The Commissioners Court held a one-hour workshop Thursday to review Tropical Storm Harvey grant mitigation. County Code Compliance Officer Joel Ardoin, County Engineer Clark Slacum, and Special Projects Coordinator Michelle Tubbleville elaborated on 18 projects for the Commissioners.
The projects included renovations at the Orange County Airport, widening and deepening ditches especially in areas that have experienced flooding, and elevating or demolishing structures damaged by the flooding from Tropical Storm Harvey.
After looking at new projects, the Commissioners were updated on seven existing projects that were identified in the Orange County Hazard Mitigation Plan. Commissioner Johnny Trahan requested the workshop and believes it was helpful for the county to prioritize the projects it will request grants to cover. “We made a few changes on some of the projects we were looking at. It’s another revenue stream that we can look at, and we hope we get some money out of,” expressed Trahan.
This is just the first step in the grant process according to Commissioner John Gothia. The notices of intent will get the ball rolling for possible future funding. Gothia added, “The hope is they will grant all of them which would be great, but for sure the majority of them so we can start moving forward with applying actually for the money at that point. It’s a long process, but it’s a necessary process to get that kind of funding for it.”
The Commissioners Court could address some of the projects at next week’s meeting. The Court will meet on Tuesday at 2:00 PM in the Administrative Building of the Courthouse.
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