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2001-09-06 CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING MINUTES095 MINUTES OF A SPECIAL MEETING OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PEARLAND, TEXAS, HELD ON SEPTEMBER 6, 2001, AT 6:30 P.M., IN THE COUNCIL CHAMBERS, CITY HALL, 3519 LIBERTY DRIVE, PEARLAND, TEXAS. The meeting was called to order with the following present: Mayor Mayor Pro -Tem Councilmember Councilmember Councilmember Councilmember City Manager City Attorney City Secretary Tom Reid Larry Marcott Richard Tetens Woody Owens Larry Wilkins Klaus Seeger Bill Eisen Darrin Coker Young Lorfing Others in attendance: Deputy City Manager Alan Mueller; Executive Director of Community Services Tobin Maples; Police Chief J.C. Doyle; City Engineer John Hargrove; Fire Marshal Larry Steed; Assistant City Engineer Andrew Gallagher; General Superintendent Cecil Bowery. PURPOSE OF THE MEETING: CONSIDERATION AND POSSIBLE ACTION - REGARDING FLOOD MITIGATION WITHIN THE CITY OF PEARLAND. Mr. Bill Eisen, City Manager. Mayor Reid welcomed everyone to the meeting. Ronnie Pyle, 5301 Groveton, addressed Council and stated Pearland had flooding in 1979 and the flooding situation now is the same. This issue was never resolved since it continues to flood. Harry Lively, 5111 Rockland, addressed Council and stated he has lived in Pearland for 25 years. He and his neighbors are tired of the flooding situation. After the flood in 1979 and 1994 he came to speak to Council about the flooding, which is still a problem. He would like for Council to take action to remedy this situation. Jim Knudson, 5007 Groveton, addressed Council and stated he has lived at this address for 26 years and his street is called the "island" of Corrigan South Subdivision. None of the houses on his street had water in them but he and his neighbors could not get out of the subdivision for several days due to flooding. Other subdivision's built in recent years were Page 1 of 19 - 9/6/2001 not flooded as his neighborhood was. He is tired of the flood situation not being resolved and needs action and not just words. Cecil Johnson, 5302 Rockland, addressed Council and asked if the Precinct 4 Brazoria County Drainage Commissioner was present at tonight's meeting. He stated he has pictures of the Fite Road retention pond which fills only after Corrigan is flooded. If the City can install a pipe with a valve on it at the bottom of the Corrigan ditch and let it flow in the retention pond as Corrigan is flooding and then let the retention pond fill up. Precinct 4 Brazoria County Drainage Commissioner, Jeff Brennan, addressed Council and stated on the Drainage District's September 26, 2001 meeting agenda he suggested the Drainage District look at the Fite Road retention pond. This meeting is open to the public and located at 4805 W. Broadway. Victoria Hartman, 5406 Woodville, addressed Council and stated she lives at the back end of Corrigan and does not flood. She further stated she is a nurse and is concerned with public health issues such as children playing in sewage contaminated flood water and sick, elderly residents in her neighborhood who cannot get to help because streets are impassable due to the flooding. She would also like to know if the City has tested Corrigan's water to make sure it is safe. She sees nothing being done by the City to address these concerns. Charles Watson, 5003 Applesprings, addressed Council and stated his house has been flooded numerous times since the flood in 1979. He further stated he would like a moratorium on building since he feels the more Pearland builds the more it floods. He would also like to know if the City is going to solve the flooding problems in Corrigan or keep building until they are completely underwater. He suggested the City put a 12 inch culvert at the end of Applesprings where the ditches cross over and feels this would keep Corrigan South from flooding as much. Brian Hughes, 2913 Livingston, addressed Council and stated his house flooded twice during Tropical Storm Allison. Mr Hughes stated he does not know much about drainage so he was not able to make any suggestions, as Council requested, without the knowledge to make an informed suggestion. He further stated Tuesday, during the first flood, he requested EMS to come pick up himself, his wife and son. He was told EMS could pick them up but had nowhere to take them and no shelter had been set up. Terry Bowersmith, 5208 Camden, addressed Council and stated his neighborhood does not receive any more rain than anyone else in Pearland but everyone else's water runs into his subdivision. He has lived in Pearland since 1974 and since the bank at the intersection of FM 518 and Corrigan was built and they put an extra parking lot, the water runs down Page 2 of 19 - 9/6/2001 497 into Corrigan Street. At the strip center all the water runs towards the back and runs into the back of people's homes. He is also concerned about Pearland Police not being in his neighborhood to stop sightseers, mostly 4 -wheel drive trucks, from driving into the neighborhood after it floods and splashing more water into resident's homes and cars. Duane McFarland, 5702 Woodville Lane, addressed Council and stated he feels the City should clean ditches out in his neighborhood to prevent flooding or buy the houses in his neighborhood. Mark Sepolio, 5406 Carmona, addressed Council and stated he has lived in Pearland for 30 years and is the former president of the Corrigan Civic Club. He used to bug the Drainage District to clean out the drainage ditch in his neighborhood which was done only a couple of times. His suggestion is to cut a canal to Mary's Creek, south into the Brazos River Authority Canal. Larry Sandridge, 5409 Camden, addressed Council and stated he has not been able to live in his house since June 9, 2001. His house has flooded over 6 times and was flooded again the other day and he does not want to live in his house any more. The only way to get water out of Camden Street is by ground absorption. He suggested that Council look at the City of Houston, who dug out Brays Bayou 40-60 feet instead of the 12-15 feet in his neighborhood and give it time to hold more water and run off before it floods Corrigan. Eric Metzger, 5112 Woodville, addressed Council and stated he is a newcomer to this community and is a professional aviation and hydrometeorologist. During Tropical Storm Allison