Bay Area Edition | October 2024

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Bay Area Edition VOLUME 7, ISSUE 3 OCT. 25NOV. 26, 2024

Special education enrollment on the rise School districts across the state, including Clear Creek ISD, are seeing a sharp increase in special education enrollment following a series of changes at the state level several years ago. Percentage of special education enrollment within total enrollment, by school year

Clear Creek ISD Texas

Texas removed eective cap on the percentage of students a district could classify as needing special services. May 2017

20%

15.5%

15%

9.8%

14%

10%

8.6%

Since 2014-15 at CCISD

Total enrollment

Special education enrollment

680 students

2,244 students

2014-15

2015-16

2016-17

2017-18

2018-19

2019-20

2020-21

2021-22

2022-23

2023-24

SOURCE: TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCYCOMMUNITY IMPACT

Clear Creek ISD hires more professionals, seeks state funding

“We’ve been allocating more of our general local funds toward special education to meet the needs. It’s one of our highest legislative priorities in this next session to seek additional funding for special education.” ELAINA POLSEN, CHIEF COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER, CLEAR CREEK ISD

Education Agency, or TEA. As a result, the district is looking to keep up with that trend, allocating more resources and hiring more professionals into its special education programming, district ocials said. Meanwhile, advocacy groups and school dis- tricts, including CCISD, are looking to the state for more help on funding and programming to help meet student needs.

BY HALEY VELASCO

The number of students enrolled in special education across Texas has risen sharply over the past seven years, and the trend is no dierent for Clear Creek ISD. Despite its overall enrollment stagnating, the district has added more than 2,000 students to its special education programming since the 2014-15 school year, according to data from the Texas

CONTINUED ON 20

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Government: Learn about a new battery storage facility coming to League City and how it could aect nearby residents (Page 8)

Transportation: Read what comes next for Hobbs Road in League City after city gets $2M in funding from Galveston County (Page 16)

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In addition to more physicians and expanded specialty care, our Bay Area Campus features more advanced diagnostic imaging, on-site labs, a Kelsey Pharmacy with drive-thru services, and free parking. It will also be home to a new nationally recognized Kelsey-Seybold Cancer Center and a new Outpatient Surgery Center, both opening in 2025. Discover exceptional care at our new Bay Area Campus.

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COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM

Owners John and Jennifer Garrett launched Community Impact in 2005, and the company is still locally owned today with editions across Texas. Our mission is to provide trusted news and local information that everyone gets. Our vision is to build communities of informed citizens and thriving businesses through the collaboration of a passionate team. Our purpose is to be a light for our readers, customers, partners and each other by living out our core values of Faith, Passion, Quality, Innovation and Integrity. About Community Impact

Market leaders & metro team

Reporters Jovanna Aguilar Asia Armour Angela Bonilla Melissa Enaje Wesley Gardner Cassandra Jenkins Rachel Leland Emily Lincke Nichaela Shaheen Jessica Shorten Haley Velasco Aubrey Vogel Carson Weaver Graphic Designers Richard Galvan Ellen Jackson Matt Mills

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• 3290 Gulf Freeway S., Ste. A, Dickinson • www.fitbodybootcamp.com

Seabrook

4 Beauty Glow MedSpa The business offers services like Botox and dermal fillers. • Opened Oct. 19 • 1130 Grand Oak Blvd., Ste. 121, League City • Facebook: Beauty Glow MedSpa 5 Nails of America Baybrook The multi-service salon offers nail services, facials, eyelash extensions and waxing services. • Opened Oct. 6 6 Bay Area Family Dentistry The dentist office provides dental cleanings, sealants and fluoride treatments, among other services. • Opened Oct. 10 • 391 Columbia Memorial Parkway, Ste. A, Kemah • www.bayareafamilydentistry.com 7 What-A-Canine LLC The veteran- and minority-owned business offers services like private dog training, group training and boarding. • Opened Sept. 29 • 1507 W. Bay Area Blvd., Webster • www.nailsofamericabaybrook.com 8 Las Haciendas Mexican Bar & Grill The restaurant serves appetizers such as nachos, queso, wings and mini chimichangas. Salads and sandwiches, enchiladas, carne guisada, tacos, quesadillas, fajitas and seafood of different varieties are also on the menu. • Opened Sept. 25 • 316 W. NASA Parkway, Webster • www.lashaciendasgrill.com 9 Scooter’s Coffee The coffee shop offers a variety of specialty coffee drinks, including espresso-based beverages, iced coffees, smoothies, teas and baked goods in a drive-thru setting. • 621 Kirby Road, Seabrook • www.whatacanine.com

