City of Dallas

ANGELA HUNT
Dallas City Councilmember - District 14

November 24, 2009

Mr. Troy D. Collins, P.E.

Deputy District Engineer & Chief, Programs & Project Management Division
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Fort Worth District
P.O. Box 17300
Fort Worth, TX 76102

VIA FACSIMILE (817-886-6451)

Re: Margaret Hunt-Hill Bridge

Dear Mr. Collins:

As I mentioned in our telephone conversation last week, I am concerned by the haste with
which the Texas Department of Transportation has asked the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to review
and approve their design modifications for the Margaret Hunt-Hill Bridge. As you are aware, the
support piers for the bridge’s approach ramps penetrate Dallas’ east and west flood protection levees.
Due to the multiple levee perforations, remedial efforts must be carefully engineered to protect the
integrity of the levees and ensure their stability during a flood event.

After providing the Corps with their remediation plans the first week of November 2009, both
TxDOT and the City of Dallas have publicly stated that they require quick approval from the Corps to
meet the bridge’s construction deadlines, which are wholly unrelated to the function of the levees as
Dallas’ primary protection from catastrophic flooding.

In a November 14 Dallas Morning News article, TxDOT’s chief engineer in Dallas stated “I’ve let
the corps know that we would really like an answer by December 1. Otherwise, I will have a tough
decision to make about whether to sever the part of the contract that includes the [bridge]
approaches.” In addition, the article reported the City of Dallas’ Trinity River Project manager as saying
“I think the corps will move quickly. This is a high priority because they know that TxDOT is really up
against a deadline.”

This pressure to approve the changes to the bridge’s design comes despite the fact that a
geotechnical expert also quoted in the same DMN article characterized the remediation plan and
associated documents “as not being quite as complete a document as the corps would want to have.”

0FFCE OF THE CITY COUNcIL 1500 MARLLA, ROOM SFN DALLAS TEXAS 75201
TELEPHONE 214/670-5415 FAX 214/E70-1847
Page 2
Margaret Hunt-Hill Bridge
November 24, 2009

This public pressure exerted by TxDOT and the City of Dallas to approve incomplete plans by
December 1 a deadline based not on safety considerations but unrelated contractual obligations is
—
—

unacceptable. The state’s construction contracts should play no part in the timing of the Corps’
decision; levee safety must be paramount.

Dallas residents depend on the Corps’ expertise and wisdom to ignore any political pressure that
would propose rapid approval of transportation projects at the expense of levee safety. Certainly, last
week’s federal court decision in New Orleans underscores the responsibility the Corps bears to ensure
flood protection above any other consideration. I appreciate your assurance that the Corps’ first priority
is the safety of the citizens of Dallas and your acknowledgement that the Corps will carefully,
thoughtfully, and fully review TxDOT’s levee remediation plans and make a decision based on a
thorough review of all necessary data and complete documentation.

aHunt,4’
Dallas City Councilmember

c: Colonel Richard J. Muraski, Jr., Commander, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Fort Worth District
Lieutenant Colonel Matthew S. Orenstein, Deputy Commander, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,
Forth Worth District
The Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
Mary K. Suhm, City Manager
Thomas P. Perkins, City Attorney
Deborah Watkins, City Secretary
Craig Kinton, City Auditor
Judge C. Victor Lander, Judiciary
Dave Cook, Chief Financial Officer
Ryan S. Evans, First Assistant City Manager
Jill A. Jordan, P.E., Assistant City Manager
A.C. Gonzalez, Assistant City Manager
Forest Turner, Assistant City Manager