Founded in 2020, Reinvent Harlingen Drainage (RHD) is dedicated to ensuring the health and safety of residents in Harlingen, a flood-prone city in South Texas, 30 miles from the Gulf of Mexico. The city experienced 500-year storm events in 2018 and 2019 and has been hit by many hurricanes over the last decade, leaving vulnerable communities, 83% Hispanic and 26% living in poverty, with nowhere to turn. As the city welcomes more development – straining an already antiquated infrastructure – outdated drainage ordinances and current weather patterns in the Rio Grande Valley are creating a dangerous mix. Reinvent Harlingen Drainage works to educate neighbors and city officials with public events and interviews, knowing that citizen action can make a difference. They advocate for an LID (low impact development) plan that will slow water down, filter and clean it, and reduce community flooding. As well, they urge city officials to be proactive and far sighted in updating their drainage ordinances – for the welfare of all.
Flooding in Harlingen, Texas.
Harlingen resident J.V. Garcia created RHD out of a love for his hometown and a compulsion to see that growth and safety go hand-in-hand. “As a civil engineer, I will never say ‘stop building.’ I am pro-development. But let’s build in a smart way that isn’t going to flood our neighbors and isn’t going to be detrimental to our citizens.” RHD’s goals include: an updated drainage policy and year-round maintenance of drainage systems across the valley; coordination with the newly created Cameron County Flood Control District; creation of a Regional Flood Authority; and endorsement and support for pro-drainage candidates and true public servants. RHD’s advocacy is working. FEMA awarded the city $2.2 million to help fund the Ninth and 13th Street drainage improvement project, which will increase the drainage capacity of Harlingen’s existing storm sewer infrastructure. The project will also remove and replace approximately 7,180 linear feet of reinforced concrete pipe, 14 manholes and 52 inlets.