Houston Chronicle July 22, 2019
Houston, put lives before developer profits. Follow county’s lead on flood plain rules [Editorial]
We’re all breathing a sigh of relief that Barry, the first hurricane of the season, brought only scattered showers to the region.
But any storm gathering in the Gulf raises the specter of Harvey in the minds of many Houstonians.
How could it not? The 2017 storm dumped almost 30 trillion gallons of water on Southeast Texas and Louisiana, flooded hundreds of thousands of homes and killed more than 60 people. The devastation that Harvey wrought — along with the Memorial Day and Tax Day floods — doused any hope that we were prepared for a major deluge.
This recognition led to the adoption of tougher regulations for flood plain development in the city and county, as well as the approval by Harris County voters of a $2.5 billion flood infrastructure bond to build more than 200 projects over the next 10 to 15 years. While developers, engineers and real estate professionals supported the bond issue, no doubt in part because of the work that would come their way and the increased value of land under a reduced risk of flooding, these same groups have sought to delay the new building rules.
More:
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/editorials/article/Houston-put-lives-before-developer-profits-14112210.php