he had to wade home on McLean Road. The water was so high in Corrigan it flowed over the road into Willowick. From his educational background this is a clear indication that Corrigan is only the first subdivision that will suffer the consequences of flooding and Willowick would be next. Someone needs to come up with innovative ideas to remedy the flooding problem. Lois Sears, 2808 Neches River, addressed Council and stated she has lived in Corrigan for 31 years and has had 5 floods. This could be helped greatly if the City would look at Fite Road. She stated the ditch behind her house needs to be widened and deepened and put a bank on either side of it to hold the water. She has a 6 year old granddaughter who knows water cannot drain uphill. Emery Johnston, 5310 Rockland, addressed Council and stated he has lived at this address since 1979 and has lived in Pearland his entire life. He feels that it is a shame that the City has let happen to South Corrigan what has happened. He said during the recent flood, water was flowing from Mary's Creek up the ditches both ways. Something needs to done to alleviate the situation. Page 3 of 19 - 9/6/2001 ME Joe Cullison, 2406 Halbert, addressed Council and stated he has been a resident of Pearland for 36 years and his house has flooded 3 times. Since Clear Creek is the only outlet Pearland has it needs to be cleared out and a canal built that bypasses Friendswood and goes straight through to Clear Creek. He stated he is 75 years old, retired and on a fixed income and has had to spend $5,000 - $6,000 due to flooding repairs on his home. Janelle Pavlik, 5201 Carmona, addressed Council and stated she retired from the City of Pearland in 1997. In 1996 the City Manager, during that time, told her not to sell her house in Corrigan for 2-3 years because the City would be putting in a retention pond which would be large enough to take the water out of the subdivision and as a result her property values would rise. She would like to know if the retention pond is still in the works. Years ago, after the flood in 1979, she spoke to an employee in the City's Street Department who told her the reason Corrigan floods is because the streets are lower than the drainage ditches. Jim Arnold, 2904 Trinity Drive, addressed Council and stated he bought his house in Corrigan in 1979 and has not flooded. He would like to put his house up for sale since he is transferring jobs to another city. Since the news media has focused on his flooded subdivision the resale value of his home has decreased. He has heard since 1979 that the City was doing studies on the flooding problem and stated this problem should have been corrected a long time ago. Unknown Name, Unknown Address, addressed Council and stated he has flooded 4 times since 1979 and it is time to get something done. He further stated the debris from the flood was not picked up in a timely manner so it caused the street to flood again when the next flood came. He reported that Corrigan residents have very little trust in the City. Kathy Eddy, 2824 Piper Road, addressed Council and stated she has flooded 5 times since June of 2001. She is tired of hearing her daughter cry every time it rains because she is worried about water coming into their house. Five residents on her street are not eligible to be bought out by FEMA since they are not in the flood plain and also are not eligible for a lot of the monies that are available. She would like something done about the ditches on Fite Road so none of the houses in her neighborhood flood. Mike Kardays, 5401 Carmona, addressed Council and stated he is a proud owner of worthless property. There will be no one in his neighborhood that will be able to sell their house in the next 2 years. He spent $40,000 and his house was 98% fixed from damage in the first flood and then got water in his house again last week. He is tired of his 9 year old son crying every time it rains because he is scared. He stated the flooding is a problem in Harris, Brazoria, Ft. Bend and Galveston counties and is a State and Federal problem and would like to challenge Council to represent South Corrigan. He would like to know where the creek goes. He would like for Council to fight for South Corrigan and go to the Page 4 of 19 - 9/6/2001 o.. State and Federal level to get something done about this ongoing flooding problem. He stated what South Corrigan needs is the representation of a Pearland Councilmemberfrom this neighborhood and would do something about it in the next election. Ronald Alford, 5604 Leggett, addressed Council and stated he has lived in South Corrigan for 30 years and has lived in this area for 60 years. He would like to address the flow issues upstream. Mary's Creek, where it crosses Manvel Road, used to be a small 36 -inch culvert. It now looks like a canal in Venice, bringing all the water west down to South Corrigan. Someone has opened all the drainage out west but they will not touch it downstream because they are afraid of something else which he does not know what. Council keeps saying they cannot flood people downstream but it is being done to them. Strickland Chevrolet was built before the State law was passed regarding retention ponds. He would like to know where are Strickland's ponds, with 27 acres of asphalt, because their water is across the road in the ditches. Wayne Clemmer, 5103 Carmona, addressed Council and stated everyone has made excellent suggestions and passionate pleas during this meeting. He would like to propose that this problem be handed over as a project to City Staff personnel who will take lead of this project and address issues such as posting information as to what has happened so far, schedule additional meetings, such as the current one, so residents can come and find out what progress has been made, and also to update, on the City's website, Corrigan's retention pond with maybe a web page dedicated to it. He would also like for Council to schedule another meeting such as this in a couple of months to let residents know how far the City has gotten in solving this problem, and would like a name attached to this project. City Manager, Bill Eisen, stated this would be him. He stated in a few days the City can compile a list of suggestions that were received and immediately begin looking at which ones the City can pursue either through engineering firms or maintenance type things that the City can start looking