Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Save Lake Thicket - Preservation of Natural Lake Thicket

Dear Mr. McNally,

As  President of Cove Creek Corporation, a neighborhood homeowners association in Houston along the southern banks of Buffalo Bayou between Wilcrest and Beltway 8, I am writing to express our concerns about flooding along Buffalo Bayou as well as the preservation of wildlife and the wildlife habitat in this area.  We would specifically would like to encourage you to abandon any plans to fill Lake Thicket or destroy any of the natural habitat in the surrounding area you are developing.  Such action threatens to cause irreversibly damage to the environment and increase flooding along Buffalo Bayou.   Buffalo Bayou already has inadequate detention capacity for flood waters during rain events. 

While we welcome Skanska to the neighborhood, we would ask that you not take any action in developing this property that would reduce detention capacity further and exacerbate an already challenging situation.  I have explained our position in further detail in the attached letter.

Thank you for your consideration in this matter.

Sincerely,

George E. Crosby
President, Cove Creek Corporation

__________ Letter Below Sent With Email ___________

Cove Creek Corporation
106 Cove Creek Lane
Houston, Texas 77042

November 13, 2012

Mr. Michael McNally
President & CEO
Skanska USA, Inc.
350 Fifth Avenue
32nd Floor
New York, NY 10118

Dear Mr. McNally,

I am writing as President of Cove Creek Corporation, a neighborhood association on the southern banks of Buffalo Bayou between Wilcrest and Beltway 8. Our association is very concerned about flooding along Buffalo Bayou during rain events and the need for more detention of flood waters, not less. We are also concerned about the preservation of the wildlife and the wildlife habitat along Buffalo Bayou. Skanska's high rise office building development underway at 15375 Memorial Drive in Houston, Texas threatens to irreversibly damage the environment and increase flooding along Buffalo Bayou.

I am sure Skanska wants to be a good corporate citizen and a good neighbor. Accordingly, we are urging you to abandon any plans to fill Lake Thicket or any plan to remove any of the natural habit in the surrounding area you control. Such action would not only destroy a natural environment valued by the citizens in West Houston and a habit necessary to support native wildlife but it would also eliminate an important source of natural detention and thereby increase flooding in adjacent properties as well as communities such as ours downstream.

Your June 20 letter to the neighbors of Lake Thicket was inaccurate when it stated that Lake Thicket "has no impact on neighborhood drainage." I can send you pictures taken during the 2009 flood that show quite the contrary. The fact is that this natural "drainage system," which includes Lake Thicket and the course of the original Buffalo Bayou on the West side of Skanska's property, stores significant volumes of floodwater during flood events above and beyond the normal levels of the lake and bayou. If you reduce this capacity, it is at the peril of many surrounding communities as well as communities downstream.

During the 2009 flood, many homes within our homeowners association flooded. One of the reasons was that Buffalo Bayou does not have the capacity to handle serious rain events. The other reason is the lack of adequate retention or detention basins along Buffalo Bayou to accommodate the increased impervious surfaces resulting from developments in West Houston that did not provide for adequate detention as part of their developments plans.

While we welcome Skanska to the neighborhood, we certainly hope that this mistake won't be repeated. Preservation of the natural Lake Thicket not only enhances the beauty of the Memorial neighborhood but it also makes your development more attractive to future tenants.

Please join us in protecting this natural environment and helping us to eliminate costly flooding along Buffalo Bayou.

Thank you for your consideration in this matter.

Sincerely,

George E. Crosby
President, Cove Creek Corporation

cc:
A.J. Restum, Skanska
Greg Mondshine, Skanska
Mike Nair, Skanska
Joel Ambre, Skanska
Bill Fleming, Skanska
Mats Johansson, Skanska
Shawn Hurley, Skanska
Thomas Hendriksson, Skanska
Catherine Dannenbring, Skanska
Johan Karlstrom, Skanska
Karin Lepasoon, Skanska
John Culberson, U.S. House of Representatives
Councilman Oliver Pennington, City of Houston
Mayor Annise Parker, City of Houston
Richard Smith, Chief Engineer, City of Houston
Colonel Sallese, Commanding Officer, US Army Corps of Engineers
Elizabeth Shelton, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Galveston Office
John Davidson, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Galveston Office, Enforcement Section
Phil Richardson, Save Lake Thicket Coalition
Creek Corporation Board

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