A POLITICALLY APPOINTED POSITION.
AND SO YOU WOULD NOT USUALLY IT IS A POLITICALLY APPOINTED POSITION.
SO, SO YOU WOULD HOPE THAT THERE WOULD BE SOME CONSISTENCY ACROSS ADMINISTRATIONS.
BUT IF, I MEAN, IF YOU GO BACK AS FAR BACK, LET ME SEE.
WHEN I WAS PRACTICING ENGINEERING, UH, WAS THE LANIER ADMINISTRATION, YOU COMPARE LANIER TO WHITE, TO BROWN, TO PARKER TO SYLVESTER, YOU'LL SEE IT CHANGES.
AND IT'S REALLY WHAT THE PUBLIC WANTS.
AND YOU KNOW, BACK WHEN LANIER RAN, IT WAS CRIME, YOU KNOW, WHEN PARKER RAN, IT WAS, IT WAS SOMEWHAT INFRASTRUCTURE AND WOULD TURN IT SOMEWHAT INFRASTRUCTURE.
SO THERE'S GOTTA BE, WHEN, WHEN WE ESTABLISH THESE POLICIES AND GOALS, WE GOTTA KEEP PUSHING IT FROM ADMINISTRATION TO ADMINISTRATION.
AND SO, YOU KNOW, POLITICS DOES PLAY A ROLE IN, IN WHAT WE DO MOVING FORWARD.
MAYOR PARKER TOLD ME ONE TIME, THE HARDEST THING YOU CAN ASK AN ELECTED POLITICIAN TO DO IS TO VOTE FOR A PROJECT OR PUSH A PROJECT THAT WILL NOT BECOME COMPLETE DURING THEIR TERM
AND I, I THINK THERE'S REAL TRUTH IN THAT.
I MEAN, I THINK, YOU KNOW, THAT IT'S A SHORT TERM PAYOFF TYPE OF GAME WHERE WE NEED LONG TERM THINKING.
WELL JUST, JUST LOOK AT, UH, INWOOD FOREST, WHICH IS THE GOLF COURSE THAT CAROL JUST MENTIONED.
THE CITY BOUGHT THAT GOLF COURSE IN 2011.
AND THEN WE GET HURRICANE HARVEY HAZARD MITIGATION GRANT FUNDS FROM THE FEDS.
WE ARE JUST NOW GONNA BREAK GROUND IN 2023.
AND MAYBE FINISH IT AND MAYBE FINISH IT IN THE NEXT ADMINISTRATION TWO YEARS LATER.
SO, AND IT STARTS BEFORE 2011 BECAUSE IT WAS, UH, TROPICAL STORM FRANCIS IN 1998 THAT ACTUALLY SPURRED THE FLOOD CONTROL DISTRICT TO BUY SEVERAL SUBDIVISIONS OUT, UP THERE AND BEGIN TO BUILD DETENTION.
WHICH CREATED THE FRAMEWORK UNDER WHICH INWOOD FOREST WAS IDENTIFIED.
SO IT REALLY IS ABOUT 25 YEARS, RIGHT? YES.
ARE YOU TRYING TO SAY WE'RE NOT GETTING ANY YOUNGER? WHAT'S GOING ON HERE? NO,
WELL, THESE GUYS HAVE KNOWN ME SINCE I WAS 18 AND, AND THEN BRETT ED AND BUSHY TAILED.
BUT SO I, I DON'T WANNA END THIS WITH A, A HOPELESS, YOU KNOW, POLITICS IS ALL, IS DEFENDING, YOU KNOW, PREVENTING US FROM GETTING SOLUTIONS AND THIS, THAT, AND THE OTHER.
I, IT, IT DOES TAKE TIME TO MAKE REGIONAL MEANINGFUL CHANGE, BUT I DEFINITELY WANT TO PITCH THIS BACK TO EVERYBODY.
AND I I WANT TO ASK EACH OF YOU AS WE, BECAUSE WE'RE GETTING PRETTY DARN CLOSE TO THE END OF OUR TIME.
IS LET'S SHARE, UM, A, A SUCCESS.
LET'S SHARE SOMETHING THAT GIVES YOU HOPE.
UM, AND STEVE, I'M SPECIFICALLY GONNA ASK YOU TO BRAG ON THE UPCOMING PROJECTS THAT, THAT, THAT YOU'VE BEEN SUCCESSFUL IN HELPING US GET FUNDING FOR.
SO I, I THINK THE ONE THAT I'M PROBABLY MOST PROUD OF IS THE NORTH CANAL, WHICH IS THE DIVERSION OF WHITE OAK BAYOU AND BUFFALO BAYOU IN DOWNTOWN.
THAT PROJECT HAD BEEN ON THE PLANNING BOOKS FOR OVER 20 PLUS YEARS.
AND THEN YOU FAST FORWARD HURRICANE HARVEY AND IT GAVE US AN OPPORTUNITY TO GO TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AND SAY, HEY, WE'VE GOT THIS PROJECT WE HAVE NO FUNDING FOR.
IT COULD REDUCE THE FLOODING IN DOWNTOWN HOUSTON.