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include a conditioner, deep cleaning foam, ceramic body wax, rain and UV protectant, wheel cleaning and tire gloss, and an underbody flush. Other car cleaning options include vacuums, mat washers and detail kits. • Opened Sept. 20 • 16602 El Camino Real, Houston • www.tommys-express.com 3 Fit Body Boot Camp The gym offers personal training sessions where clients experience a high-intensity interval training workout, meant to maximize calorie burning and boost metabolism. • Opened July 27

Now open

1 Hibbett Sports The business sells shoes, athletic shorts and more in sizes for men, women and children. Official merchandise from the NFL, NBA, MLB and college athletic teams is also available. • Opened Aug. 5 • 3010 Gulf Freeway S., League City • www.hibbett.com 2 Tommy’s Express Car Wash The business offers wash packages with options that

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BY COMMUNITY IMPACT STAFF

gyro and shawarma, seafood, rice bowls and fries, among other items. • 15210 Highway 3, Ste. 105, Webster • www.instagram.com/halalfriedchicken_htx 15 Runway The boutique celebrated its one-year anniversary on Oct. 14. The business sells size-inclusive women’s clothing, specializing in athleisure wear, loungewear and casual wear. • 609 Bradford Ave., Ste. 108B, Kemah • https://runwayandco.com 16 Wild Fork The business will no longer open its planned location in Webster. It is a food market that offers a large selection of high-quality meats and seafood, such as skirt steak, salmon filets, alligator tenderloins, octopus tentacles and ostrich filets. • 1065 W. Bay Area Blvd., Webster • www.wildforkfoods.com

• Opened Sept. 19 • 2116 9th Ave. N., Texas City • www.scooterscoffee.com

Now open

10 Lathered Hair Studio The Webster-based salon offers services like highlights, balayage and haircuts. • Opened Sept. 18 • 1011 W. Bay Area Blvd., Ste. 106, Webster • Facebook: Lathered Hair Studio 11 Powerhouse The triathlon training studio offers numerous coaching and consulting services to athletes of all ages and ability levels. • Opened Aug. 17 • 500 W. NASA Parkway, Ste. A, Houston • www.powerhouseracing.net 12 Mania Jeans The Israeli menswear brand carries street- and evening wear. Items include pants, t-shirts, suit jackets and tennis shoes. • Opened early October • 500 Baybrook Mall Drive, Friendswood • www.maniajeans.com

19 Good Vibes Coastal Cantina Bringing what it calls “Chef-Mex,” which it describes as a coastal twist on the traditional Tex- Mex cuisine, the restaurant serves birria nachos, shrimp tacos and fajitas, among other menu items. • Opened Sept. 16

• 3500 W. Main St., League City • www.gvcoastalcantina.com

17 Clear Lake City-County Freeman Branch Library

The Friends of Freeman Library nonprofit organization is sponsoring a fundraising program for the library called “Legions of Light.” Community members can purchase engraved plaques to commemorate loved ones, which will be placed in the library’s Innovation Lab.

Coming soon

quesadillas, as well as other staples of Mexican cuisine. • Closed Sept. 27 • 2505 Gulf Freeway, League City • www.abuelos.com

• 16616 Diana Lane, Houston • www.hcpl.net/locations/FM

13 Bojangles The fast food restaurant serves southern-style chicken, specializing in a variety of chicken sandwiches and tender meals. It also provides options for breakfast,

HEB The grocery store chain is launching tap-to-pay services across all its Texas stores, allowing customers to make quick, contactless payments using digital wallets like Apple Pay, Samsung Pay and Google Pay. The rollout began Oct. 7. • www.heb.com

Worth the trip

lunch and dinner. • Opening Jan. 31 • 510 W. Bay Area Blvd., Webster • www.bojangles.com

Texas Renaissance Festival The festival is ongoing this year until Dec. 1 and is celebrating 50 years. It offers an immersive experience with a recreation of a 16th-century European village across 70 acres of land. • 21778 FM 1774, Todd Mission • www.texrenfest.com

