Member designated community project requests for 2025.
Request Title: Devers 1st Pump Station
Subcommittee: Energy & Water Development
Agency/Bureau: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Amount Requested: $13,000,000
Recipient: Lower Neches Valley Authority (LNVA)
Request Description: The funding would be used for the much-needed replacement of the Devers 1st Pump Station. The urgency to replace the Devers 1st Pump Station, initially constructed in 1898, is evident. The intake bay, intake screens, suction piping, pumps, discharge piping, and building structure have all exceeded their practical lifespans, and in many cases, necessary replacement parts are not readily available. The overall exceedingly poor condition of the equipment makes in-place renovation impractical. The project is included in the 2022 Texas Water Development Board State Water Plan as an approved water management strategy for the Region H Regional Water Plan.
Request Title: Houston Ship Channel Improvement Project
Subcommittee: Energy & Water Development
Agency/Bureau: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Amount Requested: $35,900,000
Recipient: Port Houston
Request Description: The Houston Ship Channel system is in need of $35.9 million to avoid draft restrictions this year – these funds will also be used to maintain the channel to the federal operational depth of 46 feet. Draft restrictions at the Houston Ship Channel cost the nation billions of dollars annually and hurt the local and national economy when not eliminated quickly. Since 2019, the Houston Ship Channel has seen a 422% increase in draft restrictions resulting from insufficient operation and maintenance dredging. This request will provide the shortfall in operation and maintenance (O&M) dollars needed to ensure the channel is not draft restricted and Americans are able to export and import their cargo efficiently. Houston is the nation’s top port, handling 50 million more tons of waterborne cargo annually than any other U.S. port; yet, they receive only 18¢ of O&M funding per ton of cargo, less than half the national average of what other ship channels receive. Insufficient O&M dredging has caused unprecedented draft restrictions in Houston. It is estimated that these draft restrictions have disrupted more than $6 billion worth of cargo since 2020, costing more than $375 million to shipping lines and much more than that to the American consumer.
Request Title: Double Bayou Dredging Project
Subcommittee: Energy & Water Development
Agency/Bureau: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Amount Requested: $6,000,000
Recipient: Chambers County
Request Description: Providing funds to ensure Double Bayou is dredged to its authorized depth. Chambers County has experienced multiple catastrophic flood events in the past several years which have placed severe strain on the drainage capabilities of existing watersheds in Mid Chambers County. Storm events like Hurricane Harvey and Tropical Storm Imelda have highlighted a dire need to expand and improve these drainage pathways to effectively combat future storm events of similar magnitude. Double Bayou is a major drainage outfall for the entire region. The channel is authorized to 7 feet MLT but portions of the channel are restricted to less than 2 feet due to lack of maintenance. Dredging the channel will significantly decrease the amount of time that flood waters stay within flooded areas, thus reducing the amount of time that first responders and relief aid can move into an area. It will also allow evacuees to return to their homes faster after a major storm event.
Request Title: Clear Creek Flood Risk Management Project
Subcommittee: Energy & Water Development
Agency/Bureau: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Amount Requested: $40,000,000
Recipient: Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD)
Request Description: Clear Creek is a Flood Risk Management project that was authorized by the U.S. Flood Control Act of 1968. The Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD) has entered into a project partnership agreement with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to carry out this project. The channel conveyance improvements on mainstream Clear Creek will increase the conveyance of runoff away from homes and streets, while the stormwater detention basins will safely store the excess stormwater so that it does not negatively impact any other area. The combination of these features reduces flood risk for the area, while the riparian floodplain habitat restoration will enhance the resilience of the region. Historically, this region has experienced devastating flooding events, including the floods of 1929 and 1935, which helped with the passing of the U.S. Flood Control Act of 1936 and establishing the HCFCD in 1937. Once complete, the project’s stormwater detention basins and channel improvements in Clear Creek and Mud Gully will provide immediate benefits by removing the floodplain impact from 590 existing structures and reducing it from 4,888 existing structures for the 1% AEP (100-year) inundation area – 1,820 of these structures are located within disadvantaged communities.
