In the Trinity River watershed alone, the state’s water agency estimates that more than half a million people live in a 100-year or 500-year floodplain, with at least a 1% or 0.2% risk of flooding each year.
In the end, only 336 homeowners outside the Houston area submitted an application for a buyout; almost all were approved, including fewer than 20 so far in Liberty County, where the average buyout offer has been less than $60,000 — roughly a quarter of what a typical house in the county costs. Six years ago, when Harvey’s rains started to push the Trinity River out of its banks, Todd packed some food, four dogs and a bird named Sidney into a canoe to escape the rising floodwaters. He spent three days trapped on the second floor of a neighbor’s house, grateful that his wife was safe in Oklahoma visiting family. One of their dogs died.
A small body of water inside Sam Houston Lake Estates, which hugs the Trinity River and has seen repeated, severe floods in recent years that has pushed many residents to leave the community.Advertisements for catfish and signs offering “Cash!” for homes adorn the roads near Sam Houston Lake Estates. As the paved farm-to-market roads fade to dirt, tree branches close in like a tunnel.
“All this right here was really pretty,” he said as he drove past one abandoned home after another. “It was nothing like this at all.” One of them, a raised one-story wooden house with chipping red paint, is where Kenneth Brister, 77, has lived on the riverbank for a little over a decade. He’s heard talk of buyouts for almost that long and says he doesn’t want one.Marvin Stovall, a road foreman for Liberty County Precinct 2, drives through Sam Houston Lakes Estates. Stovall grew up in the county and used to attend weekend dances in the 1970s at the now-abandoned community center near the neighborhood's entrance.
One of the biggest challenges is convincing people to leave. The buyout money is often not enough to buy or rent housing elsewhere. And residents tend to misjudge the amount of risk they face from climate disasters because of their emotional attachment to the place, Hilson said.Buyout programs are supposed to have protections that prevent local governments from removing critical services, said A.R.