The city of Harlingen is taking steps to protect one neighborhood.

Crews on Friday broke ground on a $50,000 drainage project near Nixon Road and Westgate Circle.

City officials said the project is necessary because a detention pond in the area flooded when it was hit with 22 inches of rain during the March 2025 floods. 

The floodwaters trapped nearby residents in their homes for days.

Harlingen City Commissioner Mike Mezmar said the city is moving forward with a plan to prevent this from happening again.

“We're digging a ditch, putting in pipes to drain that pond for the next time we get heavy rains so it flows to the ditch,” Mezmar said.

The project will replace the existing 12-inch pipes with much larger, 30-inch pipes that are designed to move water from the detention pond into a nearby drainage ditch.

The project is being funded through the city's main budget, and should be completed within the next two weeks.

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