Request Title: Red Bluff Stormwater Detention Basin Optimization
Subcommittee: Homeland Security
Agency/Bureau: Federal Emergency Management Agency
Amount Requested: $10,000,000
Recipient: Harris County Flood Control District
Request Description: This project consists of optimizing the existing dry-bottom Red Bluff Stormwater detention basin per the Armand Bayou Watershed Plan Recommendations. The additional volume achieved in the basin will increase storage volume by approximately 200 ac-ft for the mitigation of future upstream channel system modifications. The maximized capacity of the basin in combination with future channel improvements could reduce the risk of flooding for approximately 256 structures during a 100-year Atlas-14 rainfall event. Stormwater detention basins capture and hold excess runoff during heavy rain events. Often, these basins are paired with a corresponding channel conveyance improvement project. The channel conveyance improvement moves water away from homes and streets more quickly, while the stormwater detention basin stores this increase in flow so that it does not negatively impact any other area. This funding request is for completion of a stormwater detention basin only; the channel conveyance improvements will be completed in a later project phase. This project will reduce the flooding elevations throughout the Armand Bayou watershed communities. These benefits include, but are not limited to, the removal of up to 256 structures during a 100-year flooding event. The neighborhoods in this area have experienced repetitive flooding due to storm events in 1979, 1994, 1997, 1998, 1999, Tropical Storm Allison in 2001, 2009, Hurricane Harvey in 2017, 2018, and Tropical Storm Imelda in 2019.
Request Title: Goose Creek Channel Conveyance Improvements and Stormwater Detention
Subcommittee: Homeland Security
Agency/Bureau: Federal Emergency Management Agency
Amount Requested: $10,000,000
Recipient: Harris County Flood Control District
Request Description: This project will increase conveyance capacity of the Goose Creek channel to reduce flood risk during storm events in the developing city of Baytown. Along with the channel improvements, it includes the construction of a stormwater detention basin to offset potential adverse impacts due to increased channel conveyance by providing temporary storage runoff during storm events. The conveyance improvements cover approximately 1.65 miles of Channel O100-00-00 (Goose Creek), divided into northern and southern channel segments. The project aims to decrease flooding elevation across the Goose Creek watershed, benefiting residents in Goose Creek Reserve and nearby communities. These benefits include the removal of 77 structures in floodplain areas, 35 previously flooded structures, 1.43 miles of inundated roadway, and 28 acres of inundated land for a 100-year storm event. Collaboration with the City of Baytown has enabled the integration of amenities, such as a recreational trail and parking, reflecting community preferences and needs, within the proposed Stormwater Detention Basin (SWDB).
Request Title: Beaumont Underpass Flooding Early Warning System Improvements
Subcommittee: Homeland Security
Agency/Bureau: Federal Emergency Management Agency
Amount Requested: $952,500
Recipient: City of Beaumont, Public Works
Request Description: This project would install master sensor stations at existing underpass pump locations that are known flooding problem sites. Master sensor stations will trigger flashing lights and an alert about flooding before the underpasses to prevent citizens from entering flooded underpasses when the master sensor station rises above a predetermined threshold. The master sensor stations would also send an alert to emergency responders about hazardous conditions. This Project would also install rain and stream gauges used to take a proactive approach to the response before hazardous conditions take place.
Request Title: Rural Southeast Texas Healthcare Workforce Training Project
Subcommittee: Agriculture
Agency/Bureau: USDA-Rural Development
Amount Requested: $1,011,500
Recipient: Lamar State College Orange
Request Description: Lamar State College Orange (LSCO) in partnership with Lamar Institute of Technology have partnered to create distance learning healthcare training and educational opportunities for rural areas in Southeast, Texas, specifically at LSCO's campus in Lumberton, Texas and surrounding areas. The project provides rural communities with the necessary audio/video and computer equipment, software, instructional programming, and technological support to offer online access to high-quality and affordable post-secondary education in allied health certifications and degrees offered by the partnering institutions in targeted rural areas.
Request Title: Rural Southeast Texas Nursing Training Center
Subcommittee: Agriculture
Agency/Bureau: USDA-Rural Development
Amount Requested: $1,775,749.3
Recipient: Lamar State College Orange
Request Description: Lamar State College Orange (LSCO) is partnering with Lamar Institute of Technology to create a nursing training center to expand its nursing programs to reach rural areas in Southeast, Texas, specifically at the LSCO Lumberton campus. The project will provide direct access to high-quality and affordable post-secondary education in nursing, medical coding, and health information degrees offered by the partnering institutions in targeted rural areas. Funds for this project will purchase and install training equipment to prepare registered nursing, medical coding, and health information technology students in LSCO Lumberton. Students enrolled in the nursing program will be afforded hands-on deliberate practice, development of decision-making skills, and improved communication and teamwork through the use of high-fidelity simulation labs as well as virtual reality technology. Students enrolled in the medical coding and health information programs will have access to hands-on fully integrated, adaptive, and transactional data exchange simulation equipment.
