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HOUSTON, Texas  (KIAH) –  It has been 13 years since Hurricane Ike destroyed homes and communities in Galveston. Now, city officials are celebrating the groundbreaking of the third and final phase of the mixed-income development of replacement housing. 

The Oleanders at Broadway, located on Galveston Island along the gulf shores of Texas, is the largest housing development underway on the island and scheduled for completion in August 2023.  

The McCormack Baron Salazar, the Galveston Housing Authority and local officials donned hard hats and took up shovels as part of the celebration for the new development on Tuesday, Oct. 6th, 2021.

As we mark the 13th anniversary of Hurricane Ike, which destroyed much of Galveston’s public housing, it is fitting that we are celebrating the milestone of beginning the work on GHA’s third and final mixed-income community that will replace and provide critically needed housing for low-income families in Galveston.”

Mary Patrick, President of the Galveston Chapter of the NAACP

The City of Galveston says the infill development site for the Oleanders at Broadway is located on a barrier island in the Gulf of Mexico, two miles off the Texas coast, and presents many design challenges.  The ground at the 11-acre development site, is only six feet above sea level, and the surrounding city storm water drainage system does not have the capacity to adequately handle run-off.  To fix the issue, on-site catchment and management will correct the inadequate public infrastructure and prevent future storm water issues. 

According to the developers, McCormack Baron Salazar, The Oleanders at Broadway will be constructed using leading-edge design principles that incorporate green infrastructure strategies to resist and respond to increasingly stronger weather events. 

They’re also adding capacity for a multistage system that collects and then distributes all storm water for the Oleander site, which will support 500,200 cubic feet of water retention.  That’s the the same capacity as six Olympic-size pools for a measurable historic storm event.