Today Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush announced the Texas General Land Office (GLO) approved $5,649,867 in Hurricane Harvey disaster recovery funds for the City of Vidor to improve streets, build drainage facilities, conduct a planning study and demolish blighted abandoned single-family housing units to protect the health and safety of surrounding neighbors.
"Hurricane Harvey devastated communities across the Texas Coast," said Commissioner Bush. "These recovery funds are critical to improving local infrastructure that will protect lives, homes and businesses from future storms. We continue to work with our partners in communities across the region to leverage these resources efficiently and effectively to benefit Texans affected by Hurricane Harvey."
During Hurricane Harvey, Anderson Gully was inundated by heavy rainfall. The city of Vidor will conduct a planning study to determine how to improve the gully to reduce risk and loss. Additionally, Vidor will demolish 38 abandoned homes damaged by Hurricane Harvey.
New sewer pipes, storm sewer culverts, and outfall ditches will be installed on:
- Elgie Street from Maple Street to the end of Elgie Street
- Tiger Creek Crossing at Texas Street and Pine Street
- Orange Street between Needles Street and Pine Shadows Street
- S. Dewitt Road at Forrest Lane
The city of Vidor will replace the bridge on Alamo Street. Additional street improvements will take place at the following locations:
- North Archie Street from I-H 10 to Garland Street
- Elgie Street between Pine Street and North Tannahill Street
- Avery Street from FM 12 to approximately 175 linear feet north of FM 12
- Oakland Street from Southdale Street to Maplewood Drive
- North Lakeside Street from Maplewood Street to approximately 750 linear feet north of Strickland Street
Texas GLO Hurricane Harvey Recovery Funds:
Commissioner George P. Bush and the Texas General Land Office was appointed by Governor Greg Abbott to lead the historic Hurricane Harvey housing recovery efforts funded by $5.676 billion in Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
The GLO allocated $413 million of the allocation for infrastructure projects to protect communities affected by the storm. The GLO allocated the funds to regional Council of Governments' (COGs) based on a HUD approved needs assessment. The locally-led COGs then conducted methods of distribution (MODs) for determining infrastructure and buyout and acquisition amounts for cities and counties within each jurisdiction. COG boards are comprised of officials from the impacted communities elected in part to prioritize funds allocated for recovery programs. The MOD process requires public engagement and the GLO reviewed each MOD for compliance with federal rules and requirements before approving each plan.
To review the approved MODs, please visit https://recovery.texas.gov/action-plans/hurricane-harvey/index.html.