The Woodlands Township approves $2M for debris removal after Beryl

THE WOODLANDS, Texas -- The Woodlands Township board of directors voted July 18 to approve $2 million to help with debris removal in the area following Hurricane Beryl.

What you need to know

During the July 18 board meeting, township officials received an update from Montgomery County Judge Mark Keough and township Chief Operating Officer Chris Nunes regarding the extent of damage from Hurricane Beryl on the township's parks and pathways system.

Nunes said there are several sections of the township's pathways systems-ranging from 10 to 150 square feet-which will have to be repaired due to the significant concrete damage.

"This will take months to recuperate," Nunes said. "We are still working off of the derecho from two months ago for debris. So this is a double hit that we're working on."

Keough also said the county is trying to move around 1 million cubic yards of debris from areas impacted by Beryl, and that the county's debris removal teams would be working for several weeks to remove vegetative debris.

What else?

Ahead of the Public Utility Commission of Texas's investigation into CenterPoint Energy's preparations for and response to Beryl, township officials also agreed to form two ad hoc committees for emergency management and government relations. According to township officials, committees will be focused on creating stronger relationships with emergency management and legislative officials to provide better representation for The Woodlands in legislative proceedings.

In their words

• "We need to stress to CenterPoint it's okay to say that you don't know when you don't know, but be transparent and provide facts when they are available," Nancy Becker, president of the Creekside Park Village Association, said. "If you don't have facts, use estimates, but make them the best estimate, and follow up as soon as more can be known."

• "This is not just about the CenterPoint hearings, this is also about working with our lobbyist to have our legislative agenda ready to go when the legislature starts Jan. 1, 2025," board member Brad Bailey said.

• "It's the hallways and the coffee shops and those things where stuff's getting done a lot of times, and if you don't have a voice, you're going to get passed over," board member Kyle Watson said.

Stay tuned

While the board approved an additional $2 million from the township's fund balance to help with debris removal, the board also directed staff to look into any additional reimbursement options for the expense from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The board also asked township staff to bring back future proposals for a potential lobbyist to be in Austin during the 2025 legislative session to act as a liaison for the township on any legislative issues that could affect the township.

This article comes from our ABC13 partners at Community Impact Newspapers.