Tower Oaks Plaza subdivision flood project construction resumes despite community frustration

CYPRESS, Texas (KTRK) -- Construction destruction in a Cypress subdivision ABC13 first told you about on Monday is expected to take several more months before it's cleared out.

Neighbors of the Tower Oaks Plaza Subdivision are frustrated with a Harris County Engineering Department Flood Project, so they turned to ABC13 for help.

Neighbors say they feel unheard. The county engineering department tells ABC13 they had to halt the flood project in the subdivision for six months because of utility conflicts, a situation they say has now been fixed.

Along King Circle and Oaks Plaza Drive, there's heavy machinery, gutted driveways, and neighbors wanting what they call a chaotic nightmare to be over.

"This huge dust pit mess in our neighborhood," homeowner Benjamin Serven said.

The drainage improvement project is to alleviate flooding in the area after significant floods in this neighborhood during Hurricane Harvey.

The Harris County Engineering Department sent us this statement when we started asking questions:

"The Tower Oaks Plaza Subdivision Drainage Improvement project continues to progress despite delays caused primarily by utility relocation challenges. This subdivision experienced significant flooding during Hurricane Harvey; 66 homes got flooded. This project will alleviate flooding for 173 homes once completed. Initially scheduled for completion within 550 days, the project experienced a six-month delay due to utility conflicts. Once these issues were addressed, construction resumed, and the project is now on track for completion in the first quarter of 2025, weather and circumstances permitting.

The project also includes critical improvements to Oak Plaza Drive and surrounding residential streets, with a focus on full-depth pavement reconstruction and widening to enhance roadway safety. Drainage upgrades along Oak Plaza Drive include dual storm sewer systems, outfall pipe upsizing, and roadside ditch improvements to manage stormwater effectively and reduce flooding.

The primary reason for the delay has been the need for utility relocations by external providers, including AT&T and CenterPoint Gas. Initial relocation efforts by AT&T were improperly completed, necessitating a second relocation. These utility conflicts forced the contractor to demobilize temporarily, delaying progress on critical construction tasks. However, we are diligently working to get this construction completed before next hurricane season while minimizing disruptions due to construction as much as possible.

At this time, no reports of flooding related to the project have been received. Similarly, the Office of the County Engineer has not received any previous complaints of mosquito issues tied to the project. However, the County Engineer's Office remains committed to addressing any resident concerns promptly to ensure the project's impact is minimized. The project has daily on-site inspections to ensure compliance with safety and quality standards, and no significant issues or violations have been reported by the inspection team.

Harris County is committed to completing this project as efficiently and effectively as possible. The original completion date was set for December 12, 2024, weather permitting. However, the project faced delays due to two major storms and a six-month utility relocation challenge. Work has since resumed, and the revised schedule reflects a new estimated completion date of March 2025, weather and circumstances permitting."

"It's been pretty insane how disorganized and chaotic it's been. There's really nothing that's actually been done besides destroying things and digging ditches," Serven said.

Neighbors tell ABC13 they feel unheard and ignored. They're hoping to have conversations with contractors and representatives with precinct 3 in a neighborhood meeting in the coming weeks.

"Hectic, destructive, uprooting. It's been very hard to deal with, especially (for) the older folks in the neighborhood getting around," neighbor Chuck Daugherty said.

There has been so much frustration, some saying it's even more frustrating to know the county voters approved extra money to maintain these flood projects when they can't even get them done.

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