Hurricane and Tropical Storm Harvey did much damage to Port Arthur. The city is trying to be proactive before the next flood by being better prepared.

Rebecca Underhill, assistant to the city manager, said Federal Emergency Management Agency funding opportunities for mitigation projects might prevent loss from future storms.

Chris Canonico, a principal with the Ardurra Group, said at a Tuesday meeting of the Port Arthur City Council there are mitigation pots of money available for cities. One pot is automatic with the cities for every project worksheet submitted under the public assistance disaster program. Any damaged facility will have mitigation opportunities attached to that.

The second program is called 404 mitigation. For every dollar FEMA spends in the state of Texas for individual assistance or public administration they put that money into a pot. Canonico said there’s $1 billion in the fund and he thinks it will continue to grow. Governments must compete for that money.

To apply, Port Arthur must submit a two-page form for each project to become eligible. Applying does not mean one is ranked high enough on the priority list for an award, but it means one can move forward. The process is done on a first-come, first-served basis.

Here are the types of projects that are intended to be funded with this money:

 

• Buyouts or elevation programs
• Regional drainage and/or regional detention programs
• Facilities not damaged by Harvey, but doing mitigation programs for them to protect against future storms.

 

For example, the city’s wastewater plant was not damaged by the storm, but may need mitigating.

Some projects require a 25 percent match. The city may use some of their Disaster Recovery Community Development Block Grants dollars to pay for that match.

Underhill said there are plans to partner with Jefferson County Drainage District 7 for a regional drainage project through a competitive project with other communities.

Canonico encouraged city officials to speak with state officials about these projects. Mayor Derrick Freeman said the city would like to run natural gas lines to their pump stations to fuel them rather than on relying on fuel trucks. They’re also looking at the possibility of using either solar or wind energy so they won’t have to worry about the energy grid going out.

Jefferson County is doing mitigation projects such as baffles on Keith Lake and siphons at the J.D. Murphree Wildlife Preserve.

Willie “Bae” Lewis Jr., District 5 City councilman, said the city can do something similar with a beach at the end of First Street in Sabine Pass that could get money from the Texas General Land Office to raise the road.

He described it as a secluded, 1,800-foot by 600-foot beach that’s inaccessible when the waters rise.

“You cannot get to it. It washes out. It needs to be elevated,” he said. “Tourism will increase if we do.”

Lewis said he has seen camping, fishing, kayaking and bird watching going on there.

Harvey Robinson, interim city manager, said the greater the award the city receives, the greater will be the match to pay.

Underhill said in addition to the 25 percent match there is also a 10 percent match. She believes the city should pursue both avenues: funding most projects with the 90/10 split and using the 75/25 split when it’s feasible.