Commissioner on Thursday's Harris County flood projects meeting: 'There was never enough money'

HARRIS COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) -- Years after Harris County voters approved a $2.5 billion bond for flood mitigation projects, the head of the flood control district told commissioners it's not enough money, and exactly how many projects need to be put on paused and closed altogether.

This comes after officials stated earlier this year that a $2.5 billion bond passed in 2018 wasn't enough money to fund every project they originally set out to complete.

ABC13 has reported that the county is short by $1.3 billion. It's a number that Flood Control Director Tina Petersen gave commissioners this summer.

On Thursday, she told them the figure is much lower to finish projects. "There's roughly $410 million that would be required to complete the projects that we currently do not have," Petersen said.

"There was never enough money to begin with," Harris County Precinct 2 Commissioner Adrian Garcia said earlier this summer.

Commissioners have voted to use remaining funds on projects in high-priority areas, but the full scope of what will have to be cut was unknown for months.

That changed on Thursday. Petersen told commissioners that 54 project areas have been completed. There are more than 110 that remain unfinished.

She said there's enough money to finish 75 areas. She recommended that commissioners pause work on 26 other areas until they find additional funding.

Petersen also recommended stopping work completely on 15 projects that she said are no longer feasible for several reasons, including not being able to get the right-of-way.

In addition to project updates, the flood control district also released a new virtual dashboard. Now, neighbors can see how much money has been spent from the 2018 bond, how much money is left, and look where projects stand in their community.

Meanwhile, homeowners in flood-prone areas are nervous to learn whether or not any kind of relief will be coming to their area.

"It makes me feel like we're forgotten," Letitia Wright of northwest Harris County said. "We pay taxes like everybody else, and we want everything done."

Right now, the dashboard doesn't show the projects that are on pause or not moving forward. A flood control district spokesperson told ABC13 that now commissioners voted to move forward, they plan to update the website next week with that information.

Harris County leaders have not ruled out having to ask taxpayers for more money in order to complete all of the work. "I want to stress that we ought to start soon figuring out where we go," Commissioner Rodney Ellis said.

Commissioners also learned how much longer it may take to finish the work. Petersen said it may take another five more years.

"I've said for a long time we need to speed these up," Hidalgo explained. "I don't think we have time to waste in order to be able to go for another bond and build more projects."

Thursday morning's meeting of Commissioners Court is also notable because it's the first one being held since Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo announced on ABC13 earlier this week that she will not be seeking re-election.

READ MORE: Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo addresses decision to not seek reelection after ABC13 exclusive