Houston Flooding Regulations Come Down To March 21 Vote

Houston Flooding, HubCap Grill
Courtesy of Tori Elmore
Houston Flooding, Hubcap Grill

Houston City Council will make a ruling on new post-Harvey rules for home constructions next month after a request for more public comments. The ordinance would set the 500-year flood plain as the minimum standard for new home construction and require new homes to be built up to 2 feet above the 500-year flood plain. Currently, the code only requires properties to be built 1 foot above the 100-year flood plain. Similar regulations went into effect in unincorporated Harris County Jan. 1.

"The proposal only applies to new construction and not to existing homes, and we’re trying to do everything we can to kind of minimize any additional cost. But it is important for us to build a stronger and a much more resilient city," Mayor Sylvester Turner said before City Council.

Turner had planned to vote on the new ordinance last week, but council members voted to extend the time allowed for public comment through March 5. The vote is scheduled for March 21.

Continue reading this story with a free account

Log in or register
Sign up for more articles like this
Subscribe to Bisnow's Houston Newsletters
Related Stories

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Could Expand In North Texas

Credit Union Breaks Ground On New HQ Building: The Houston Deal Sheet

EXCLUSIVE: Downtown Houston+ Targets Grocery Gap, Pedestrian Experience With New Programs

140-Acre Attleboro Golf Course Hits Market, Pitched For Redevelopment

Houston's Office Woes Are Getting Too Expensive To Fix

Autonomous Construction Vehicle Startup Bedrock Hits $4.1B Valuation

Developers Up Sunny Isles Beach St. Regis Debt Again With $463M Loan

One Week. 2 Schemes. More Than 2,000 London Homes Cancelled

KDC Pursues $3.5B In Financing For AT&T's Huge HQ Campus In Plano

Welcome Group Starts Pearland Industrial: The Houston Deal Sheet

Towers On The Edge: How Austin Is Redefining Vertical Density At The Waterfront

Why A 'Not My Job' Mentality Can Derail A Construction Project