Texas Water Development Board approves $24,006,760 to the Willow Fork Drainage District (Fort Bend County) for a drainage improvement project

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AUSTIN – (August 19, 2021) – The Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) today approved by resolution financial assistance in the amount of $24,006,760, consisting of $22,085,000 in financing and $1,921,760 in grant funding, to the Willow Fork Drainage District (Fort Bend County). The District will use the assistance from the Flood Infrastructure Fund (FIF) for the planning, design, and construction of a drainage improvement project.

In addition to the grant funding, the District could save approximately $10,400,000 over the life of the loan by using the FIF program.

With the financial assistance approved today, the District proposes to reduce flood risk for the properties adjacent to the Barker Reservoir by constructing a 3,000 acre-feet regional flood storage pond within the 16,543-acre reservoir.

The approved project is eligible for FIF funding under category 2 of the 2020 Flood Intended Use Plan. This category was designated for planning, acquisition, design, and construction activities to implement flood mitigation projects. 

Passed by the 86th Texas Legislature and approved by voters through a constitutional amendment in 2019, FIF was created to provide funding for drainage, flood mitigation, and flood control projects. 

The TWDB is the state agency charged with collecting and disseminating water-related data, assisting with regional water and flood planning, and preparing the state water and flood plans. The TWDB administers cost-effective financial assistance programs for the construction of water supply, wastewater treatment, flood control, and agricultural water conservation projects.