Bellaire drainage work: $1.68M contract approved
City Council members praised engineering firm Quiddity for staying on budget while approving new work orders for the regional program.
By Kofi Costa ·
Bellaire City Council approved a $1.68 million contract with Quiddity Engineering on Nov. 2 to continue managing the city's Regional Drainage Improvement Program. The agreement covers engineering services and program management for the 2026-27 fiscal year.
The program aims to reduce severe flooding through several major construction projects. These include widening Cypress Ditch and building new basins. Representatives from Quiddity Engineering presented a quarterly update to the council during the meeting. They outlined the progress made since May and the tasks scheduled for the remainder of the year.
Five key elements of the program have reached specific milestones. The South Basin demolition is substantially complete. Design for the South Basin detention facility is 95% finished. The North Basin lift station and force main design is roughly 60% complete. Procurement for the North Basin detention is pending. Discussions are ongoing regarding Cypress Ditch improvements with project partners.
Council members acknowledged the complexity of coordinating multiple agencies. Ross Gordon, a council member, noted the difficulty of managing relationships with the city, county, Harris County Flood Control District, and CenterPoint. He said, "This is not easy to do and we are very lucky to have a great team doing it." He also mentioned the integration of state and federal funding partners.
Todd Thurber, another council member and a civil engineer, highlighted the absence of cost overruns. He defined cost overruns as final expenses exceeding the original approved budget. Thurber told the team to keep up the good work. He observed that there do not appear to be any unknowns, which should ease the next phases.
The council also passed Work Order No. 4 unanimously. This order hires Casey Goforth, a former deputy program manager, as the city's capital program manager. Her contract amount is capped at $237,952. Goforth will oversee the Capital Improvements Program, financial administration, grant management, and procurement.
Construction activity is expected to ramp up in the coming months. CenterPoint Energy will begin removing and relocating power poles along the south basin in the next few weeks. Construction on that segment is anticipated to start in the first quarter of 2027. Design for the north basin lift station should be completed in the fourth quarter of this year. South basin design is expected to finish in early 2027.
