| May 6, 2003
News Release
King County, the City of Snoqualmie, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are inviting landowners downstream of a proposed flood control project to participate in a program aimed at elevating homes and structures in the lower Snoqualmie River floodplain. The program is offered as mitigation for a small impact expected to result from construction of a Corps proposal (known as the Snoqualmie 205 Project) to reduce flood damages in and around the City of Snoqualmie. The Snoqualmie 205 Project will achieve these benefits by excavation to widen two narrow bottlenecks in the river channel, as well as the removal of an abandoned railroad bridge. The Corps estimates that the Snoqualmie 205 Project may cause a downstream increase of as much as 0.1 foot (roughly one inch) to the crest of a 100-year flood. Therefore, the project includes a mitigation program for the downstream floodplain. Over the past four years the three agencies have hosted a series of public meetings to help shape the mitigation program, which offers cost-share funding to help owners raise homes, barns, or other structures above flood levels. Landowner participation is voluntary. Landowners who choose to participate would hire contractors to raise existing structures so that the floor is at least one foot above the 100-year flood elevation. The program would reimburse a portion of the related expenses. The amount reimbursed will depend on the amount of landowner participation. The overall downstream mitigation program budget has been negotiated and established in agreements between King County, the City of Snoqualmie, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Together, these three agencies have provided a total program budget of $328,500. This budget was based on the relatively small fraction of the downstream flood problem that could be attributable to the Snoqualmie 205 Project, as well as applicable limitations on federal project expenses. Additional information about this downstream mitigation program, including draft agreement language, is available on-line at http://dnr.metrokc.gov/wlr/flood/205/downstream.html. The Snoqualmie 205 project is expected to provide public health and safety benefits by reducing the frequency, duration and depth of flood water. The Corps also estimates the project will prevent damages of an estimated $837,000 per year on average that would otherwise have to be paid out for flood damage. Cost of the flood control project is estimated at $3.91 million dollars, of which the Corps would contribute $2.42 million. King County and the City of Snoqualmie would each contribute $741,000. Construction on some portions of the project may begin in 2003, although the bulk of construction isn't expected until 2004. For details about the downstream assistance program, please call Flood Hazard Reduction Services Section Senior Engineer Tom Bean at 206-296-8377. For other aspects of the Snoqualmie 205 Project, please call the Corps' Project Manager, Tim Shaw, at 206-764-6978. Related Information |
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