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Mon Jul 27, 2009 at 11:00 PM CDT
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(Peter Brown is a candidate for Mayor of Houston this November. - promoted by Karl-Thomas Musselman)
It's been eight years since Tropical Storm Allison, an event no one who experienced it can forget. My family remembers this time not just because of the storm, but also because it was the day of my daughter's wedding. Both the reception site and church were unreachable so we had to hold the ceremony and reception at our house. We were fortunate. Many Houstonians lost their homes, cars, possessions and more than twenty lost their lives. Texas, mostly the Houston area, suffered over $5 billion in losses, including $2 billion in damages at the Texas Medical Center.
After a catastrophe of this magnitude you'd think there would be swift action and a coordinated effort to assure this never happens again. Unfortunately, in the eight years since Allison flood control in Houston has been insufficient, costly, and uncoordinated. Residents, whether in the South Belt area or Spring Branch, continue to fall victim to flash floods causing loss of business, loss of property, and even loss of life. Flood damage costs Houstonians millions every year, and the City spends $50 million a year just trying to correct flooding. But the numbers can't measure the anger and frustration too many of us know of attempting to drive home or pick up a child from school only to find a submerged road in our path.
I've tackled flooding and drainage issues my entire career and I know we can win the fight against flooding. When I'm mayor, we'll get this right. My blueprint has three major suggestions: |
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| Invest in Projects That Work, to Reduce Flooding and Use Funding More Effectively. The city spends $50 million each year, distributed across many small projects, to combat flooding. But as recent flooding has shown, our current policies do little to address the major drainage issues. Instead of waiting for flooding problems to occur, I'm proposing a full-scale plan for maintaining our drainage systems so that they don't fail at the first sign of a thunderstorm.
Coordinate Our Approach to Find Regional Solutions. I understand that a regional problem requires a regional solution. Floodwaters don't recognize political boundaries, so any successful solution to the flooding problem will require coordination with other cities in the region. The city needs to better coordinate with the various entities involved in flood prevention, and protect neighborhoods within Houston from irresponsible upstream development.
Engage in Proactive Prevention, to Keep Our City Prepared.
I want to protect Houston's families and businesses from suffering further losses due to flooding by improving standards, encouraging more flood-reducing development, and protecting our natural watersheds. I will also apply new, innovative technologies that empower residents to alert the city of poorly maintained infrastructure and give them the tools to keep track of flooding prevention efforts.
We can't change the weather but we can reduce the impact of flooding by acting now to make the right investments and find real solutions. As Mayor, I'll use my experience and my vision to get results and prevent future flooding. You can see the full plan at:
www.PeterBrownForMayor.com/flooding |
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