In the news

Closings

14 Halal Fried Chicken The restaurant rebranded and reopened in Webster on Oct. 7. Officials confirmed it had a new menu, new chef and new interiors. It serves burgers, tenders,

18 Abuelo’s Mexican Restaurant The restaurant served enchiladas, burritos, fajitas and

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BAY AREA EDITION

Government

BY RACHEL LELAND

Seabrook approves FY 202425 budget, lowers property tax rate

A new battery energy storage facility, or BESS, is set to come to League City. What you need to know On Sept. 24, League City City Council voted 6-2 to approve an ordinance that would allow a BESS— owned and operated by Peregrine Energy—to be built between Hwy. 3 and Dickinson Avenue, south of Washington Street, according to city documents. The votes against came from council members Tom Crews and Justin Hicks. A BESS is a facility of batteries that stores energy and sells it back to the grid when more power is needed to meet demand, Community Impact previ- ously reported. League City OKs 150MW battery storage facility

What else?

Peregrine Energy BESS facility

WASHINGTON ST.

20 single-family homes within range of smoke from “catastrophic failure”

battery storage facility 150-megawatt

The city expects to spend about $25 million in capital improvement projects this year, according to city documents. Other budget expenses include general operations for the city, public works and some funding for economic development, documents show.

OAKS OF CLEAR CREEK HOMES

in League City 2nd BESS

acres of land 15 acres

Seabrook property tax rate (per $100 valuation)

Seabrook City Council unanimously approved a $56.5 million budget for scal year 2024-25 and a property tax rate of $0.455156 per $100 valuation at its Sept. 24 meeting. The property tax rate is lower than the FY 2023-24 rate of $0.457755 per $100 valuation but is higher than the no-new-revenue rate of $0.455237, according to agenda documents. In the past year, Seabrook’s average homestead market value has increased by around 1.9%— from $392,215.54 to $399,601.41, according to agenda documents. Based on this rate, the city’s portion on the average home’s property tax bill will be $1,390.11 after a 20% homestead exemption is factored in, according to an Oct. 1 news release from the city. This year, Seabrook’s expenditure needs will

-19.5%

0 $0.1 $0.2 $0.3 $0.4 $0.5 $0.6

SOURCE: CITY OF LEAGUE CITYCOMMUNITY IMPACT

LEAGUE CITY PKWY.

Capital projects: 33.2% Public works: 20.88% Public safety: 16.9% Seabrook expenses

In their own words League City resident Christine Thomas was one of several residents who spoke against building the facility in League City during the meeting. “I think we still have a signicant level of discomfort with having this relatively new tech- nology so close to our neighborhood and to our school,” Thomas said. Council member Chad Tressler said he would vote to grant the special use permit because he felt the facility would support energy customers in

League City during power outages. “I’m much more not a fan of the lack of hearti- ness in our grid,” Tressler said. “I’ve seen too many of our citizens suer when we have power outages during the worst possible times to have power outages—during deep freezes and the hottest parts of summer.” Despite voting against it, Crews said he felt the project was safe. “My problem is that the people who are around it are legitimately scared, whether it’s a reasonable fear or not,” Crews said.

General government: 11.5% Debt service: 7.9% Economic development: 4% Transfer out: 6.2%

Total: $56.5M

SOURCE: CITY OF SEABROOKCOMMUNITY IMPACT

be partially fullled by using funds from the city’s stabilization fund, port fund and revenue surpluses from previous years.

SOURCE: CITY OF SEABROOKCOMMUNITY IMPACT

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Government

BY RACHEL LELAND & JAMES T. NORMAN

League City, Lions Club partner to sends goods to hurricane victims The League City Lions Club raised what its pres- ident estimated to be more than $20,000 in goods and necessities for Hurricane Helene victims in early October. The gist The group hosted the drive with League City, according to an Oct. 1 release from the city. Lions Club President Hank Dugie said the group collected tens of thousands of items. The goods, which included nonperishable food items, baby diapers, formula, hygiene products and clothing, went to the McDowell County Office of Emergency Management in North Carolina. Dugie said when Hurricane Harvey hit the Greater Houston area, the region received a substantial amount of help. He said these drives

League City approves food truck restrictions Food trucks in League City parked on private property will need to comply with new city regulations. The gist On Sept. 24, League City City Council voted 6-2 to change an ordinance to only allow food trucks for special events or in a food truck park, which would mean food trucks that are permanently parked on private property would no longer be allowed. The change went into effect immediately, officials said. Food trucks that are not within a food park or in compliance with the regulations will be breaking the law, according to agenda documents. Members of the League City Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously recom- mended the changes for approval on Sept. 9.

