How Texas turned an abandoned golf course into five lakes to control flood
Exploration Green in Clear Lake City, Texas, transformed a former golf course into a 200-acre green space with stormwater detention lakes, wetlands and recreation areas. The project was created to help reduce flooding in the community, with its five planned detention lakes capable of storing 500 million gallons of water.
As Hurricane Harvey swept through the Houston area, residents of Clear Lake City, Texas, anxiously watched the water rise. Spyros Varsos, a longtime community member, personally cleared debris from his street drains but credited a nearby flood-control project for saving his home. The Clear Lake City Water Authority was converting an unused golf course into a 200-acre green space designed to manage stormwater.
Instead of high-density housing, the property was turned into detention lakes, wetlands, and recreational areas. Only partially excavated when Harvey hit, the remaining pond held around 100 million gallons of water, providing crucial flood protection. The Clear Lake City area had endured several one-percent annual flood events, and the golf course's conversion proved vital in mitigating runoff and hurricane-related flooding.
Residents and officials worked together to preserve the land, turning it into Exploration Green, a community resource that serves both flood control and recreational purposes.
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