at right away. Mr. Clemmer asked if residents could expect an update in the mail which would give them an idea of what the next step will be. City Manager, Bill Eisen, stated in a couple of weeks the City would at least know what kind of road map the City has. Councilmember Owens suggested that residents set up a committee in Corrigan to bring some suggestions to City Manager, Bill Eisen, and follow up with him and set up meetings such as this. Page 5 of 19 - 9/6/2001 100 City Manager, Bill Eisen, stated he feels a Committee is a good suggestion since it would involve residents in the process a little more rather than just sending a letter reporting what is going on. Mr. Clemmer stated residents will be expecting something in the mail with an outline of what is expected to be done and also the date of the next meeting to discuss this problem. Cecil Johnston, 5302 Rockland, addressed Council and stated Corrigan used to have a Civic Club but due to lack of interest it was disbanded. He will volunteer his time to be on any committee appointed. Christina Graham, Willowick, addressed Council and stated she is a college student and believes Pearland is a great city and loves living here. She further stated it is pretty sad when she has to take a boat to get to the parking lot, where their cars are located, just to get to school. Whenever it floods she feels the City is asking them to put their education on hold. She lives in W illowick and Corrigan floods over to her neighborhood and is just as bad. Susan Pearce, 5704 Leggett, addressed Council and stated she is blessed because her house does not flood. Her heart breaks to drive through the neighborhood while her family's stuff is on cinder blocks because they do not know if they will flood or not. Her family had to do this twice in June. Residents are tearing their homes apart and then 3 days later they flood again and carpets are floating downstream. Something has to be done. Her house may not flood but her family gets stuck in the neighborhood if they do not get their vehicles out in time or if it rains when they are gone they have to park in their "surrogate" parking lot and driveway, which is Hatfield Road. If residents needed to get out of their houses to retrieve their vehicles, to go to work or church, they had to wade through flood water. When it flooded in June she borrowed a raft to go check on her neighbors to make sure they were okay. There are elderly residents living in the neighborhood and she also has health problems. If she had needed an ambulance it would not have been able to reach her in her neighborhood, She would like Council to please come up with a solution. She heard on the news that there is a 29 year study going on and thought maybe they ought to get someone else to do the study if it takes this long, Jim Knudson, 5007 Groveton, addressed Council and stated he was stuck in his house for 36 hours during the flood. He would like to know how many houses in Corrigan are being bought out by FEMA. If houses in Corrigan are bought out and demolished, what will this do to the rest of the neighborhood who continue to live there. He feels he has been lied to for 26 years. He would like to have some answers regarding FEMA. Page 6 of 19 - 9/6/2001 10? Councilmember Owens stated the 29 year study is an Army Corps of Engineer's study of Clear Creek going on since 1968 and has not done one thing with this federal project. It has nothing to do with the City except every drop of water that falls in the City of Pearland drains to Clear Creek. The City has been talking to the Corps trying to get them to do something right now. This was shot down by some people in Friendswood. If residents would like to vent on this he will support residents on this. He has a letter from Representative Tom Delay that was sent out recently. The current plan is to come back and have something in Washington by 2003. If this takes place and it gets on the agenda up there and gets approved and budgeted this will take another 8-10 years to get any work done. This is out of the control of City Council or Drainage District other than the letters Council has been sending and pushing, reported Councilmember Owens. Mayor Pro -Tem Marcott has met with the Corps of Engineers and has tried to get something done. The news media should challenge the Corps of Engineers, Harris County, Galveston County, and whomever else is involved with this to get something done. Mayor Reid stated the Corps of Engineers has public hearings in which no one from Pearland ever shows up. He also reported Mayor Pro -Tem Marcott is the City's representative. Mayor Pro -Tem Marcott stated he has been to the last three meetings. He read the proclamation which was issued by the Council at each meeting. The first meeting was in Friendswood, the second in League City and the third was at Pearland High School. The last meeting was not well attended. The Friendswood and League City meetings were well attended by Friends of Clear Creek and the Sierra Club. These are the people who are stopping this drainage project because they do not want the trees moved out and do not want it widened. He stated these people do not care what is happening in Pearland. Notification of the Corps of Engineer meetings are in the local newspaper and there are flyers in the Houston Chronicle. Susie Hebert, 2814 Neches River, addressed Council and stated she was at this meeting representing her parents who have flooded 3 times in the past 8 weeks. The City should take responsibility and take care of this problem or citizens will change things at the next election. Donna Schaffner, 5402 Carmona, addressed Council and stated her house has been flooded 7 times since she moved there in 1968. She contacted Brazoria County Drainage District several times and never received a return phone call. She also contacted the City and has not had a return call. If someone would make contact with her she would feel better than just being totally ignored and not receiving a return phone call. She feels she deserves at least that. She would also like a copy of the minutes of this meeting so she Page 7 of 19 - 9/6/2001 102 can get the names of speakers to get phone numbers so she may contact them. She asked City Secretary, Young Lorfing, how long it would take to get a copy of the minutes. City Secretary, Young Lorfing, stated it would take a week or so to get the minutes ready. Ms, Schaffner