Is It Legal To Get High In Graveyard Point?

Strange title, right? OK, so I baited you. The real question is how can I build if my land is in the new Lake Travis floodplain? Here is one way I just found today.

This is in Graveyard Point. Anyone who knows Lake Travis knows that Graveyard Point is one of the first areas to flood when the lake gets over a certain level. In fact, many Graveyard Point homes are still airing out from our last round of flooding.

Graveyard Point sits pretty low in terms of elevation. Building on land inside the floodplain has to start with the first level of the house one foot above the floodplain. In the case of this house, you can see just how high that is compared to where dry ground is.

In this shot, you can see the level of Lake Travis in relation to the main level of the house. Lake Travis is still high, thanks to the flooding rains of June and July. The lake is currently somewhere around 682 feet above sea level. Full is 681. The new floodplain is 722 feet. Can you see the challenge this presents?

The people building this place did a nice job disguising the steel beams holding the house up. They have also either hidden the sewage pipe to the septic tank if they have put it in. Notice anything else missing? How about stairs? It makes me wonder how they plan on getting people into and out of this house. OK, it is really new construction and I;m sure they will erect some kind of stairs.

Back to reality for a minute. Lake Travis land prices have gone through the roof and for good reason. It is a gorgeous lake. Land prices in Graveyard Point aren't as high as areas that don't flood. The result, however, is something like this.

So in Graveyard Point, you do have to get (build) high.