FLOODING DAMAGE
Buffalo Bayou Partnership works to repair the damage to the park from the storm
Hurricane Harvey destroyed the lower portions of Buffalo Bayou Park, devastating the dog park and causing the loss of some 400 trees.
After hauling off 30,000 cubic yards of sediment — at a cost of more than $1 million — the Buffalo Bayou Partnership continues its costly efforts to repair what’s become Houston’s central park.
“We’re encouraged because we see grass sprouting up,” said Anne Olson, president of the Partnership.
Ultimately, the cost to restore the park and its trails could be several million dollars, some of which will come from Harris County Flood Control.
The surprise expenses delayed the partnership’s longtime plans to improve the bayou east of downtown. Yet the first meetings with residents and community members took place a few weeks ago.
The partnership’s goal is to protect the area’s cultural and industrial legacy amid gentrification that has already begun to remake parts of the area. Property values are up dramatically from a decade ago.
“People are very concerned about the gentrification taking place in the east end and in the Fifth Ward,” Olson said. “We’re working with both of those communities.”
Olson joins the Chronicle’s Nancy Sarnoff and Allyn West to discuss the Buffalo Bayou Park’s future and the long-term plan for the bayou’s east stretch. Hear the backstory at HoustonChronicle.com/ LoopedIn.