stated she would contact him and will make as many copies as she can to distribute to residents. Charles Grissom, 5110 Woodville, addressed Council and stated Pearland Police Department did not keep vehicles out of their neighborhood when it flooded. He further stated he knew 2 residents who were ticketed trying to get out of the neighborhood to get food. At one point when the flood waters were really high and water was over McLean Road, on one side of the street the ditches were full and the other side's ditches were empty. If, when Massey Park was built with basketball courts and softball fields, it was dug 5 or 6 feet into the ground and put the courts on top and put a drainage system in there, residents of Corrigan would be a lot happier. He stated who cares about a place to play when kids cannot even get out of their houses. Recently he had to take a 2 year old neighbor to the hospital for ant bites in which the child is allergic. He would not have been able to get this child to the hospital when his neighborhood was flooded. Debbie White, 5210 Applesprings, addressed Council and stated in the 10 years that she has lived in Corrigan her taxes have gone up. Since Tropical Storm Allison she has spent her time fighting with the Brazoria County Appraisal District to lower her taxes because her house flooded for the third time. They keep passing the buck and not returning her phone calls. The people she does speak to ignore her. Her taxes are still way up there with -- everyone elses in the City. She needs someone from the City to help Corrigan residents with the Brazoria County Appraisal District to get their taxes back down to where they should be since they cannot sell their homes at what the Appraisal District is telling them they should be able to sell them for. If the City cannot get the Brazoria County Appraisal District to do anything then she wants someone to sell her house at what they are telling her it should be worth. She cannot get an agent to list her house and cannot rent it, especially since this has caught the attention of the media. She also has had a problem getting her mail even though she has filed 2 complaints with the post office. She does not receive her bills and has to pay them over the phone for an extra charge. Her children had to get an excused absence from school since they were notable to get out of their flooded neighborhood. She would like for someone in the City to call the School District and take those absences off of her children's attendance record for the Friday they missed because of the flood, Page 8 of 19 - 9/6/2001 103 t Wayne Romeo, 5405 Woodville, addressed Council and stated his children and nephew could not go to school because of the flood. He would like for the problem to be fixed so these children can go to school and get their education. Mark Sepolio, 5406 Carmona, addressed Council and stated Clear Creek on SH 288 is as big as a ditch. He built a house in Hickory Place on Garden Road and O'Day Road and a man asked him why they built their house so low since they were in the center of Hickory Slough. He began investigating and found out he was right in the bend of Hickory Slough. He stated the Slough was moved down and made it Hickory Creek. It floods now and it feeds all the way past Alvin. He would like to know what the City has done about this. He would like the City to coordinate with the County, and whoever else is needed, to get this problem solved. The biggest thing that hurt his area occurred last year when the City put a water well in on Garden Road. The water well will make their area go lower in the ground when it starts taking the water out. A perfect example is Seabrook and Kemah which used to be a lot higher but are not because of getting water from underneath. Bill Berger, 3930 Quail Run, addressed Council and stated he has a lot of friends who live in Corrigan. On November 6 the City is having 2 bond elections for road and sewer. He stated Council should break that out for the voters to choose whether they want part of it, all of it, or none of it. If the City lumps it all together there could possibly be no funds to help these people in Corrigan. Councilmember Owens stated out of the $22 million dollars for drainage on the upcoming Bond Election there is $4.4 million dollars for Corrigan. Mark Sepolio, 5406 Carmona, addressed Council and stated he was upset that Council said they would have to get an engineer to study the problem. The employees that dig the ditches barely have a GED and what they do is dig a little bit and the water moves and as long as the water is going down they dig from one end to the other. There is a20 footfall going towards Alvin. Residents are venting their frustration but not getting any feedback. He does not want to hear it is going to Engineering, or will take a couple of weeks, or it belongs to the federal government. He wants Council to tell them here. He has 6 acres off Cullen Boulevard and 15 years ago he built another house that was 1 foot above the road. The County says as long as you are level with the road you are okay. For the water to go 1 inch over the road it has to flood several hundred acres. Initially, Shadow Creek could not be platted because Clear Creek was overwhelmed. The Drainage District and County Commissioner were involved in this and from the tracks to SH 288 through the poor, elderly, minority neighborhoods they raised the streets up 1 foot. Now they are retention ponds. He addressed the audience and stated he was the former president of Corrigan Civic Club, which has since been disbanded, for 2 terms and the bank gave them a free meeting room to have their meeting and Big Humphreys gave them free pizzas and Page 9 of 19 - 9/6/2001 104 no one showed up at these meetings. He even hired a band, Coca-Cola donated drinks, and had a party underneath the drive-thru at the bank and nobody came. There was 5% turnout at the last election and told the audience shame on you for not voting. Everyone is mad because water is in their yard. Council is telling them they are waiting on the Army Corps of Engineers. He stated if it is not Pearland City Council then they need to quit wasting their time here. He suggested residents write letters to the Army Corps of Engineers and get with the federal government. He stated the Brazos River Authority boasts that taxpayers do not pay them. They built 130 mile canals to provide water to the industries