City of Pearland
Final Notice and Public Explanation of a Proposed Activity in a 100-Year Floodplain Roadside Ditch Improvements
Garden Road, O’Day Road, Woody Road, and Scott Street
To: All interested Agencies, Groups and Individuals (FEMA, U.S. EPA Region 6, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and Brazoria County Drainage District No. 4) and the Public at Large
This is to give notice that the City of Pearland (City), as Responsible Entity under HUD Regulations in 24 CFR Part 58, has conducted an evaluation as required by Executive Order 11988, in accordance with HUD regulations at 24 CFR 55.20 Subpart C – Procedures for Making Determinations on Floodplain Management and Wetlands Protection, to determine the potential effect that its activity in the floodplain will have on the human environment for Roadside Ditch Improvements along Garden Road, O’Day Road, Woody Road, and Scott Lane, all located north of FM518/Broadway and south of the City limits. The activity is funded under HUD’s Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery 2017, as passed through the Texas General Land Office, Contract Number 20-065-106-C288.
Per 24 CFR 55.20(b)(3), the City provides the following information about the project. The general location of the projects includes areas within the City of Pearland that are predominantly located in the central segment of the City limits; north of FM 518/Broadway, south of Clear Creek below the northern City limits boundary, east of Roy Road, and west of Mykawa Road. Two specific FIRM maps provide floodplain information for the areas subject to improvement: 48039C0035I and 48039C0030I.
Drainage improvement construction will take place involving the roadside ditches alongside portions of Garden Road, O’Day Road, Woody Road, and Scott Lane, all within the section of town described in the first paragraph. The improvements scheduled for areas involving a portion of the work taking place on Woody Road and all of the Scott Lane improvements will take place in a residential area known as Brookland Acres.
The project involves a total of 9.50 acres of 100-year floodplain, 1.60 acres of 500-year floodplain, and 3.38 acres of wetlands.
The Certifying Officer/Official for the City of Pearland is City Manager Trent Epperson. Those that wish to provide comments or inquire about the project may contact the City’s Grants Administrator, Joel Hardy, 8am – 5pm, Monday through Friday, at:
3519 Liberty Drive
Pearland, TX 77581
(281) 652-1795
jhardy@pearlandtx.gov
Background and Scope:
The scope of work is intended to take place in older areas of the City, where roadside ditches prevail as the customary stormwater drainage modality for capturing what results from major rainfall events, thunderstorms, hurricanes and other disasters. Unfortunately, the current levels and intensity of threats is much greater than when these ditches were originally constructed, so an upgrade to capacity is much needed.
The collection of water currently tends to flow inadvertently onto residential properties due to overflows of the ditches, ponds within the ditch, or fails to convey in the appropriate direction towards catchments and outflow nodes to our major storm drainage infrastructure (in this case, Clear Creek and/or Hickory Slough). While ditch maintenance is being conducted to ensure debris and overgrowth are not impediments to conveyance, the primary issues are the lack of appropriate ditch capacity, erroneous directional flows, and undersized culverts that fail to allow water to convey properly.
A total of 31,563 linear feet of improvements to the depths and widths of the proposed roadside ditches, replacement of the design-specified number of culverts to appropriate size, and the removal and replacement of associated driveways of affected properties, make up the general scope of work this project entails. The five (5) stretches of roadway involve areas where torrential Hurricane Harvey rainfall occurred, causing flooding of properties served by the adjacent open ditches, drawing the implementing entity’s attention to the need for flood-drainage improvements.
Along the entirety of roadside ditch improvements proposed, there are 141 driveways with culverts that are included in the project scope. All of these are within the project area and subject to removal and/or replacement.
The City has considered the following alternatives and mitigation measures to be taken to minimize adverse impacts and to restore and preserve natural and beneficial values:
Alternative 1 – Buyouts of Repetitive Loss or Severe Repetitive Loss Properties:
Despite the major flooding impacts caused by Hurricane Harvey, homes located along the proposed roadside ditch improvements are not representative of major historical flooding. Hurricane Harvey represented a historic event more in line with impacts from a 500-year flood event, so this option may not be feasible along the lines of the necessary qualifications for repetitive and/or severe repetitive loss properties, or the required Benefit Cost Analysis per FEMA regulations.
This alternative is not altogether feasible, as residential market prices are at all-time highs, prohibiting local residents from ensuring relocation within the community, as many local residents in this area have strong ties to the Pearland community and do not wish to leave. This area is notably connected to the City’s original townsite and contains most of the pre-1980s residential structures in Pearland.