Hurricane Helene

140 mph winds 200+ people dead as of Oct. 15 90+ still missing as of Oct. 15 $30.5B-$47.5B in estimated damage $1,500 in funds donated 10K+ items donated $20K worth of goods sent over 4+ hurricane drives held since 2018 Lions Club response

SOURCES: CORELOGIC, LEAGUE CITY LIONS CLUB, STATE AGENCIES WITHIN FLORIDA, GEORGIA, NORTH CAROLINA, SOUTH CAROLINA AND TENNESSEE, U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS/COMMUNITY IMPACT

are a way to pay that back. “Ever since [Hurricane] Harvey, our Lions Club has been on the front lines anytime there’s a disaster event along the coast,” Dugie said.

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BAY AREA EDITION

Education

BY JAMES T. NORMAN

Clear Creek ISD lowers property tax rate district’s maintenance and operations tax rate, or M&O, and $0.27 in the district’s interest and sinking tax rate. The total taxable property value within the district is around $33.9 billion , which is a 3.7% increase compared to initial values given in 2023, according to district documents. What else?

Clear Creek ISD tax rate history

Maintenance and operations rate Interest and sinking rate

Clear Creek ISD’s board of trustees at its Sept. 23 meeting voted to lower the district’s total tax rate for the sixth year in a row. However, due to increased appraisals of prop- erties in the area, the cut could still result in the average resident seeing an increase in the district’s portion of their annual property tax bill. What you need to know The new total tax rate for CCISD is $0.969 per $100 valuation of a home. It represents the highest tax rate the district can approve without triggering a voter-approval tax rate election, CCISD Chief Financial Officer Alice Benzaia said at the meeting. For residents, the average property in the district, which has a taxable value of $257,396 —up from $240,998 last year—could see an increase of $145.40 in the district’s portion of their property tax bill, documents show. The rate comes from a tax rate of $0.699 in the

$0.9359 $0.97

$0.34

2020 2019 2021 2022 2023 2024

$0.33

$0.29 $0.8897

$0.8446

$0.27

$0.27 $0.27

$0.7046 $0.699

In the Greater Houston area, a presentation from the district on Sept. 23 showed it had a lower rate than all but one district, which was Houston ISD. The tax rate approval came roughly a month after CCISD’s board approved the district’s budget for fiscal year 2024-25 at its Aug. 26 meeting. What they said Trustee Scott Bowen said at the meeting the dis- trict doesn’t have much control over what the tax rate can be, particularly the M&O rate. He noted if the district adopts a rate below what it’s set at, it loses state funding in addition to lost revenue.

SOURCE: CLEAR CREEK ISD/COMMUNITY IMPACT

He added that since property valuations didn’t go up by as much as previous years, the tax rate didn’t go down nearly as much. Board president Arturo Sanchez said if the state in the upcoming 2025 legislative session opts to approve additional funding for public schools, the district may be able to lower the rate further.

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COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM

BY HALEY VELASCO

Clear Creek ISD launches communication app for parents, guardians Parents and guardians at Clear Creek ISD can now download a new communications app that district officials launched in late August. What you need to know The app, named connectCCISD, was designed to keep parents, guardians and staff informed at both the district and campus levels, according to CCISD’s website. The new app is powered by communication software system ParentSquare, which the district already uses for other school communication, primarily with email, voicemail, text and mobile app notifications. The app automatically generates an account for each parent, using their preferred email address

San Jacinto College receives $1.5M grant The San Jacinto College Foundation has received an anonymous $1.5 million grant to support the college’s Promise campaign, according to a Sept. 18 news release. The Promise campaign supports the Promise @ San Jac Scholarship, which allows graduating high school seniors that live in the college’s taxing district to not have debt while earning a certificate or associate degree at San Jacinto College, the news release reads. The overview The $1.5 million grant is a two-part gift, in which $500,000 was an initial outright gift made upon grant approval. The remaining $1 million will be provided depending on the foundation’s chances of raising match- ing funds from additional private donors, according to the news release.

