So I heard they're filling in the cut...

[bullets13]

anyone else heard this?

[Lefty99]

What cut?  If you mean Rollover, then yes the Corps of Engineers is trying to get the $ from the state to fill it in.

[643]

NOT new for sure heres a little info and a email to send your comments                                    Closing Rollover Pass

Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson is leading the effort to

close Rollover Pass as soon as possible due to the high maintenance

costs to the U.S. Corps of Engineers for keeping it open and the

erosion the pass causes on the Bolivar Peninsula.

The process of closing the pass, however, will take time. Following

is a brief overview of what this effort will entail.

Commissioner Patterson will seek money from the Legislature this

session to close Rollover Pass. The 81st Legislative Session begins

on January 13.

Closing Rollover Pass, like any project on the coast, would require a

permit from the U.S. Corps of Engineers. Various studies would be

required by the Corps as part of that permit application.

Once a Corps permit is received, construction may begin.

Land Office staff is already working toward this goal. The entire

process — doing studies, obtaining permits and actually construction —

will take more than a year and possibly longer.

Here is his e-mail, write to him, Just be aware he has a habit of replying snarkily to rude or insulting e-mails. Be respectful, it goes a lot further towards our goal!

[email protected].

[bullets13]

From "The Bayou":

Bolivar is decimated. You don't need us to tell you, just go out and look around (or check out these high-tech aerial shots).

We did, this past weekend. What we saw was utterly depressing. Houses tumbling onto themselves, trash hung up in brush, entire fields where cattle used to roam now strewn with sand. But there were signs of hope. There were Earth movers clearing debris, bars open with patrons inside, Stingaree was up and running and builders were out framing homes.

A friend also took a trip out to Bolivar, only he took his motorcycle. A decision he later regretted. He didn't realize it at the time, but after he returned he began dealing with some respiratory issues from all of the waste fumes he'd inhaled. It took a few days for him to feel "normal" again.

Despite the damage, we still saw dozens of folks fishing out on Rollover Pass. But if the Texas Legislature has its way -- that sight might be a distant memory. Today, the House will hold public hearings on HB 3986 (there is a sister bill, SB 2043, in the Senate). The bill mandates the "closure of any manmade pass between the Gulf of Mexico and an inland bay if the commissioner determines that the manmade pass causes or contributes to significant erosion to the adjacent beach shoreline."

Ike -- DUH! -- caused much of the erosion. The sand dunes that once separated Texas 87 from the Gulf are now gone. As you drive along, you can see miles of uninterrupted beachfront that appears to almost come right up to the roadway.

Essentially, this bill allows for the closure of Rollover Pass as early as September 1st -- something the commissioner of the General Land office has been advocating since before Ike. Galveston County commissioners already voted to fill the pass in February. This bill would make it a mandate. The closure would be accomplished by pumping in sand and completing shore protection on the Gulf of Mexico side of the project for an estimated cost of $6 million. The annual cost savings for the state of Texas would be approximately $150K/year in maintenance.

A Bayou reader and Gilchrist resident had this to say about the Pass:

"How, in the wake of a catastrophic hurricane, can a governmental agency justify the taking away of this economic engine for our community?"

Good question.

There is much to consider, and a September 1st deadline seems like an awfully short window to cover it all.