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(ARCHIVE PHOTO | THE GRAHAM LEADER) The bridge over Salt Creek at Firemen's Park in Graham. The park is one of three options being considered for a potential kayak launch along with Salt Creek Park and a location near Ribble Road. -
(THOMAS WALLNER | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Assistant City Manager Grant Ingram speaks with the Graham Parks Department Board of Directors during their meeting Tuesday, Sept. 17.
With a goal of opening a public launch for kayaks in Salt Creek, the city of Graham is taking steps to apply for a grant through the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s Habitat and Angler Access Program.
The Habitat and Angler Access Program (HAAP) provides funding for projects that develop and increase shoreline and bank fishing access and restore and enhance fishing habitats in public inland waters.
Assistant City Manager Grant Ingram spoke with the Graham Parks Department Board of Directors in July about the program.
“I’ve spoken with a representative with (TPWD) who oversees the grant process for this, and he’s very excited when you talk about opening up a new waterway and fish access. This climbs very quickly to a top priority for them to fund,” Ingram said in July. “Currently, there really is no public access to this fishery, and so this is an exciting project for them to take on. So I believe we’d be able to secure funding for this.”
The parks board approved a recommendation to move forward with the project in July and received a status update Tuesday, Sept. 17 from the assistant city manager.
“We’ve approved moving forward with (seeking) the angler access, so we’re moving forward on all cylinders to start (determining a) location, rough estimates, (and I’m) getting with (Jacob & Martin Engineer) Tristan (King) to get the application handled,” Ingram said.
Ingram said he walked around the bank within the Salt Creek Park area for a potential launch location and found a steep embankment. He requested drone footage of the area on the creek to research the location for possible launches.
“We’re in concept development. So where we are for the board is... staff has identified three potential kayak locations: Firemen’s Park, Salt Creek Park and Ribble Road,” City Manager Eric Garretty said.
The assistant city manager said the city owns a piece of property across the river from the wastewater treatment facility on Ribble Road that could serve as a launch.
“This is a very easy access with really no slope whatsoever, right into the creek it kind of puts you halfway between the dam at Firemen’s Park and the confluence of the Brazos,” Ingram said. “Question is, is that area a good area to open up to the public? Do we want to create this feature on that piece of land?”
With half a dozen kayakers estimated to be able to launch from the location, the board also spoke about parking. With a launch in Salt Creek Park near the Hwy. 67 bridge, the parking could address a number of concerns.
“The thing about spending the money at the bridge is, in my vision of what we do is we spend money on dirt leveling and gravel, but I think we could make that parking area big enough where it would serve the kayak launch, what (4-H) Archery Club has been griping about with no places to park, and it would be a walk, but for overflow, it would be a place for when the athletic fields go in there,” Garretty said.
TPWD stated in a release Friday, Sept. 13 that it was seeking project ideas and proposals for the third round of funding for the 2026-2027 fiscal years.
“(HAAP) is an exciting opportunity for us to collaborate and support partners interested in expanding fishing opportunities and bettering the quality of fisheries for Texans,” said Michael Homer Jr., fisheries biologist for the TPWD Inland Fisheries Division.
The department stated that examples of bank or shoreline projects include development or improvement of fishing piers, installation of fish attracting features and the construction of non-motorized boat launches for kayaks, canoes and other small watercraft for fishing access.
To be considered for the grant, the city will have to share its project idea with TPWD by March 31, 2025 and the project must be completed no later than Aug. 31, 2025.
The department states that projects that include multiple components or phases extending past that required completion time may be considered for future funding cycles.
In total, funding of $500,000 is budgeted for the 2026-2027 fiscal years for fish habitat and shoreline-based angler access improvements through the state grant program.