Alternative 2 – Widening and Re-Alignment of Hickory Slough:
This Alternative would involve the widening and re-alignment of the creek to add to the detention capacity of the Hickory Slough watershed between Cullen Parkway (FM865) and State Highway 35 in Pearland. This includes land acquisition, construction of a detention pond (1,310 ac-ft), and reconstruction of four bridges (Mykawa Road, Hatfield Road, O’day Road, and Garden Road).
This alternative was determined to be infeasible due to the project cost being an estimated $95.5 million. This amount was greater than the City could incur without assistance in the form of grants from outside agencies. The City of Pearland previously reached out to the Texas General Land Office to attempt to acquire funding for this alternative, however all requests were denied.
No Action Alternative [24 CFR 58.40(e)]:
There is a need for expanded roadside ditch drainage capacity in this area, as the floodplain management standards have improved since the origination of the ditches, as no historical improvements have been made. The area’s hydrology and hydraulics demonstrate a clear need for more capacity in the ditches, or the next event to scale of Hurricane Harvey flooding will result in the same outcomes – more residential flooding. Based on these factors and the City’s commitment to the local community not to permanently displace these residents, we see no practicable alternative to the proposed widening and deepening of the roadside ditches in the proposed project area.
Recommendation: Fund the development as proposed.
Widening and deepening of the drainage ditches along the subject roadways is the preferred option. This plan includes the excavation of a portion of ground layer in the ditches to expose more capacity for conveyance. Improvements will also include the replacement of culverts, to be upsized as needed, for the purpose of meeting the dimensions of increased roadside ditch sizes.
The early notice for this project ran in the form of the public hearing held on March 6, 2023, pursuant to the City’s request for a Nationwide Wetland Permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for the project. The scope of work is to widen and deepen the roadside ditches, with segments of the ditches being located within the floodplain. The City has reevaluated the alternatives to reconstruction in the 100-year floodplain and has determined that it has no practicable alternative. The roadside ditches will have to remain where they are, in the public Right of Way and the drainage improvements can be achieved only by improving the existing roadside ditches. Environmental files that document compliance with steps 3 through 6 of Executive Order 11988, are available for public inspection, review and copying upon request at the times and location delineated in the last paragraph of this notice for receipt of comments.
The proposed improvements will not include excavated fill placement or any vertical construction that will impede storm water conveyance in the floodplain or floodway. The roadside ditches will have an improved depth and width which will provide better conveyance of storm water flow, thereby helping in the functionality of the floodplain. Any dirt excavated from the project will be hauled off to a different location outside of the project limits. This project will not have any negative impacts on the floodplain.
A wetland delineation study and Threatened and Endangered Species study were conducted as part of the permitting process. The wetland study has determined that there will be no permanent impacts to the wetlands due to this project. The improved deeper and wider ditches will result in a larger wetland acreage established within the ditch post construction. The Threatened and Endangered Species study has determined no impacts to Threatened and Endangered Species due to this project.
There are three primary purposes for this notice. First, people who may be affected by activities in floodplains and those who have an interest in the protection of the natural environment should be given an opportunity to express their concerns and provide information about these areas. Second, an adequate public notice program can be an important public educational tool. The dissemination of information and request for public comment about floodplains can facilitate and enhance Federal efforts to reduce the risks and impacts associated with the occupancy and modification of these special areas. Third, as a matter of fairness, when the Federal government determines it will participate in actions taking place in floodplains, it must inform those who may be put at greater or continued risk.
This notice is required by Section 2(a)(4) of Executive Order 11988 for the Protection of Floodplains and is implemented by HUD regulations found at 24 CFR 55.20 Subpart C – Procedures for Making Determinations on Floodplain Management and Wetlands Protection. The 8-Step Decision Making Process includes public notices and the examination of practicable alternatives to building in the floodplain and/or wetland. Additional project information, including maps of floodplains and wetlands for the project area, is contained in the Environmental Review Record (ERR) on file at the City of Pearland, in the Administration Department – Office of Grants Administration, and may be examined or copied weekdays 8 AM to 5 PM.
Written comments must be received by the City at the following address on or before September 27, 2024: City of Pearland, 3519 Liberty Drive, Pearland TX 77581, Attention: Joel Hardy or via e-mail at jhardy@pearlandtx.gov. A full description of the project may also be reviewed from 8 AM to 5 PM at the address provided above or electronically upon request via e-mail at the aforementioned address.
City of Pearland.
J. Kevin Cole, Mayor
Trent Epperson, City Manager
Joel Hardy, Grants Administrator
Date: August 28, 2024
