Back in January 2024 Calhoun County Precinct 4 was awarded a FEMA grant to help with the needed drainage in Seadrift. Seadrift qualified for the grant because of its low to moderate income level (LMI).

In late September of this year the project began. The projected completion date is the summer of 2026. The bid of over six million dollars was awarded to Lester Contracting of Port Lavaca. The project engineers are from G&W out of Port Lavaca as well.

The improved drainage will extend from 9th and Houston Streets along Heron Slough to the sea wall on Bay Avenue. The goal is to capture Seadrift’s west end street drainage and help the area drain more efficiently. In the end there should be a dramatic difference in the drainage for Seadrift.

Precinct 4 Commissioner Gary Reese had this to say about the project:

“The drainage improvement project will extend down 9th street from Oakland Ave. to 9th and Houston St. with the reshaping of the West side drainage ditch and replacement of culverts in street crossings and residential drives and then enter the original Heron Slough Channel from 9th street to 3rd street. The project includes the clearing of trees and brush, replacement of the 3rd & 4th Street crossings with bridges ,and the 6th Street & Dallas Street crossings with box culverts; reshaping of ditch channel and slopes from 6th Street to 9th Street and placement of an engineered hard armor system for permanent erosion protection.

The second phase of the project will be the placement of a storm sewer down 9th Street from Houston Ave. to Bay Ave. and from Bay Ave. south out through the Sea Wall.

The Goal of this project is to capture Seadrift’s west side drainage and help it drain more efficiently. In the end it should make a dramatic difference in the drainage for Seadrift.” -Tanya DeForest