Houston OKs post-Harvey rule

HOUSTON — Houston officials on Wednesday approved a rule for new homes and other buildings in the city’s floodplains that will require them to be elevated higher off the ground to avoid floodwaters.

The regulation comes more than seven months after Hurricane Harvey flooded thousands of homes in the nation’s fourth-largest city, which has long had a culture that’s resistant to regulation and remains the only major U.S. city without zoning. The City Council approved the rule 9-7 during a sometimes contentious meeting.

City officials say that of the homes in Houston’s floodplains that were damaged by Harvey, more than 80 percent could have been protected had they been built at the height required in the new regulation. Such homes would typically be built on pier and beam foundations that put them above ground.

Mayor Sylvester Turner, who championed the effort, called changing the rule a “defining moment” for the city, parts of which got nearly 50 inches (127 centimeters) during Harvey last August.

“Can we undo what was done with Harvey? No. Can be build looking forward? Yes,” Turner said. “If it has the probability of letting people know in our city and those who are looking to come that we are taking measures to be stronger, to be more resilient, then that’s positive for the city of Houston.”

Critics of the regulation, including several council members and many home builders, argued it will drive up home prices and stifle economic development.

“It will hurt the city as a whole,” said Councilman Greg Travis.” We have not taken the time to find out what the ramifications will be.”