App features

Up-to-date CCISD news, announcements and emergency notifications Upcoming events App notifications of all district, school and classroom communications Photos and videos posted by the campus Fill out and complete forms online, and sign permission slips View the school calendar and RSVP for events Sign up for volunteer opportunities and/ or bring items Receive attendance notices

SOURCE: CLEAR CREEK ISD/COMMUNITY IMPACT

and phone number. It is downloadable through Apple and Android devices, according to the district’s website.

Bus drivers in Clear Creek ISD to see bump in pay Bus drivers at Clear Creek ISD received a raise in their starting pay of nearly $1.50 an hour, according to a Sept. 6 news release from the district. The details Prior to the increase, the starting pay for bus drivers was $20.56 per hour, according to the news release. New bus drivers for CCISD who currently hold a commercial driver’s license, or CDL, are also eligible for a $3,000 signing bonus, the news release states. What else? CCISD also raised the minimum guaranteed work hours per day from 5.5 to 6.5 hours, accord- ing to the news release. More opportunities with mid-day trips and field trips will also be available.

Paying CCISD bus drivers

$1.44 more per hour

$22 per hour total

$3,000 eligible signing bonus for new drivers 1 hour increase in guaranteed hours of work per day

SOURCE: CLEAR CREEK ISD/COMMUNITY IMPACT

BAY AREA EDITION

Real estate

BY HANNAH NORTON

Texas needs 306,000 more homes to meet demand, experts say

Zooming in

“[Texas is] issuing more building permits for single-family homes than any other state. ... One of the big issues that we’ve found is that [people are] perhaps not building the right types of houses, specifically housing for low- and middle-income Texans,” said Will Counihan, who leads the comptroller’s data analysis and trans- parency department. One-third of Texas households are cost bur- dened, Counihan said, meaning they spend more than 30% of their salary on housing. A Texan who wants to sell their current home and purchase a new one should make about $113,000 to qualify for a mortgage loan, compared to about $70,000 at the beginning of the pan- demic, Knapp said.

highest property tax rate—1.68%—in 2021, according to research from the Tax Foundation. Home prices shot up during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Knapp added, as remote work policies allowed more people to move to Texas. In 2019, the median home price in Texas was $241,358, according to data from the Texas Real Estate Research Center at Texas A&M University. Median home prices peaked around $340,000 in 2022 and dipped to about $335,000 in 2023.

Texas’ population growth has outpaced homebuilding since 2020, resulting in a widespread housing shortage, the state comptroller’s office reported Aug. 27. Up For Growth, a national housing policy organization, reported in 2023 that Texas currently needs about 306,000 more homes to meet demand. High home prices, steep mortgage rates and limited supply are driving some potential homebuyers out of the market, said Clare Knapp, a housing economist for the Austin Board of Realtors. Texas also had the sixth-

Texas home prices, 2020-23

Buying a home in Texas has become more expensive in the years since the COVID-19 pandemic began, according to the Texas Real Estate Research Center.

2020

2021

2022

2023

One more thing

25%

Texas should make it easier to build homes in commercial areas and reduce the minimum lot size for single-family residences, said Nicole Nosek, the founder of Texans for Reasonable Solutions, an organization that aims to solve the housing shortage. In May, city of Austin officials voted to cut the city’s minimum lot size from 5,750 square feet to 1,800 square feet. The change was proposed as a strategy to permit more housing types and smaller homes than have traditionally been allowed in Austin.

20%

15%

10%

$0- $69K

$70K- 99K

$100- $149K

$150K- 199K

$200K- $249K

$250K- $299K

$300K- $399K

$400K- $499K

$500K- $749K

SOURCE: TEXAS REAL ESTATE RESEARCH CENTER/COMMUNITY IMPACT

6640 South Shore Blvd., Suite 100 League City, TX 77573 713.852.6700 TexasBayCU.org

COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM

Real estate

More homes were sold in September 2024 compared to the same month last year. Meanwhile, median housing prices and days on market fluctuated between ZIP codes. Residential market data

