Hurricane Harvey's epic flooding shocked some Houstonians, but it was no big surprise to residents of the low-lying neighborhood known as Meyerland. Homeowners there know their peril: They flooded twice in the past two years—first in the 2015 Memorial Day flood, and then again in the Tax Day flood of 2016. Dozens of locals have applied for government grants to elevate their homes.
The technology to lift the houses is there, but the paperwork involves long delays. Meyerland resident Drew Shefman was biting his nails as Harvey approached: Shefman had his approvals and was on his house-lifting contractor's schedule—but not until two weeks after the storm was due to strike. KPRC Click2Houston has the story (see: "Meyerland Home Raised Ahead of Hurricane Harvey," by Leigh Frillici). "The cry for help was answered by their lifting company, Arkitektura," the station reported. "The owner turned a crew around from a job in Austin."
Reports Click2Houston: “I said pack up and head back and they were like, 'We just got here' and I was like, 'Come on,'” Philipp Contrera, of Arkitektura, said. The Shefmans' lift began Wednesday and ended Thursday at nearly 5 feet." For owner Drew Shefman, the relief was palpable. "I slept better than I have in two years," Shefman told the station.
The Shefman home is not Arkitektura's only success story. Founded in 1995 by architect Philipp Contrera as a custom design firm, the company has developed a specialty in house raising, with a soup-to-nuts design-build service that includes finish details. Not far from the Shefman home is another example: the mid-century modern home of Douglas and Erin Anders. The Houston Chronicle took note of the Anders family's predicament in April 2016 (see: "Flooding woes have Meyerland anxious about its curbside appeal," by Nancy Sarnoff). At that time, the home had just been through its second flood since the family purchased it just weeks before the 2015 Memorial Day floods. The 2016 Tax Day flood put 8 inches of water in the newly repaired and remodeled home—and Erin Anders told the paper the family didn't have the budget to elevate.
Since that time, the Anders applied for and received a grant to lift the house, and Arkitektura did the work. In the aftermath of Harvey, Houston TV station KHOU 11 visited the neighborhood to report on the Anders' home—and the houses of some less fortunate neighbors (see: "Locals plan to raise homes after flooding during Hurricane Harvey," by Matt Dougherty). "Although it destroyed one of the Anders’ cars, the floodwaters never entered the family’s home during Harvey," the station reported. Arkitektura has lifted other homes in the area too: Below is a time-lapse video of an earlier lift.
But time ran out for other Meyerland owners. Homeowners in any flood zone are eligible to apply for elevation grants, but in 2015, all 42 grants went to Meyerland residents, KHOU 11 reported. "Only 10 of those grants had made it to completion by the arrival of Hurricane Harvey," the station reported. "The 32 remaining homes awaiting to be raised were flooded and damaged."
Read more about Meyerland's flood problem here (see: "Flooded Again, a Houston Neighborhood Faces a Wrenching Choice," by Bradley Olson, Dan Frosch and Lynn Cook - The Wall Street Journal).