in Texas City. Further discussion ensued between Mr. Sepolio and audience members. Marilyn Brand, 5304 Carmona, addressed Mayor Reid and stated she has been in management for 25 years and if she had to say to the people, that were supposed to be looking up to her and respecting her, "If I could have fixed it 30 years ago I would have", that is a sad statement to make. That tells her this is for nothing. Mayor Reid stated he had stated, " if it was a fixable problem". Ms. Brand asked then why wasn't something done before and why does the City let people stay there, why do they let children get sick, why do they let people get hurt. It is not a fair thing to do. The Mayor from Brazoria County called her about her taxes because she disputed her taxes. He asked her if she realized how much property value had gone up in Pearland. She stated she has thrown her money in the gutter and is 54 years old and had planned on staying in her house a few more years until she retired. She cannot get any money for her house. She had an $80,000 claim from the flood last time. She reported someone from the City came to her house and took a rake from the back of his truck and scraped some leaves. He never took the top off to see down the drain. There is an answer for every problem, you just have to dig for it. Keith Stremmel, 6118 Silver Drive, addressed Council and stated he has the same opinion as some who would like the City to do anything. If someone from the City would at least come out and dig a ditch or make some sort of effort. He knows it would flood again the next time but would finally feel like the City is doing something. He stated they have ditches the City could dig out that would not cost much money to get a dump truck and a backhoe. On his side of the street, on O'Day Road, water will sit for 3 days while across the street it drains immediately. He is sick of getting flooded. Counselor, Southeast Texas Flood Recovery Program, addressed Council and stated she wanted residents to know this program is a free program. They provide free counseling to the elderly, children and families. They go door to door to offer their services. She is Page 10 of 19 - 9/6/2001 105 not with FEMA but gets information from FEMA as far as what services they do provide. For people who have lost jobs there is unemployment that the federal government has given. All you have to do is apply. She has been working closely with Mayor and City Council and they have done a great job of getting the information out. Daniel Alcada, 2701 Livingston, addressed Council and stated he was not affected by Tropical Storm Allison or the waters that occurred recently. He works at the telephone company and fixed a lot of his neighbors telephones. He had just finished fixing their phones about a week ago and was relieved to be done. After the next flood their phones needed repairing again. He realized, after he bought his house in Corrigan 7 years ago that he had bought a "money pit". He had a water problem a couple of years ago and disputed the amount. He was told he must have a busted line in his home. He checked everything and then hired a plumber and found out it was the water meter. When he did not pay his water bill he was told he would have his water shut off. He pays taxes but cannot get anything resolved. He suggested Council come and look at the water damage at some of the homes in Corrigan. Two days after the last flood he went to his neighbors and noticed they still had their stuff up on blocks. When he asked them why his neighbors told him there was more rain in the forecast and were afraid to take their possessions off the blocks. He asked Council to please do something. He does not want to walk away from his house knowing he cannot sell it because his City will not do anything about the drainage problem. Mary Ann Fowler, 2409 Lynn, addressed Council and stated she wrote 28 letters when she flooded. They flooded and had water in their streets. Their yard is the tank everyone is talking about. Even back when Mr. Yost was here she called him and asked what they could do about water in their yard all the way up to the front porch. His solution was culverts. She told him she would buy the culverts if the City would put them in, which they did. She stated they raised their house 3 times. The last time they did that it cost $12,000. They have done everything a person can do to remedy this situation at great cost to them. Her husband is retired and it is getting more difficult. They want to stay in their house but this is tough too. Joe Fowler, 2409 Lynn, addressed Council and stated he was listening to other speakers regarding additions being built. They have been in their home over 38 years and finally got flooded. He believes one of the problems is so much stuff has been put in nearby such as a school, the new Chevrolet place, etc. He does not live in South Corrigan but lives on the corner of Pear Street and Lynn Road. Down Pear Street all the way down to the yard of the Drainage District is covered with water. He does not understand why it is going from 2 culverts into 1 and going into a bottleneck and stopping it up and forcing the water back up to Pear Street. He was told this was the City's responsibility and when he went and talked to the City he was told it was the Drainage District. It is time for the City and Page 11 of 19 - 9/6/2001 106 Drainage District to get together and take care of a bottleneck that exists there next to Mykawa Road. All it would take is a few backhoes. He further stated his experience with the Corps of Engineers is that his word means nothing. He feels since Council are the ones interfacing with the higher-ups at the Corps of Engineers they should be able to talk to these people. If they do not respond then next month send them a letter again. Tell them there is a problem here and let's get on it. He stated because the "squeaking wheel gets the grease". Mayor Pro -Tem Marcott stated the "squeaking wheel" seems to be the Sierra Club and various organizations. They are organized to the hilt and are making the impact. They are giving information and stopping projects they do not want done, opening up Clear Creek, etc. The City needs citizens to write letters to the Corps of Engineers in Galveston telling them citizens need the Clear Creek project moved forward. City Council and Brazoria County Drainage District are dealing with it and they are not