Save Lake Thicket - Briarhills Homeowners Association

BRIARHILLS HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION
C/O RealManage – Houston
2000 S. Dairy Ashford #120
Houston, Texas 77077
Tel: 866-473-2573 or Fax: 281-582-6400

Michael McNally

President & CEO

Skanska USA, Inc.

350 Fifth Avenue 32nd Floor

New York, NY 10118

Dear Mr. McNally,

The Board of Directors of the Briarhills’ HOA is writing to you as concerned neighbors about Skanska’s commercial development at 15375 Memorial Drive in Houston, Texas. We seek your immediate attention because we are concerned about the report that you plan to fill in Lake Thicket, which will have a negative impact on both flooding and wildlife in our area.

As I'm sure you are aware, flooding is a major concern of the HOAs in West Houston. Since Lake Thicket already acts as a detention pond during periods of heavy rain, its removal will have a negative impact on solving the flooding problems in our area. Flooding due to unchecked commercial development is damaging individual properties and is a detriment to our West Houston community.

The wild undisturbed area in and around Lake Thicket is also home to many species of animals and contributes to the quality of life in the area. Our wetland areas provide sanctuary for wildlife and helps to mitigate flooding and by leaving this land intact and unaltered preserves the quality of life for residents in the area.

We have requested the support of local regulators and elected officials as well, all who will be receiving copies of the petition as well:

• Colonel Christopher Sallese – Commanding Officer, USACE Galveston District
• Congressman John Culberson – US House of Representatives
• Commissioner Steve Radack – Harris County
• Councilman Oliver Pennington – City of Houston
• Richard Smith – City Engineer, City of Houston
• Moni Belton - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
• Sharon Parrish - Wetlands Section, Region 6, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
• Charles Maguire – Water Quality Section, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
• Mark Fisher, 401 Coordinator, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
• Rebecca Hensley – Ecosystem Resources Program, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department

We ask that you consider Lake Thicket as a positive feature of the property, worthy of keeping intact, because of its history, its role in addressing our flooding issues, and because it is a natural harbor for wildlife.

Thank you for your attention in this matter. On Behalf of Briarhills’ Home Owner’s Association,

Brian Heil, Vice President Briarhills’ HOA
Ken Fickes, President
Martha Whitton, Treasurer
Mark Penick, Director at Large
Jeff Kollar, Secretary

   

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

Save Lake Thicket - Parkhollow Homeowners Association, Inc.

Parkhollow Homeowners Association, Inc.
3000 Armenia Dr. Houston, TX  77082

November 12, 2012

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

Dear Mr. McNally:
   
The Board of Directors of Parkhollow Homeowners Association is writing to you as concerned neighbors regarding Skanska’s commercial development at 15375 Memorial Drive in the west part of Houston, Texas.  Our community of 550 homes is located just south of this property.  Many of our residents are concerned with the plan to drain and fill Lake Thicket.  This lake has served as a detention pond for many years and helped prevent homes in our area from flooding.   We have already lost much of the wildlife in this part of Houston due to all the growth and draining the lake would lead to more loss of wildlife.  The HOAs in the surrounding communities have worked hard over the years to maintain a desirable quality of life for their residents.  Draining and filling the Lake would certainly cause an irreversible, major loss of our area wildlife and would flood more of our homes.

     Parkhollow Homeowners Association welcomes Skanska to the area as we do all commercial developments.    We realize some of our residents will be employed by businesses in this development and that’s a positive thing for us.  However, the Lake is very important to us and we want to keep it as part of our community.  Therefore, we ask that you not drain and fill the lake, but work it into the architectural design of this property.   

Sincerely,

Amanda Sherard, Vice President
Parkhollow Homeowners Association