Downtown Houston public buildings in flood plains

An article entitled "Higher ground for the courts - debate rages over retrofit or rebuilding criminal courthouse" by Brian Rogers appeared in today's (January 7, 2018) Houston Chronicle.  It can also be viewed online at:


The article points out that the Criminal Courts Building at 1201 Franklin has been completely unusable since Hurricane Harvey and will remain closed for at least the next six to seven months.  The 20-story building houses county offices and more than 40 courtrooms.  It was constructed for a cost of approximately $100 million and opened in 2000.  

Estimates for repair of the building range from $20 million to $100 million.  A prominent attorney quoted in the article questions whether repair of the structure is warranted since it was also flooded during tropical storm Allison in 2000. It may also not be large enough to handle the anticipated number of people who use it daily.

The 1201 Franklin building is located where it is as the result of the original master plan that includes a tunnel and bridge over Buffalo Bayou from the Harris County jail complex.  It is also located next to the $13 million jury assembly building that was completed in 2011.  That building was also damaged by Hurricane Harvey and may be a complete loss.

The article states that the architects for 1201 Franklin "planned for flooding", however it is now apparent from the damages inflicted by Allison and Harvey that those measures were insufficient.

Examination of the National Flood Hazard Layers (NFHL) map below shows that the 1201 Franklin building is located in the 500-year flood plain and is about 500 ft from the Buffalo Bayou floodway.

Overall there are multiple high-value public facilities located in this high flood risk area at the intersection of Buffalo and White Oak Bayous, including:
  • Harris County Civil Court
  • Harris County Jail
  • University of Houston-Downtown
  • Harris County Sheriff's Office
Based on this article and the recent Harvey experience do you think the public should be looking more closely at where local government chooses to construct these facilities?  What standard should be met to prevent future flood damage and loss of use?  Are you personally familiar with buildings or facilities located in flood hazard areas that appear excessively risky?



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