Over the past couple of weeks, residents in Dominion Ranch subdivision in Port Arthur said contractor Cormier Homes has left construction debris that is clogging up drains and causing flooding there, particularly since Hurricane and Tropical Storm Harvey.

They also said city ordinances aren’t being regularly enforced.

Tom Cormier, owner of Cormier Homes, sees things differently.

Cormier said it’s a misconception to say his company is the sole contractor permitted by the city for Dominion Ranch.

“That’s an incorrect statement,” he said. “The city of Port Arthur does not have a legal right to say who can build there and who can’t.”

Other contractors can work out there, but Cormier is the only one currently building homes.

Additionally, he said the company has dumpsters on site while other contractors may not have dumpsters. He said some contractors are doing Harvey repairs and putting their trash on the streets.

“They’re remodeling and not providing trash receptacles out there like we are,” Cormier said. “Six feet of flood water (from Harvey) will cause trash and debris. We can’t pick other people’s trash and FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) project is over.”

He added that the streets, such as in Dominion Ranch, are designed for a “micro-burst” — a short rain event that causes flooding, such as the nearly 7-inch downpour on Jan. 27. Streets will temporarily flood until the water goes down.

 

Builder: No water inside

 

Cormier said he has no knowledge of any houses in the addition that got water inside. Cormier Homes didn’t originally engineer the subdivision, but his company has been buying lots there.

“It (the flooding) didn’t last long and it drained quickly,” he said.

The homebuilders were using hay bales for new construction barriers until city codes changed two weeks ago and they changed to sift fences instead. Residents said the hay bales fell apart and the debris blocked drainage. However, some little socks laid at drainage intakes look like hay, but they are required by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.

“Hurricane Harvey was an anomaly,” Cormier said. “It was not unique to Dominion Ranch. To say the flooding only started recently is unfair.”

Some residents said Cormier’s roll-off boxes were spilling over with trash. He said he was there Wednesday and he didn’t see any overflow.

He speculated maybe some homeowners or other contractors are placing their trash in the boxes, causing them to overflow. Also, his business has a tractor service that hauls boxes away on a routine basis.

Some residents said the city’s code enforcement officers aren’t out there regularly to inspect debris accumulation.

 

‘Fantastic job’

 

Cormier said code enforcement officers are doing a “fantastic job” and they are out there every day. Moreover, Cormier Homes has a full-time foreman on site to meet city requirements.

“The city of Port Arthur is more stringent with their inspectors than other cities,” he said. “The city engineer was out there yesterday and he didn’t see a single infraction from us. They do a very thorough inspection.

“Independent contractors will stack their trash in the front of the house in complete violation. We ask our vendors to empty. We strap down the containers and tie them down.”

Cormier believes people have been rough on the city. He said the city has much to get back on track and some residents are expecting perfection only a few months after the storm.

“It’s an unrealistic expectation. They lost a lot of specialized equipment. How long will it take to replace that specialized equipment?” he asked. “FEMA hasn’t reimbursed them yet and they’re working from their emergency funds. I think the city was unjustly crucified.”

He said residents should take care of some things themselves, such as not stacking up trash and debris. Improvements can be made, he said, if everyone works together.