getting anywhere with them. Jeff Brennan with the Brazoria County Drainage District suggested citizens address these letters to Kay Bailey Hutchison, Phil Gramm, Tom DeLay and Nick Lampson. These are the people the Corps of Engineers have to answer to. Mr. Fowler asked if he could get sample letters to send to these government officials. Mayor Reid stated he would make sure Mr. Fowler received a sample letter. Joy McNally, 5105 Carmona, addressed Council and stated she understands 2.4 million dollars would be used for 3 projects in Corrigan. She asked what those 3 projects would be. Councilmember Owens gave a brief overview of the projects relating to Corrigan. Ms. McNally reported a Council candidate, in the recent election, came out and spoke to her and said he was asked by someone before he ran for City Council what he thought about Corrigan. Apparently this has been an ongoing problem that has been addressed in the past with nothing happening. She understands the City is saying the Corps of Engineers were blocking Clear Creek clean-out and expansion. Mayor Pro -Tem Marcott stated the environmentalists were the ones blocking the clean-out and expansion of Clear Creek. Ms. McNally stated she would like Council to provide a sample letter and the addresses and telephone numbers of the aforementioned officials and also have this information Page 12 of 19 - 9/6/2001 107 posted on the City's website in a week. She will make copies and pass it out to every resident in Corrigan. Someone from the audience suggested residents not use a form letter but write their own individual letter since he thought it would have more impact. Ms. McNally stated if there is a vital issue it needs to be taken care of. She took care of her ailing elderly aunt for 5 years. Thank goodness it did not flood because EMS could not get in. She had to put her in a nursing home because of the fear of flooding and not being able to get her out in an emergency. She stated it sounds as if Pearland officials have tried to get something done with the Corps of Engineers but cannot do any more for them so they will do it themselves. Mayor Pro -Tem Marcott stated Council is talking to the Corps of Engineers and to Pearland's representatives. Tom DeLay was in Pearland after Tropical Storm Allison and took a helicopter to take a look at the flooding. On August 6 Tom DeLay was in Pearland as well as Congressman representatives, specifically Senator Phil Gramm's office. The City is trying to do what they can. Jeff Brennan, along with Brazoria County Drainage District, are working doing all they can. The City is trying to get our message through. We need all the help we can get to get the attention of the Corps of Engineers and Congress. He presented a letter from Congressman Tom DeLay that has a letter attached from the Corps of Engineers saying the study is going on and in due time we will get an answer. Ms. McNally stated she would like to receive a copy of this letter if it is open records. She would like all of the ammunition Council can give them. Mayor Pro -Tem Marcott stated he spent some time, after Tropical Storm Allison, in Friendswood at a hearing they had. Congressman Nick Lampson, a County Judge from Galveston County and others were present at this hearing. Citizens talked specifically about Friendswood. Mayor Pro -Tem Marcott stated he was able to speak a little bit at the end and told them Pearland requires detention. The Drainage District has worked with Friendswood on some detention. League City requires no detention so they are not doing anything to help themselves. They are expecting Pearland to do it. Someone earlier talked about detention, an acre foot is an acre which is roughly 43,000 square feet a foot deep which is estimated 355,000 gallons of water. This costs the taxpayers $15,000 - $17,000 an acre foot to build detention. This is to buy it, to dig it out and get rid of the dirt. A development on Pearland Parkway needed the dirt for a golf course so the City did not have to dispose of it. He further stated 224 acre feet detention base x 350,000 gallons you can see what it was. It was getting pretty full on Saturday around noon. That was pulling it out of Clear Creek, which was allowing some of the other water that was affecting most residents, to get on out. Page 13 of 19 - 9/6/2001 Ms. McNally asked about the retention pond that was built off Fite Road. She stated that the subdivision was not there when the retention pond was put in. Before the retention pond was built it was her understanding that the retention pond was purchased mainly for Corrigan South. Mayor Reid stated this was purchased and done by Brazoria County Drainage District. Jeff Brennan from Brazoria County Drainage District stated this drained down the water that was in the sand pit for detention. They have not sold any detention in that site to any other developer. Mayor Pro -Tem Marcott stated every new subdivision has to have their own retention pond. Phillip Henderson, 5706 Leggett Lane, addressed Council and stated he has never flooded, he is not even in the flood plain, but it must have gotten changed last year. He further stated that his front yard was full of water. His wife asked him if he was going to move his car in the middle of the night. Mr. Henderson stated he did not move his car and he had to walk to his destination the next morning. He has a five month old baby, a three year old son, and a five year old daughter that he has to care for. His son has asked him if they can go fishing in the flood water. Mr. Henderson further stated the City should consider building a lift station to lift and move the water out of Corrigan and he is willing to donate his time to help the City. He also had other suggestions regarding using the park land for detention or building dikes. Mr. Henderson stated the City has to be creative to get the flooding problem solved. A four foot dike wall would buy a little time. This is his son's first Tee Ball Meeting, he should be there instead of this meeting, however, he is here to offer his help to the City. He also expressed his concerns about his property being devalued. Mr. Henderson stated he knows everyone has a plan. Now it is time to go ahead and act on those plans. He further stated he had to come before Council and vent. He tried to give criticism as well some possible solutions to the problem. Mr. Henderson also gave a brief overview of how the City