Number of homes sold

September 2023

September 2024

+450%

-13.33%

-6.9%

+50%

+19.15%

77059

77058

77059

77062

77565

77573

146

77062

77058

GALVESTON BAY

Median home sales price

77565

518

September

2023

2024

$418,700 $396,500 $310,000 $334,210 $393,500

$350,000 $573,000 $351,990 $342,932 $381,500

77058

77573

77059

Homes sold by price point

77062

77565

September 2024

77573

$800,000+

$600,000-$799,999

Average days on market -76.5%

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+30.43%

-35.9%

+41.67%

101

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BAY AREA EDITION

Transportation

BY RACHEL LELAND

League City awarded county funds for Hobbs Road extension

Speed limit increased along 3 roads in League City League City increased the speed limit on three separate roads, citing studies that showed a faster speed would help traffic flow and prevent crashes. The gist League City City Council voted unanimously on B A L L P 45

Seabrook enters road upgrade agreement Seabrook City Council voted Oct. 1 to enter an interlocal agreement with Harris County in which both parties would share the costs for improving North Meyer Avenue. What you need to know Officials said they will use funds to design and estimate the cost for converting asphalt to concrete pavement, as well as minor drainage improvements along North Meyer Avenue from SH 146 to East Meyer Avenue.

The project will cost a total of $7.7 million, with $1.1 million budgeted for engineering, surveying and right of way. Road extensions planned

N. MEADOW LN.

PATAGONIA ST.

road work itself will cost around $6.6 million. Construction timing will depend on the right- of-way acquisition with the goal being to schedule it by late 2026, League City Director of Commu- nications and Community Engagement Sarah

The extension of Hobbs Road to FM 517 in League City will continue with funds awarded from Galveston County. What happened League City City Council voted unanimously at its Oct. 8 meeting to accept $2 million in funding from Galveston County to extend Hobbs Road and realign Cemetery Road. The project will be carried out in two parts and will consist of extending the current end of Hobbs Road from Patagonia Street to FM 517. The second part will include realigning Cemetery Road, which is on the other side of FM 517, to connect with the extended Hobbs Road, according to a city staff presentation. The total project is expected to cost $7.7 million, according to the city’s website. The

Oct. 8 to update speed limits on these roads: • Ballpark Way from Calder Drive to I-45 from 25 mph to 35 mph • Isla Vista Drive from Highway 96 to Mar Bella Parkway from 25 mph to 30 mph • Mar Bella from Highway 96 to Isla Vista from 30 mph to 35 mph A traffic analysis of drivers for each road showed 85% of traffic was moving faster than the posted speed limit, according to city documents. Diving in deeper City staff recommended increasing the speed along the three roads for several reasons:

Hobbs Road extension Cost: $6.09M

145

Osbourne said. Quote of note

MAR BELLA PKWY.

ISLA VISTA DR.

“I want to thank the county commissioner for working with us on this,” Mayor Nick Long said at the meeting. “This makes that realignment a little more palatable.” The backstory The project evolved during the city’s fiscal year 2020-21 budget work session on how to best use additional funds from the operating budget for capital projects, according to the city’s website.

• Drivers are likely to comply when the speed limit is set at or below the 85th percentile speed. • Increasing the speed limit would promote a uniform traffic flow. Paired with the other reasons, increasing the speed could reduce the number and severity of crashes, according to city documents.

517

Cemetery Road realignment Cost: $510K

146

BAY AREA 1033 Bay Area Blvd (281) 486-9558 LEAGUE CITY

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COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM

Election

BY MELISSA ENAJE

Harris County Flood Control District ocials said 40% of ood control infrastructure countywide has less than 10 years left on its lifespan, and 35% need serious repairs in the next 20 years. Voters will choose in the upcoming Nov. 5 election whether to approve a tax rate increase for the HCFCD—from $0.03316 to $0.04897 per $100 of valuation—to help fund infrastructure and deferred maintenance work. The price tag with the proposed tax rate is just one facet of rising property taxes facing Harris County homeowners, said Mark Jones, political science professor at Rice University. For economically-stressed homeowners, Jones said the tax vote provides them with the ability to modestly limit the increase in their overall property tax bill. Flood control district seeks tax rate increase

On the other hand

Maintenance expenses Harris County Flood Control District historical maintenance costs and capital expenses Capital expenses

The number of assets the HCFCD has to over- see and maintain has grown with the county. At least $1 billion in project maintenance costs have already been deferred, HCFCD Executive Director Tina Petersen said. While local tax incentives have supported various ood control projects, she said maintenance funding has remained at over the past decade. Following the approval of the budget for scal year 2024-25 on Sept. 19, at least $10 million will go to maintenance assistance, ood control ocials said. If the tax rate increase passes, $113 million would go towards maintenance projects, stang needs and communication initiatives.

