Primary Department: Purchasing
Primary Department Head/Elected Official: Kimberly J. Williams, JD
Secondary Department: County Engineer
Secondary Department Head/Elected Official: Milton Rahman
Regular or Supplemental RCA: Regular RCA
Type of Request: Contract - Amendment
Project ID (if applicable): 250267
Vendor/Entity Legal Name (if applicable): J.M. Torres & Associates, LLC (as approved); Torres & Associates, LLC (corrected)
MWBE Contracted Goal (if applicable): 18.08%
MWBE Current Participation (if applicable): N/A
Justification for 0% MWBE Participation Goal: N/A - Goal is not 0% and is listed above
Grant Indirect Costs Rate (if applicable):
Justification for 0% Grant Indirect Costs Rate (if applicable): Choose an item.
Request Summary (Agenda Caption):
title
Request for approval to correct the vendor name from J.M. Torres & Associates, LLC (as approved) to Torres & Associates, LLC (corrected) for professional engineering services to implement a prototype Harris County road flood warning system (250267), MWBE Contracted Goal: 18.08%.
end
Background and Discussion:
Harris County Commissioners Court approved the Emergency Measures Study on June 27, 2023, to enhance the County’s transportation resilience, safety, and operational performance. Harris County was awarded Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation (SMART) Grant of $2 million by the US Department of Transportation in 2023. The grant will provide the initial funding for a pilot program to implement components to initiate the creation of a countywide roadway flood warning system. The consultant will install eight (8) Emergency Flood Measures and begin design efforts for the system, software and dashboard, across all four Precincts. After a successful pilot program, efforts will be made to expand this pilot program into a countywide system per the Emergency Measure Study finalized in 2022.
In August of 2025, the RFQ was advertised to federally procure a prime consultant to implement the pilot project. Torres and Associates was the top ranked consultant recommended by the selection committee.
on January 29, 2026, Commissioners Court approved Authorization to Negotiate with Torres and Associates.
OCE completed negotiations and requesting to approve an agreement with Torres and Associates for $$1,999,997.50 to implement Roadway Flood Warning Systems project.
Expected Impact:
The approval of the agreement will allow Harris County Engineering Department to develop baseline software and hardware requirements for the countywide roadway flood warning system, and pilot test roadway flood warning technologies in the county.
Alternative Options:
If the contract is not approved, alternate funding would have to be considered for the project and could potentially result in loss of federal funding.
County Strategic Plan Goal: 1. Make Harris County safer and more just.
County Strategic Plan Objective: H: Improve the condition and resilience of County transportation, flood control, and other infrastructure.
Justice/Safety Initiative (Goal 1): N/A
Infrastructure Initiative (Goal 2): H1: Complete and implement the Flood Resilience Plan.
Economy Initiative (Goal 3): N/A
Health Initiative (Goal 4): N/A
Climate/Resilience Initiative (Goal 5): R3: Strengthen the County’s emergency response function.
Housing Initiative (Goal 6): N/A
Additional notes related to the Strategic Plan:
Prior Court Action (if any):
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Date |
Agenda Item # |
Action Taken |
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10/29/2024 |
253 |
Approval to enter into an agreement with the U.S. Department of Transportation for grant funds in the amount of $2,000,0000, with no required match, for the FY 2022 Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation (SMART) Grant Program. |
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1/22/2026 |
11 |
Approval to advertise RFQ for SMART Flood Warning System |
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1/29/2026 |
218 |
Approval on the basis of highest overall evaluation and authorize negotiations with J.M. Torres and Associates, LLC for professional engineering services to implement a prototype Harris County road flood warning system, and the county, at its sole discretion, may discontinue negotiations and proceed to negotiate with the next ranking vendor(s) if unable to agree on an executable contract (250267), MWBE Contracted Goal: 18.08%. |
Location:
Address (if applicable):
Precinct(s): Countywide
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Anticipated Court Date: 4/16/2026
Anticipated Implementation Date (if different from Court date): Click or tap to enter a date.
Emergency/Disaster Recovery Note: Disaster Recovery related item
Contact(s) name, title, department:
Mike Etienne, PhD, Chief of Planning and Development Services, OCE; Matthew McGarrity, Sourcing Manager, Purchasing
Attachments (if applicable): Letter