jsisser posted on March 16, 2011 09:51
City administrators, local organizations and the Army Corps of Engineers (ACE) need to get their act together to stop local flooding and save the downtown district.
Four of the Blanchard River’s 10 worst floods have taken place in the last four years, including a 16.42 foot crest last week that damaged homes and businesses, closed schools and shut down roads for two days.
The latest flood was just a reminder that more than three years since the devastating August 2007 disaster, little has been done to end the city’s water woes.
While there have been efforts to find a solution to the flooding, including a study conducted by the ACE, the mayor claims the progress has lagged due to funding issues.
Money should not be the issue standing in the way of saving our community from another devastating flood.
Flooding has already killed several downtown businesses. Vacant buildings line Main Street near the river and each costly flood could be the final straw for other local stores.
In an economic recession where downtowns across the country are struggling to survive, damaging floods just add insult to injury.
Money is always a consideration, but it is unfair to let local businesses and residents suffer simply because flood mitigation has run into “funding issues”.
Pass a new tax, write to the federal government—do what it takes to find money to end the flooding. After the 2007 flood alone caused over $100 million in damage, solving the problem sounds like a reasonable investment.
Instead, it seems like all that has been accomplished is the formation of a partnership (now dissolved) and a study; the community is seeing no results.
Time is running out. If flood mitigation is put off any longer, residents will leave and downtown will be nothing more than a street of moldy, empty buildings.
Fixing the flood problem will not be cheap, but if the city continues to be inundated with water every time it rains, the price our community pays will be much higher.