$500M

Percent increase, 2010-22 +207.49% +14.4%

$400M

$300M

$200M

$100M

SOURCES: HARRIS COUNTY FLOOD CONTROL DISTRICT, HARRIS COUNTY OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGETCOMMUNITY IMPACT

Going forward

Major maintenance The Harris County Flood Control District has 36 major maintenance projects either underway or planned across the county’s four precincts. Estimated costs have not been calculated for 20 of those projects, and the remaining 16 will cost a projected $20.8 million.

Precinct 2 Total projects: 11 Estimated cost: $1.9M (costs TBD for 8 projects) Precinct 1 Total projects: 10 Estimated cost: $6.8M (costs TBD for 4 projects) Precinct 3 Total projects: 8 Estimated cost: $6.8M (costs TBD for 3 projects) Precinct 4 Total projects: 8 Estimated cost: $5.3M (costs TBD for 5 projects)

Taxpayer impact

Estimated tax increase per year*

Property value

290

99 TOLL

$300,000

+$47

$379,030 (county average)

+$60

$500,000

+$79

99 TOLL

610

149

$1,000,000

+$158

GALVESTON BAY

*INCLUDES HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION OF 20% SOURCES: HARRIS COUNTY FLOOD CONTROL DISTRICT, HARRIS COUNTY OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGETCOMMUNITY IMPACT

SOURCE: HARRIS COUNTY FLOOD CONTROL DISTRICTCOMMUNITY IMPACT

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BAY AREA EDITION

Special education enrollment on the rise From the cover

Special education enrollment by disability at Clear Creek ISD

The overview

Learning disability

Speech impair- ment

Dyslexia

Other*

Autism

Texas. This change has led to many districts, including CCISD, to see an increase in the number of students they must serve, which is creating other funding challenges. For CCISD, meeting the need has included assessments of its programming, hiring more staff and providing more resources to its special education programs. “We were addressing any [service] shortages in more creative ways than we ever have before. We’ve changed a support model into a more coaching model,” said Michele Staley, CCISD’s executive director of special services. “Students get better when teachers get better, so professional learning is at the core of our philosophy.”

CCISD has 6,647 students in the special services department, which oversees students enrolled in special education, for the 2024-25 school year, CCISD Communications Coordinator Sydney Hunt said in an Oct. 7 email. There are several ways a student can be eligible to receive special education services, according to the district’s special services website. Among those include a child having autism, deaf- blindness, an intellectual disability, a health impairment, a speech or language impairment, or a specific learning disability. Special education has been a challenge for Texas as a whole, as the state in recent years has expanded how many students qualify for special education, according to officials across different special needs advocacy groups in

2.5K

1.5K

500

*OTHER DISABILITIES INCLUDE INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY, DEAF AND HARD OF HEARING, VISUAL IMPAIRMENT, AND EMOTIONAL DISTURBANCE, AMONG OTHER DISABILITIES. SOURCE: TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY/COMMUNITY IMPACT

Diving in deeper

By the numbers

employees and one part-time employee were hired to fill all seven positions, district agenda documents show. Since the 2014-15 school year, the enrollment for elementary students in the special services department has increased by nearly 64%, TEA data shows. That student population has increased at a faster rate than the number of special education employees within the district. Staley said enrollment in special education increased in 2018 after the TEA required school districts to provide parents with the option to provide special education services to students with dyslexia.

Services CCISD offers for special education students include alternative academics, which modifies academic instruction in a small group setting; extended school year services; home- bound services; and a cooperative for students who are deaf and hard of hearing, among others. The district’s board of trustees approved additional staffing for the special services department, which cost $245,000 through the district’s general funds, at its Sept. 9 meeting due to an increase in elementary students needing special services. These additions filled seven paraprofessional positions for the alternative academics and resource/inclusion programs. Three full-time

Students with disabilities who are part of general education classrooms and instruction are calculated in the average daily attendance, or ADA, allotment from the state, which has been $6,160 per student since 2019, according to TEA documents. The amount the state gives for special educa- tion students is weighted differently based on the accommodations the student receives, TEA documents show.

