Simonton, FORT BEND COUNTY – Fort Bend County officials are working to secure funding for a million-dollar project to permanently realign the Hackamore Road in Simonton.
The city is roughly 20 miles northwest of Katy with the Brazos River snaking around parts of different neighborhoods. Through the years, erosion forced the collapse of homes, property, and Hackamore Road.
Mark Vogler, the county drainage director, said they’re working to confirm funding sources for the Hackamore Road. Once the land is acquired, the surveying and design work begins, then the county will expedite the rest of the project.
Khalil Burbar, a ranch owner near Hackamore Road, said it can’t come soon enough.
“I wish tomorrow,” Burbar said. “I hope that they will do it.”
The announcement comes weeks after the Texas General Land Office granted the county approximately $25.8 million in funds to pay for two projects.
- READ THE ORIGINAL REPORT: $26 million secured to control erosion at Brazos River. Here’s how this will impact homeowners
The grant comes from a $72.5 million Texas General Land Office grant shared by several other Texas cities and one other county. The mitigation funds will be distributed to improve streets, drainage and sewer systems in the cities of Bedias, Bremond, Galveston, Liberty, Midway and San Augustine, as well as Hardin County and a partial award of a larger project to be administered by the Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC) in Fort Bend County.
Shortly after the announcement, Claudia Hernandez was weary of the plans. She said she’s waiting to see construction crews.
“I’m ready,” Hernandez told KPRC 2′s Rilwan Balogun in April. “We don’t want to move from here. This is our home. It’s pretty peaceful. The neighborhood is awesome.”
Hernandez’s family moved to the community five years ago and since, she said, she estimates losing between five and ten feet.
“We’ve lost quite a bit,” she said. “I mean everyone said that it [erosion] wasn’t going to happen again in maybe 100 years or something like that. As we’ve had storms, normal regular storms, as the river has risen up and after it recedes then you start seeing some of the land fall into the river and the trees and all that.”
Vogler shared with Balogun he and county officials understand homeowners’ frustrations and they’re working as fast as possible to start work on all projects.
“It’s very necessary,” Burbar said. “I would love to see that river, I don’t know what they’re going to do, but has to be stopped from getting all of this flood every year.”