Fence or deck costs in Beaumont

After a big storm in Port Arthur, the permit comes before the repair. The city's Building Inspections Division spells out how that works after a major disaster: homeowners can pull permits for repairs to their own house with proof of homestead, and contractors can pull them only if they're registered with the city. The division asks that every property be inspected and permitted before work begins. Its chief building official doubles as the floodplain administrator, and lots in the Special Flood Hazard Area need elevation certificates.

Storms here mean water. In September 2019, Tropical Storm Imelda dropped 44.29 inches near Fannett, just west of Beaumont, by the National Hurricane Center's count, and flooding stranded vehicles on I-10 for two and a half days. Two years earlier, Harvey's highest storm total anywhere, 60.58 inches, fell near Nederland.

A fence that stood in that water, or a deck whose framing sat in it, can look fine from the street and still be soft at the base. When you rebuild on a low lot, set posts in concrete, use lumber rated for ground contact or go with metal posts, and frame the deck high enough that its joists stay out of standing water.