IT DOESN'T NECESSARILY IMPACT RESIDENTIAL AS MUCH AS IT DOES THE COMMERCIAL PROPERTIES AND THE, AND THE GOVERNMENT BUILDINGS DOWNTOWN.
AND WE WERE ABLE TO SUCCESSFULLY GET THE FUNDS TO ACTUALLY DO THAT PROJECT.
HOWEVER, UH, WHAT THEY SAID TO US ON THIS PROGRAM, IT'S NORMALLY A 75 25 COST SHARE.
AND THEY SAID, WELL, WE, WE THINK YOU NEED TO PUT UP MORE MONEY THAN 25%.
SO I WENT OUT AND WAS ABLE TO GET HARRIS COUNTY FLOOD CONTROL DISTRICT TO DONATE $20 MILLION TO THE PROJECT,
[00:40:01]
TXDOT TO DONATE $20 MILLION TO THE PROJECT.THE CITY WAS PUTTING UP $20 MILLION TO THE PROJECT.
AND THEN THE LOCAL TOURS, WHICH IS MEMORIAL HEIGHTS TOURS, IS PUTTING UP $25 MILLION PROJECT.
WE'RE ACTUALLY PUTTING UP MORE THAN THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT'S PUTTING UP TOWARDS THE PROJECT, WHICH IS ABOUT $55 MILLION.
SO IT IS A VERY, VERY LARGE AND UNIQUE PROJECT DOWNTOWN THAT WE'RE REALLY, REALLY EXCITED ABOUT.
SO I DO HAVE HOPE THAT WE CAN GET ONE OF THESE PROJECTS DONE, UH, WHILE I'M STILL AT THE CITY.
SO IT'S A, IT, IT'S, IT'S A BIG SUCCESSFUL CITY.
JIM, I'M, I'M HOPEFUL THAT WE CAN TALK ABOUT THESE ISSUES MORE OPENLY AND MORE PUBLICLY.
I THINK EVER SINCE BOBBY TUDOR, WHEN HE WAS, UH, HEAD OF THE HOUSTON PARTNERSHIP IN JANUARY OF, UH, 2020, HE CAME OUT AND STARTED TALKING OPENLY ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE AND ABOUT HOW THE HOUSTON BUSINESS COMMUNITY NEEDED TO D DEAL WITH CLIMATE CHANGE.
STRAIGHT ON THAT WE NEED TO BECOME A HAR A HUB OF CLIMATE RESPONSE AS OPPOSED TO DENIAL.
AND TO ME THAT, I MEAN, THAT CHANGED THE ENTIRE CONVERSATION IN THIS COMMUNITY.
MAYBE IT WAS RIPE TO CHANGE ANYWAY.
I'M NOT SURE THAT BOBBY DID IT OR NOT, BUT I CREDIT HIM WITH IT.
WE'VE GOTTA BE ABLE TO TALK HONESTLY ABOUT WHAT WE'RE FACING.
IF WE CAN'T TALK HONESTLY ABOUT IT, IF WE CAN'T TALK ABOUT WHY WE'RE FLOODING, WHAT'S CHANGING, WHAT WE NEED TO DEAL WITH, WE'RE, WE'RE, WE'RE GONNA JUST, WE'RE, WE WILL BE LOST.
AND WE ARE BEGINNING THOSE CONVERSATIONS VERY SERIOUSLY.
TO ME, THAT IS THE SINGLE BIGGEST THING THAT I'VE NOTICED THAT GIVES ME OPTIMISM IS THAT WE CAN TALK ABOUT IT.
AND THAT'S AN IMPORTANT STARTING POINT, PHIL.
WELL, I'M NOT AS HOPEFUL, BUT I'M A LITTLE BIT HOPEFUL IN TWO ARENAS.
ONE IS WE'RE WORKING HARD ON TRYING TO COME UP WITH COASTAL DEFENSE SYSTEMS FOR HOUSTON.
WE HAD THAT STORM IN OH EIGHT, IT'S BEEN 15 YEARS.
AND, AND WE GET HIT ON AVERAGE BY A BIG HURRICANE ONCE EVERY 15 YEARS.
NOW, DON'T DO THE STATISTICS THERE.
DON'T, I'M RETIRING, DON'T DO THE, I'M LEAVING STATISTICS, BUT THEY'VE ALREADY PREDICTED IT'S A SLOW YEAR.
I'M HOPEFUL BECAUSE AT LEAST THINGS ARE MOVING THROUGH THE, THE, THE, YOU KNOW, THE COASTAL SPINE IS ADVANCING.
WE HOPE THE GALVESTON BAY PARK PLAN WILL BE PART OF THAT.
AND I'M VERY HOPEFUL, UH, BECAUSE THAT COASTAL DEFENSE SYSTEM IS HUGE.
UH, THAT'S ONE ASPECT OF THE HOUSTON FLOODING PROBLEM.
AND LET'S FACE IT, UH, HARVEY WAS THE CONVERSATION GETTER.
THAT WAS THE ONE THAT SET THE STAGE AND SET A LOT OF THIS IN MOTION.
