Houston Flooding Regulations Come Down To March 21 Vote
Houston City Council will make a ruling on new post-Harvey rules for home constructions next month after a request for more public comments. The ordinance would set the 500-year flood plain as the minimum standard for new home construction and require new homes to be built up to 2 feet above the 500-year flood plain. Currently, the code only requires properties to be built 1 foot above the 100-year flood plain. Similar regulations went into effect in unincorporated Harris County Jan. 1.
"The proposal only applies to new construction and not to existing homes, and we’re trying to do everything we can to kind of minimize any additional cost. But it is important for us to build a stronger and a much more resilient city," Mayor Sylvester Turner said before City Council.
Turner had planned to vote on the new ordinance last week, but council members voted to extend the time allowed for public comment through March 5. The vote is scheduled for March 21.
