MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING
The meeting of the Board of Directors of the West Galveston Island Property Owners' Association, Inc. was held on June 19, 2004 at the Galveston County Club. Jerry Mohn, President, called the meeting to order at 9:00 a.m. Director Al Birdwell of Bermuda Beach and Bill Moll of Spanish Grant Bay were present. Vic Pierson, Mayor of Jamaica Beach, and Susan Gonzales, Recording Secretary, were also present.
Minutes: The minutes of the May 15, 2004 meeting were e-mailed prior to the meeting to all Directors; however, the minutes were not approved due to no quorum.
Treasurers Report by Al Birdwell: No expenses from mid-May to June. Dues of $750 have been received; dues of $4,750 are outstanding. Cash at the end of June will be $24,000.
Program: "What's Happening at the Parks Board" presented by Chris Woolwine of the Galveston Parks Board:
Main responsibilities include:
The county is looking into taking over two pocket parks with one being geared for handicapped visitors and one being pet friendly.
Special events:
More ad campaigns and consumer-driven marketing will be implemented.
The Parks Board does not have the money to rake the beaches and will meet June 22. A discussion was held on the merits in not raking the beaches.
Introductions by Jerry Mohn: Don Moore, Jamaica Beach Police; Galveston Police Officer Don Horton; Vic Pierson Mayor of Jamaica Beach; Gina Benton, Asst. Director for Houston Office of Senator Hutchison; and, Dr. Tim Dellapena from TAMUG. Corporate sponsors introduced included Vic Pierson from Moody National Bank; Peggy Zahler from Johnson Space Center Credit Assoc.; Mike Brown from Silver Leaf Resorts; and Dave Murphy from Center Point Energy. Candidates introduced included Al Choate for County Commissioner Precinct 2; Cheryl Thompson for County Tax Assessor/Collector; and, Lonny Cox for County Judge.
TEXDOT - Drainage and Elevation: Jerry Mohn discussed the TEXDOT meeting that was held Friday afternoon with TEXDOT representatives, WGIPOA, City Officials, and the consultant firm that did the work. TEXDOT will elevate 1½' for 8.2 miles from the Seawall to San Luis Pass, particularly at the borrow pit just west of the Seawall; and, another 3.2 miles area elevated ½'. FM 3005 drainage has filled up with sand and debris, and several subdivisions flood now. The new TEXDOT drainage plans and the proposed City Master Drainage Plan will significantly improve the drainage from the Gulf to the Bay. Permits may take a year and should start in 2006. Drainage problem areas like at Karankawa Beach/Townhomes and at Jamaica Beach will have large outfall drainage ditches to go to the Bay. The request began by the WGIPOA three years ago and with the help State Rep Craig Eiland and City Council Member Dianna Puccetti, who were instrumental in getting the TEXDOT to come and address the issue and prepare do the hydraulics study.
Coastal Coordination Council: A Coastal Coordination meeting was held on June 17 in Galveston at the TAMUG campus. CCC member Vic Pierson advised they were established to manage coastal planning and not to set the rules. Rules will be moved to the GLO. A vote will be held in four (4) months on moving the rules to the GLO. GLO is now more in favor of sand socks because of what they did during Hurricane Claudette to protect the beach, property and infrastructure. Mr. Pierson stressed that testimony is needed and encouraged everyone to be a voice. Al Birdwell asked if written testimony would be helpful. Mr. Pierson stated that both written and personal appearance testimony are important. CCC objects to sand sock on the grounds that it shortens the beach and causes erosion at ends. An engineering report addresses the negative issues. The key to the success of sand sock is nourishment and keeping the sand covered. Mr. Birdwell recommended that an electronic meeting be held to pass a resolution stating that the rules are presently made by the CCC and that WGIPOA supports the transfer of rule setting to the GLO.
Presentation at the CCC meeting by Texas A&M - Measuring the Beach: Dr. Tim Dellapena, Assistant Professor of Oceanography at Texas A&M, has been monitoring the high water level on Galveston beaches by measuring elevation and position. This project has been a real success and the expect funding from the GLO. The program can be reviewed on the Web site: www.coastal.tamug.edu. Dr. Dellapena advised The worst thing to do is scrape or rake the beach of seaweed as seaweed traps the sand and builds mini dunes. He mentioned the seaweed at Padre is picked up, not scraped.
Fund: County Constable Sergeant Durand Fooks' townhouse burned in Pirates Beach, and everything was lost. A special fund at Moody has been established.
Beach Access Plan: The plan is not certified yet, but the city has submitted the plan to the GLO. Approval in the near future is expected.
PID (Public Improvement District): The program to help obtain funding for installation of a sand sock has been stalled due to subdivision questions. The city has turned to an experienced person in the PID to answer the questions posed by the subdivisions.
Feasibility Study: The Feasibility Study being conducted by the USACOE on the causes and solutions to erosion from the San Luis Pass to the Sabine Pass is estimated to cost a total of $4.4 million, split as 50% USACOE, and the remaining 50% shared by Galveston County (75%), and Jefferson County (25%). The study is in its fourth year and needs only one more year to complete it. For fiscal year 2005, the USACOE requested $725,000 but the Office of Management & Budgets (OMB) only recommended $325,000. If the OMB request is approved, the completion of the study will be delayed another 2-3 years. It has passed subcommittee and will try to keep the $325,000 in budget but we need the $725,000. Jerry Mohn discussed the meeting he, Marty Baker, and Sidney McClendon had recently with Gina Benton, Asst. Regional Director for Senator Hutchison's office in Houston. Senator Hutchison is on the Appropriations Committee for the Fiscal 2005 budget. Discussion was held in that members need to write to support the Corps's request. A form letter was recommended for use by owners to mail. It was noted that it is better to mail and fax to the Houston office.
There being no further business to come before the Board, the meeting adjourned at 10:15 a.m. to the joint program between the City of Jamaica Beach and the WGIPOA on a Hurricane Preparedness and Hurricane Response Program.