Bellaire officials, U.S. Rep. Lizzie Fletcher and community partners gathered May 12 to break ground on the Cypress Ditch Regional Flood Mitigation Project.

Several community members and representatives, including Houston City Council members Abbie Kamin and Edward Pollard, also attended the ceremony.

“Flood waters do not know district or city lines,” Kamin said. “This is about community, and the city of Bellaire has stepped up in such an important and meaningful way.”

The context

After Hurricane Harvey in 2017, Bellaire officials estimated 30% of homes had structural flooding. A few months later, the city formed the Flood Hazard Mitigation Task Force to identify and assess flood hazards and recommend solutions.

The Cypress Ditch became a topic of interest, as it serves as the primary storm drainage channel for all of Bellaire and portions of Gulfton, City Engineer Beth Jones said.

Dollars at work

After collaborating with the Harris County Flood Control District, neighboring municipalities, federal and state legislative partners and local residents, the city secured funding for the $110 million project.

Notable contributions include a $54 million grant from the Texas Water Development Board, $40 million in local bonds and a $15 million contribution from the Harris County Flood Control District.

“Two years ago, we started in on the fundraising, and here we are in the spring of 2026, in May, and we are about to be groundbreaking,” Mayor Gus Pappas said. “We made a promise we would be shovel-ready in 2026 and that we would be moving dirt, and now we can.”

Latest update

In a February 15 City Council meeting, the city moved forward with Phase 1 of the project, which includes decommissioning and demolishing the current wastewater treatment plant and constructing the north and south basins.

Construction for the south basin is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2027, and by the third quarter of 2028 for the north basin.

Channel projects, which include widening the banks of the ditch and increasing outfall capacity, will wrap up in the fourth quarter of 2029, if not sooner, Deputy Program Manager Casey Goforth said.

View this story in Community Impact.