A year to the day after Hurricane Harvey dumped 27 trillion gallons of water on southeast Texas, swamped 204,000 Harris County homes and apartments and killed more than 50 residents in the region, voters overwhelmingly approved a $2.5 billion flood infrastructure bond designed to protect the area in future storms. The measure was leading with more than 85 percent support, according to County Clerk Stan Stanart. An estimated 150,000 of Harris County's 2.3 million registered voters cast ballots, according to preliminary numbers.<doc-sep>HOUSTON — Voters in Houston and its surrounding county were marking Saturday's anniversary of Hurricane Harvey coming ashore by deciding whether to approve the issuance of $2.5 billion in bonds to fund flood-control projects that might mitigate the damage caused by future storms. Harvey, which made landfall as a powerful Category 4 storm on Aug. 25, 2017, killed 68 people and caused an estimated $125 billion in damage in Texas. Thirty-six of the deaths were in the low-lying Houston area, where days of torrential rainfall and decades of unchecked development contributed to the flooding of more than 150,000 homes and 300,000 vehicles. The bond referendum would help pay for projects to be chosen from a list of more than 230 proposals that include home buyouts, the construction of additional stormwater detention basins and the expansion of area bayous, among other options. Officials say the bond money would help supplement federal funds earmarked for flood mitigation after Harvey. If the referendum passes, taxpayers in Harris County, which includes Houston, would see an average increase of $5 per year in their property taxes. Republican Ed Emmett, the county's top elected official, repeated one mantra following Harvey's destruction: flood control and mitigation is now "job one." Emmett has championed the bond measure, pointing to the piles of ruined furniture, appliances, clothing and keepsakes that lined Houston streets for months after Harvey's floodwaters retreated. "I go back to those piles of debris. You realize those really aren't piles of debris, those are people's lives on the curb. We want to make sure that never, never, never happens again," Emmett said. Houston, which is barely above sea level, has long been susceptible to flooding. A web of bayous and other watersheds that can overflow during heavy rainfall snake their way through Harris County. Flood maps show that more than 25 percent of Harris County is in the 100-year flood plain and more than 33 percent of the county is in the 500-year flood plain. Structures in a 100-year flood plain have a 1 percent chance of flooding in any given year, while those in a 500-year flood plain have a 0.2 percent chance of flooding during any year. The Houston area has had three 500-year flood events since 2015. Many of the Houston area homes damaged during Harvey were not in designated flood plains. The flooding from Harvey and damaging storms in the two preceding years has galvanized efforts to make the Houston area more resilient to future floods. Since Harvey, the city and the county have approved rules requiring new homes and other buildings constructed in flood plains to be built higher off the ground to avoid flooding. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said things like the bond referendum and the new building rules show that the area is serious about better protecting itself. "As we develop going forward, we're going to have to do things differently," Turner said. The bond referendum has received bipartisan support and has been endorsed by business and labor groups as well as religious and community advocacy organizations. However, there are some community concerns about transparency and how the money would be used. Keith Downey, president of the Kashmere Gardens Super Neighborhood, a local community group, said he would have liked more information about how some of the projects will benefit the city's low-income neighborhoods, many of which flooded during Harvey and have a history of repeated flooding. "There are more questions than we have answers," Downey said as he stood next to Hunting Bayou, one of the waterways that swamped low-income neighborhoods during Harvey. Officials have said they have been transparent about the bond proposal, holding 23 community meetings this summer to gather public input and ideas.<doc-sep>
EMBED >More News Videos Woman in Meyerland neighborhood builds levee around home after Hurricane Harvey causes water damage EMBED >More News Videos Harris County voters to vote on multi-billion dollar bond referendum 1 year after Hurricane Harvey HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- On Saturday, Harris County voters will go to the polls to vote on a $2.5 billion flood bond that already has strong support, according to a University of Houston survey.If approved, the funds will be used on flood mitigation projects to reduce flooding in the county. The overall tax increase will increase over time, and will cost taxpayers two to three cents per $100 of home valuation.The Hobby School of Public Affairs released a survey this month of 815 people, and found bipartisan support for the bond and from both people who did and did not sustain property damage during Hurricane Harvey.Among Republicans, 58% said they would vote for the bond and 63% of Democrats support it. Of those whose homes flooded, 60% are for compared to 52% of those whose homes did not flood.Dr. Jim Granato, the executive director of the Hobby School, interprets those numbers like this: "They see the seriousness of this and no one ever wants to go through this again. "More than 200,000 homes and apartment buildings were damaged during Hurricane Harvey. Harris County Judge Ed Emmett is leading the charge to get the multi-billion dollar bond passed. "This is the most important local election, not just because the $2.5 billion and the projects, but because of the message it sends. It says, 'Okay, enough is enough,'" Emmett said.The UH survey found only 10% are against the bond.Harvey victims Rachel and David Odom are not among the opposition. They were displaced from their west Houston home for 11 months after four feet of water settled in. "It was spewing in," Rachel said. "I think there is a lot of work that can be done. I know this storm is an anomaly, but I'd like to save these neighborhoods and communities."