Request Title: Rural East Texas High-Demand Job Training Center
Subcommittee: Agriculture
Agency/Bureau: USDA-Rural Development
Amount Requested: $4,362,593
Recipient: The City of Jasper, Texas
Request Description: This project will occur in Jasper Texas and will benefit the region containing Tyler, Polk, Jasper and Newton Counties. This region shows the lowest prime age employment along the entire Eastern border of the State. Prime Age Employment is fully 17.87 percentage points below the United States average in this area. At the same time, data shows more than 7,000 high-wage, high-demand, transportation jobs along the eastern border of Texas right now. This project will provide an emergency command center and functional alternative fire-response unit for times of natural disaster, a large paved area for commercial driver training, and a multi-use space for a wide variety of training designed to train local residents to fill high-wage, high-demand, positions. This project breaks the barriers keeping residents of this rural area from accessing high-wage jobs that already exist and significantly raising Prime Age Employment.
Request Title: Florida Avenue Wastewater Interceptor Rehabilitation Phase II
Subcommittee: Interior and Environment
Agency/Bureau: Environmental Protection Agency/EPA
Amount Requested: $1,600,000
Recipient: The City of Beaumont Texas
Request Description: This project will replace wastewater collection pipes sized 21” to 24” as part of the interceptor that transports sewage to the wastewater treatment plant. The existing concrete pipe was constructed in 1947 and has shown signs of deterioration. Work involves the removal of the existing pipe, placing new pipe at proper grade, replacing manholes, and replacing service lines. This project will also replace sections of pipe that were previously installed at an incorrect slope. At the end of the project, the entire length of the interceptor will be modernized with plastic pipe.
Request Title: University of Houston-Clear Lake Aerospace Engineering Infrastructure Support
Subcommittee: Transportation, Housing and Urban Development
Agency/Bureau: HUD/Community Planning and Development
Amount Requested: $10,000,000
Recipient: University of Houston-Clear Lake
Request Description: These funds will support the infrastructure needs of UHCL’s newly created Aerospace Engineering (AE) program. UHCL’s AE program will be housed in the existing 121,000-square-foot STEM and Classroom Building, which features 13 faculty research labs, 15 teaching labs, a 100-seat tiered lecture hall, and an astronomy observation deck. Currently, the facility lacks the essential spaces and equipment to integrate the classroom and laboratory experiences that will prepare students for professional practice in aerospace engineering and related fields. To address this, UHCL is looking to build out five labs in the existing STEM building: Aerodynamics, Aerospace Design, Propulsion, Structure/Materials & Composites, and Vibration & Control. These new lab spaces will provide UHCL AE students the environments necessary for experiential learning opportunities and hands-on work. Cost estimates includes lab buildout costs such as HVAC, plumbing and furnishings; lab equipment including various trainer/tester systems; construction of an outdoor launch site, plus inflationary projections for a Spring 2025 buildout.
Request Title: Port of Beaumont Island Park Terminal Bank Stabilization Project
Subcommittee: Transportation, Housing and Urban Development
Agency/Bureau: DOT/Maritime Administration
Amount Requested: $12,733,600
Recipient: The Port of Beaumont
Request Description: The proposed Island Park Stabilization Project includes repairing 1,250 feet of shoreline at the Island Park Terminal, located at 850 Pine Street, Beaumont, Texas. The shoreline has eroded at a rapid pace over the last seven years due to changes in the pattern of the Neches River, as a result of Hurricane Harvey in 2017. To ensure the terminal is resilient, the proposed project includes construction of a bulkhead that will stabilize impacted areas and prevent future erosion, allowing the Port to market the underutilized, but valuable, site. The project will also create opportunities for the Port to market assets within the terminal, including the largest paint blast booth in the state of Texas and prime manufacturing space. The proposed project will allow the Port to accept at least one of the potential project cargo contracts outlined in the “customer requests” document, which would generate an additional $1,000,000 per year in revenue, based on the projected needs of the potential customer. This equates to more than $10,000,000 over a 10-year period and approximately $50,000,000 over the 50-year life of the infrastructure. The requested funds are critically needed for the Port to remain competitive and continue bringing in cargo that generates revenue used to invest in the region.