Funding Clear Creek ISD’s special education services

Allotment

State required spending

Amount spent

$10M $20M $30M $40M $50M

2018-19

Clear Creek ISD’s special education staff vs. enrollment

Special education students

Full-time employees

2019-20

+56.34%

2020-21

2021-22

+42.35%

2022-23

2023-24*

2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18 2018-19 2019-20 2020-21 2021-22

2022-23 2023-24*

*THE SPECIAL EDUCATION ALLOTMENT FOR THE 2023-24 SCHOOL YEAR HAS NOT BEEN FINALIZED. SOURCES: CLEAR CREEK ISD, TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY/COMMUNITY IMPACT

*THE TOTAL STAFF COUNT FOR THE 2023-24 SCHOOL YEAR HAS NOT BEEN FINALIZED.

SOURCE: TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY/COMMUNITY IMPACT

COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM

BY HALEY VELASCO

Zooming out

Looking ahead

14% during the 2023-24 school year. For the U.S., the average number of students receiving special education services is 15%, according to data from the National Center for Education Statistics. From 2017-21, Texas saw a 21% spike in students needing special education, TEA data shows, the highest increase of any state. The second-highest increase was less than 12%, and the national average was 3%. Sanders said this correction has not only led to more students in special education but has created more challenges with funding. Advocacy group Disabilities Rights Texas noted in a 2023 report that school districts funded $6.3 billion worth of special education programs in 2020-21, of which the state paid for $4 billion, creating a $2.3 billion gap.

Special education has been a challenge for Texas, said Jolene Sanders, advocacy director for the nonprofit Coalition of Texans with Disabilities, an advocacy organization for people with disabilities, according to its website. The state has seen a spike in students needing special education, which came after a series of investigations and lawsuits dating back to the late 2010s that found Texas was not providing special education services to enough students, Sanders said. Previously, Texas had a cap on the number of students a school district could classify as needing special education at 8.5%, Sanders said. Since removing the cap in 2017, that number across the state has increased from around 9% of students to

In 2018, education consultant and research group Gibson recommended in a report 27 ways for CCISD to improve its special services department. Of those, nine have been implemented, including improved communication with parents, monitoring and tracking practices, and more training opportunities for teachers, according to district documents. CCISD is waiting on the district’s systematic review of the special education department by the TEA, which reviews all local education agencies across the state over a six-year period, according to a presentation from the district presented at the board of trustees’ Sept. 9 meeting. The review for CCISD began on Aug. 30, Staley said. Meanwhile, CCISD officials and special needs advocates said they are looking to the upcoming legislative session in January and hoping for some changes to both funding and the special education model. Sanders said she believes the current model, which bases much of the funding districts get on the physical placement of a student, is “woefully inadequate.” Instead, advocates are looking to a service intensity model, which would base services for individual students around their specific needs—and providing funding based on that. The 2023 session did not net much in the way of public education funding, Sanders said. Many bills were left on the cutting-room floor due to, in many cases, officials attaching items to them that weren’t as popular, she said. Going into the upcoming legislative session, Sanders said she and other advocates are hoping for key changes in special education, namely the service intensity model. “The [current] model hasn’t been revised in over 30 years,” she said. “[Legislators] are fighting back and forth because everyone wants their bills passed and their priorities. And somehow special [education] funding ends up being a bargaining tool. And nobody has won so far.”

Increase in special education students by state

KEY

States that decreased

+0-5%

+5.1-10%

+10.1-15%

+15.1-20%

+>20%

Texas is the lone state in the country to increase its special education enrollment by over 20% from 2017-21.

+21%

Texas made up more than half the national growth in special education students from 2017 to 2021.

+106,000 additional students

The nation saw an average of 3% growth in special education students from 2017-21.

SOURCE: TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY/COMMUNITY IMPACT

In their own words

“There have been challenges and a progression, but overall I’m satisfied with our journey. … When we got [my child] in the right program and [with] the right people, … it really helped lighten the load.” NICOLE HAYES, CCISD PARENT

CCISD parents Christina Bui and Nicole Hayes both have children who have received years of special education programming at Clear Creek ISD. Both described their experience as overwhelmingly positive. For Hayes, her child is now in 11th grade. She said her child for the most part is no longer in need of those resources and classes. While the first few years of service were a challenge, things turned a corner when she transferred her child to a struc- tured learning lab while in elementary school. The lab is geared toward individualized intervention for

social and communication skills, according to the district’s website. For Bui, whose daughter is a senior, she said the district has gone out of its way to “bend over backwards” for her.

BAY AREA EDITION

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