AND SO I'M HOPEFUL COMING OUT OF THE HARVEY EXPERIENCE THAT WE LEARNED A, A REALLY, REALLY GOOD LESSON THAT WE NEED TO TAKE THIS FLOOD PROBLEM HERE IN HOUSTON VERY SERIOUSLY.
AND I THINK PRIOR TO HARVEY, IT HAD BEEN A LONG TIME, WELL, WE HAD THE 15, 16, AND 17, SO WE DIDN'T HAVE A CHANCE TO EVEN CATCH OUR BREATH AFTER 15 BEFORE HARVEY HIT IN 17.
SO, YOU KNOW, THO THOSE ARE WATERSHED EVENTS, LITERALLY THAT HAVE, THAT HAVE STARTED THE CONVERSATION AND STARTED ALL THE CONSTRUCTION.
YOU KNOW, IT'S INTERESTING YOU BRING THAT UP.
'CAUSE I DO WANNA HIGHLIGHT SOMETHING.
THE OBSERVATION WAS THROUGHOUT THE LAST 30 YEARS, YOU GET A FLOOD, TWO YEARS LATER, EVERYONE IS BACK TO THEIR NORMAL ACTIVITY.
AND THAT FLOOD ONLY IMPACTED MAYBE 5% OF OUR COMMUNITY.
AND THEN YOU FAST FOR, AND SO PEOPLE WOULD JUST FORGET, NOBODY WANTED TO INVEST IN STORMWATER OR FLOOD DAMAGE REDUCTION.
AND THEN YOU GET 15, 16 IN HARVEY AND IN PARTICULAR HARVEY HIT THE ENTIRE COMMUNITY.
AND WHOA, WE REALLY DO HAVE A PROBLEM HERE.
COMMUNITY, AS YOU WERE SAYING, IT WAS A WHITE, IT WAS THE BREADTH OF IT WAS THE BREADTH OF HARVEY AS MUCH AS ANYTHING.
AND SO IT IS STILL IN EVERYONE'S MIND.
HOWEVER, WE'RE NOW APPROACHING SIX YEARS AND I'M WORRIED THAT IT'S GONNA WIN.
AND WE REALLY NEED, AS PROFESSIONALS, WE NEED TO BE REMINDING PEOPLE OF THIS THREAT THAT WE HAVE MOVING FORWARD AND 'CAUSE IT'S VERY REAL.
AND, AND, AND WE CAN'T LOSE SIGHT OF IT.
SO I WAS ACTUALLY IN CHRISTCHURCH NEW ZEALAND, UH, WHEN HARVEY HIT.
AND, UM, I HAD, BEFORE I WENT DOWN THERE, I HAD SET UP, UH, MEETINGS WITH THE RECOVERY FROM THE EARTHQUAKE IN 2011.
SO THIS IS SIX YEARS POST EARTHQUAKE.
AND IN CHRISTCHURCH, THERE WERE NO BUILDINGS.
THERE WERE BLOCKS AND BLOCKS AND BLOCKS OF RUBBLE.
I MEAN, IT HAD BEEN CLEANED UP AND IT WAS SAFE, BUT, BUT THERE WERE NOT BUILDINGS.
AND THE, THE GENTLEMAN WHO WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE RECOVERY TOLD ME AT THE TIME, BECAUSE WE WERE LOOKING AT, AT, AT HARVEY ON THE NEWS, AND HE SAID, YOU HAVE 18 MONTHS TO CHANGE POLICY.
YOU HAVE, YOU HAVE MONTHS TO CHANGE POLICY.
YOU HAVE THREE YEARS TO GET WORK STARTED.
AND AT SIX YEARS PEOPLE WILL FORGET.
[00:45:01]
YOU HAVE NO BUILDINGSSO, SHAMELESS PLUG, UM, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A SESSION, UH, RIGHT AFTER THIS ON HOW, UM, DISABILITY COMMUNITIES ARE IMPACTED BY THESE EVENTS.
UM, I ENCOURAGE YOU TO ATTEND THAT.
UM, I DON'T KNOW ALL THE SESSIONS TODAY, I SHOULD, BUT I KNOW AT LUNCH WE'RE GONNA HAVE AN EXCELLENT, UM, UM, SPEAKER BETWEEN DR.
TURN, UH, MAYOR TURNER AND DR.
AND THEN WE'RE GONNA END UP THE DAY WITH EARTH THEA NANCE ON, UH, UM, UH, WELL, I, YOU DON'T EVEN NEED TO DISCUSS EARTH.
THE, AND NANCE, IT'S GONNA BE AN AMAZING CONVERSATION ON, UH, ON THINGS THAT WE CAN DO IN OUR COMMUNITY, THINGS WE SHOULD BE DOING IN OUR COMMUNITY AND OPPORTUNITIES.
SO PLEASE EVERYBODY, UM, CONTINUE TO BE HERE THROUGHOUT THE DAY.
UH, THERE'S AMAZING OPPORTUNITIES AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO, UH, CONTINUED DISCUSSIONS.