Harlingen, drainage districts outline projects, maintenance schedule and funding gaps after heavy March rains

At a joint meeting of the Harlingen City Commission and Cameron County Drainage Districts No. 5 and 6, city and district officials described the local response to heavy March rains, the status of major drainage projects, and the need for clearer public information about who maintains which ditches.

Public Works Director Chris Portoldos summarized the city’s in-house drainage program, including equipment purchases and recent in-house projects that city staff say reduced flooding during the March storm. “We purchased an excavator, 2 dump trucks, 1 double trailer, 1 front loader and 1 backhoe for the total expenditure of $1,200,000,” Portoldos said, and he reported a drainage crew that the city created in fiscal 2023 and annual drainage personnel costs of about $253,000. Portoldos said the city’s detention-pond project is about 78% complete and credited the in‑house work with reducing the duration of flooding in some neighborhoods after the March event.

The March storm brought extremely heavy rainfall. Portoldos said rain gauges and an application used by staff showed the city received “22 inches within a span of 19 hours,” and he described an immediate multi‑agency pumping response that, by Tuesday after the event, largely…