could sell the dirt that would be removed from the park, if it has any value, which would recover some of the cost of removal. If anyone is bought out the City ought to consider buying everybody out. In closing, Mr. Henderson stated he is willing to help the City on the weekends to resolve this problem. Sharon Johnson, 5403 Colmesniel, addressed Council and stated she has lived in her home since 1976 and has seen every flood. She has never had water in her house, however, her sister who lives in Corrigan floods. She stated she works at Randall's Pharmacy and fortunately the last time it flooded she was able to wade out and get to work. Ms. Johnson stated she had a lot of customers call concerned about getting their medicine filled. It was heart medicine, lung medicine, and all kinds of medicines. Their main concern was how they could get out to get their medicine. She further stated several years Page 14 of 19 - 9/6/2001 149 ago they were told the retention pond on Fite Road was bought for Corrigan, however, after meeting with the previous City Manager they were told that the pond was for the County and not for Corrigan. She suggested the City enter into a contract with someone that can cure the problem and only pay them after the problem has been resolved. Nobody should have to do this work for free, there is plenty of City employees. She also expressed her concerns for the safety and welfare of the emergency services personnel having to work in these conditions. She stated her sister is still off of work and used all of her sick days fixing her house. Ms. Johnson stated on Thursday night when she heard it was going to flood she parked her car on Fite Road, so that she could get to work the next day. A City employee asked her daughter to have the car moved because of the traffic on Hatfield Road, which she later did and as a result she was flooded and could not get out. Many people have lost money on this and not just in her neighborhood. She does not understand why there is never flooding on this side of 35. She stated she is under the understanding that one of the hold-ups on the Baptist Church being built was because of the drainage problem. She moved there when they opened up. She cannot solve the problem. She suggested holding up on permits on the west side, the water flows from Hatfield Road straight across into Corrigan. Possibly there is a collapsed pipe. Councilmember Owens stated the buy-out does the City no good. The City loses the property tax valuation for whatever property is bought out. The City has to pay the 25% that comes from your tax money and the property becomes the responsibility of the City to maintain from day one. The buy-out is not a good deal for the City or the property owners, because as long as you live there you will be paying taxes to buy other property owners out. It will continually be paid at the City. The buy-out is a solution to the problem. The previous speaker's nephew stated his mom just got out of the hospital and he is at this meeting representing her. Her whole house has to be "gutted". He further stated he was helping his mother after the floods. He stated the City maybe responsible if there are any deaths due to the flood. Peggy W illis, 5104 Camden, expressed her concerns regarding the flooding and Corrigan. She further stated she had been sick and nobody from the City came to check on her to see if she needed to get out. She stated she does not want to sell her house since it is almost paid for and only has five years until she retires. She does not want to leave the City. She also recommended pouring cement under them to raise them up. She also expressed her concern about 4 -wheel vehicles causing wakes to come into their yards and homes. Nephew asked if anything would be done about this. Page 15 of 19 - 9/6/2001 1t0 Mayor Reid stated they are going to do their very best to solve the problem. The City is concerned and we are going to try and do something. Mayor Pro -Tem Marcott reported that the City is going to put on the ballot for the November 6 bond election, for which $22 million is going to be used for drainage. The projects that will be funded by the Bond Election will be known before the voters are asked to vote. Councilmember Owens stated everything that will be voted on will be out for everybody to see what it is. He further stated either we are backed up in traffic all day long or when it rains we have rainwater "knee deep" in our homes. We are going to have a Bond Election to help the City afford as much as we can do. Mayor Pro -Tem Marcott stated this meeting was called so that Council can listen to ideas put forth by the citizens that live in these areas who go through this on a regular basis or have gone through it. The City is gathering information so that Council can make some good choices for the distribution of the Bond money, if it is approved. The issues recommended tonight will be reviewed. Some of them will not work, some of them will work. The City has to figure out which one of them makes sense and implement them. He stated Council is here tonight until all questions have been asked. Councilmember Owens stated by looking around the audience, it is mostly Corrigan residents here tonight. This is how sensitive the Council is to this area. There is not anyone here from Green Tee, Sleepy Hollow, or the residents off of Piper Road. There were several residents that addressed Council that did not give their names and had dialog with Council. Speakers waiting in line asked for them to be given an opportunity to address Council. Elizabeth Myers, 5104 Rockland, addressed Council and stated she wanted to give her feelings and thoughts to Council. She has been in Corrigan since she was 6 years old and feels the flooding should have been fixed years ago. Ms. Myers stated during Tropical Storm Allison they were trapped in their house for 3 to 4 days. She gave details on an emergency run she and her mother made to Kroger to get some things that were needed, as well as things that were needed for her father, who is diabetic, and the difficult time she and her mother had trying to get the groceries home. Ms. Myers also reported to Council that her little brother had a friend over during the storm. Her brother, as well as his friend, are now scared when it rains. They are scared they will get flooded in. She stated she has to go to college and trying to get out in flooded conditions