[Wattleigh]

Exploration Green

https://www.explorationgreen.org/

https://www.clcwa.org/exploration-gr...ntion-facility

The former 178-acre Clear Lake Golf Course is being converted into a nature park with a trail system and five detention ponds that, when complete, should be able to hold up to 500 million gallons of water to mitigate flooding in the area. It is being developed in five phases. Most are already open, with the final part coming soon.

https://communityimpact.com/houston/...er-completion/

Exploration Green in Clear Lake final phase set for summer completion


By Jovanna Aguilar | 12:40 PM Apr 3, 2023 CDT
Updated 12:40 PM Apr 3, 2023 CDT

The final phase of Exploration Green, a project to convert a Clear Lake golf course into a nature conservatory with a series of detention ponds, will be finished this summer.

The Clear Lake City Water Authority, an entity that provides water, sewer and drainage services to the Clear Lake area, began the Exploration Green project in 2005. Phase 5, the final phase, was originally projected to be completed by the end of 2022 or early this year but was delayed due to weather, said John Branch, vice president of the CLCWA board of directors.

“They had a lot of rain for a while, and we do give them credit for rain day work and getting on dirt when it's all wet out there,” Branch said, referring to the contractors.

Branch explained the contractor is penalized $800 per day after the timeframe of the project is exceeded. However, contractors now have an incentive to finish the project before they incur too many penalties, Branch said.

Phase 5 cost $9.2 million. Due to a large pipeline that had to be moved in order to maximize the stormwater storage capacity, this parcel was more expensive than the others, Branch said.

Branch added that although Houston enacted a drainage fee on residential owners near Exploration Green around the time the project officially started, the CLCWA was able to negotiate a 10-year exemption for the properties in the area. After the 10 years passed, they received an extension for an additional 10 years.

This 20-year exemption saved Clear Lake around $50 million. Without those savings, Exploration Green may not have been possible, Branch said.

The CLCWA is planning a grand opening event for Phase 5 on Sept. 30 to celebrate the completion of the project, Branch said.