More Funds Needed to Complete Oak Street Bridge

ANAHUAC — The Chambers County Commissioners Court voted Sept. 10 to allocate more funds for the Oak Street bridge reconstruction. The bridge in Anahuac has been out of commission for several years after being deemed unsafe for traffic.  

Robbie King with Chambers County Economic Development spoke on the ongoing project that began back in 2020 when a $350,000 grant with a $70,000 county match was allocated for the bridge construction.  

The project required more funds, and King previously asked for and received $427,000 more funding. The court approved the additional $17,485 from American Rescue Plan Act grant funds to complete the bridge project.  

The Economic Development Department also reported on a home improvement program it had facilitated with Southeast Texas Housing Finance Corporation grant funds.  

Samantha Humphrey said her department was awarded $50,000, which the department decided to use to assist residents with home repairs. A comprehensive application program was initiated several months ago.  

She and King spoke of a number of issues, including comprehension of the program, contractor fraud and misuse of funds, resulting in about $20,000 not being spent as the program intended.  

Humphrey told the court that the funds were not required to be paid back to SETH and that the situation was a learning experience for the department. Humphrey also spoke of the successes within the program that did change lives.  

In other matters, the court set the proposed tax rate of 44.0035 cents per $100 valuation. The tax rate and 2025 budget are expected to be approved at the Sept. 24 meeting.  

The court also approved a request from County Parks Director John Parrott for $4,414 in football equipment. He clarified that the equipment was not for a particular team in Winnie but for the facility itself, owned by the county.  

Parrott added that the purchase is from the Parks’ Youth Activity Fund and that fund is used for items such as blocking dummies, sand for the fields and water hydration systems.  

The Parks Director also said that he often gets requests from teams themselves but only recommends court items connected with the facility for all athletes to use.