is not accepted by her professors. She further explained the difficult time her brother has going to school when it rains. She said they were fortunate not to have water in their house, however, having to Page 16 of 19 - 9/6/2001 Iii put their furniture and things up so they would not get damaged was a traumatic thing to go through. Ms. Myers stated she does not want to go through this anymore. She asked Council to please do something to help them so they do not have to go through this anymore. Steve Nottingham, 5302 Colmesneil, addressed Council and stated he had told Mayor Reid and past City Manager, Ron Wicker, how to fix this problem. He has it in "black and white" and he is going to give it to the City Manager tonight. Mr. Nottingham also stated that the City of Pearland and the Drainage District are flooding his subdivision. The ditch on the back side goes uphill, the front side has to get totally full and water will be in the subdivision before it starts draining. He stated in order to fix the problem in Corrigan the ditch going into Corrigan has to be dammed. They cannot have everybody's water. Corrigan's water is not flooding them. Mr. Nottingham and Drainage Commissioner Brennan had a brief discussion regarding the Drainage District's pumps. Mr. Nottingham stated the detention is a joke and a waste of money. Jerry, 5005 Carmona, addressed Council and stated he has never flooded. The real dike is the railroad track and FM 518. All the water out west heads this way. If something is going to be paved, pave Hatfield Road. Blocking the ditch would also be a good idea. Looking down Applesprings from McLean Road you can see that it is level. That ditch that afternoon only had about six inches of water in it. Yet, Corrigan's water was still level with the road. The water is having to try to go down to Mary's Creek. The water cannot get out of the neighborhood. He also suggested that the land next to Centennial Park be used for a detention pond and keep it pumped out. Councilmember Marcott stated that he and the City Manager have discussed possibly doing something with that property. Councilmember Owens stated he feels the City can do something for the rain we had last weekend, however, with a thirty -inch rain like Allison was, nothing will help. Discussion ensued between the audience, Drainage District Commissioner Brennan and Council regarding the flooding in Corrigan. Several members from the audience asked Council to stop building in Pearland. Wallace Taake, 5310 Woodville, addressed Council and stated he did not flood, however, he does feel for those that live along Applesprings and Neches River. He is concerned about those individuals that use the subdivision as a waterway, as a water sport area. He explained Maritime Law and that a boat owner is responsible for the damage the wake causes. Page 17 of 19 - 9/6/2001 112 Mayor Reid stated the Police are concerned about the high -wheeled vehicles and creating bow waves. Chief Doyle stated the District Attorney of Brazoria County will not accept any criminal charges on the wake going into anyone's home. The District Attorney says it is a civil problem. Chief Doyle further stated the police end up doing more damage trying to catch these individuals than writing a citation. Several residents discussed different incidents with Chief Doyle. Chief Doyle stated he will check into the incidents. Resident of Ryan Acres, addressed Council and asked if they know of anything that is going to be done that will help Ryan Acres. City Manager, Bill Eisen, stated that each year the City cleans out a certain number of ditches in town. There is a list of those that will be in the budget that takes effect October 1, 2001. The City has also applied for FEMA funding to enlarge some culverts with some to go under Fite Road and some on Rockland. Also, the bond issue Council has talked about this evening will dedicate a little over $22 million to flooding issues throughout the City. These are some of the things that are in the works right now. Thomasina Watkins, 2142 Kelley, addressed Council and asked for help in the Hickory Creek Place subdivision. She gave a brief history of how her subdivision was developed. She stated they flood and asked Council not to forget them. Sharon Johnson, 5403 Colmesneil, addressed Council and stated she would like to express her concerns about flooding around the new school and additional flooding that may be caused when CR 101 is widened. They were told in 1979 and 1980 that streets were made to hold water and now their houses are getting flooded. In closing, she stated she appreciates Council listening to everyone tonight. Mayor Reid stated that large box culverts will be installed on CR 101 that should prevent flooding in that area. He also stated that he and Council are not always as visible as they would like to be, however, that does not mean they are not aware of the situation. Mayor Reid thanked everyone that attended the meeting. They brought a lot of good ideas and stayed focused on the issues. This meeting was not just for Corrigan but for Sleepy Hollow who also had flooding and some houses with water in them. Councilmember Tetens has not lived in his house since Tropical Storm Allison because he had flooding and he is a resident in West Lea. Page 18 of 19 - 9/6/2001 113 Assistant City Engineer, Andrew Gallagher, addressed Council and stated Council needs to take a look at Sims Bayou, on Mykawa east near Mt. Carmel High School. That is what the City really needs. There is a large amount of earth moving and they are opening up the channel. Anyone that goes into Houston can see that renovation. Maybe we can get some help and get the Corps of Engineers moving. He recommended that possibly someone takes pictures of Sims Bayou and include them in their letters to the elected officials. Mayor Pro -Tem Marcott stated the environmentalists are winning the battle as far as much being done on Clear Creek. Councilmember Owens stated if we can open up Mary's Creek and bring it down and drain it into Clear Creek and also widen it and have more capacity. Councilmember Seeger stated at this point the Council has a lot of information they will be able to use. ADJOURNMENT Meeting was adjourned at 10:50 p.m. ADJOURNMENT Minutes approved as submitted and/or corrected this the8 Ih day of October , 2001. Tom Reid Mayor ATTEST: Page 19 of 19 - 9/6/2001 114 THIS PAGE LEFT INTENTIONALLY BLANK