Most members from both councils, both cities’ mayors and mayor-elects, some staff members and other stakeholders convened at the Grays Harbor Public Utility District’s Nichols Building for a workshop on the project Thursday night. The meeting was the first public gathering that focused solely on the plan that could reverse declining property values and skyrocketing flood insurance rates that have left some people unable to pay their mortgages.
Jordan Rash, conservation director for the Seattle area-based land management consulting firm Forterra, kicked off the discussion with a presentation before fielding questions about the plan. Nicholas Carr, a Tacoma-based district representative for Congressman Derek Kilmer, also attended to field questions, having helped connect city leaders with Forterra.
Most council members had the same general inquiry: How do we get started?
Rash said the first step would be for city staffs to work with Forterra in determining the scope for the project’s master plan — how much of the two cities would be encompassed in a dike system and what other components are necessary for the rest of the infrastructure. Officials would then decide on a budget for the master plan, then take the plan and budget to the councils for approval.
The master plan, Rash said, would likely cost anywhere between $100,000 and $200,000. Such a plan would allow the cities, with the guidance of Forterra, to look for actual construction funding, which would likely come from state and federal programs, private foundations and local governments. Cost of the construction wasn’t discussed and will depend on the extent of the work, Rash said.
During his presentation, Rash provided some insight into what the cities’ options were, but stressed that it was their plan, not his. In addition to building the dike and a handful of parks recessed into the ground to double as retention ponds, officials could consider uncovering much of Fry Creek to allow for better drainage — if the communities wanted to do so.
“When I work on projects like this, I’m not bringing Forterra’s vision,” Rash told the group. “I’m here to try to figure out what your vision is and help you realize it.”
With a plan in place, conceiving the project would mean “a lot of hours of grant writing,” Rash said.
Rash shied away from predicting how expensive the entire project would be or how long it would take, adding that it was too hard to say without a master plan in place. But the amount of funding needed to do the work, he added, would be “relatively high.”
Still, the cities have options, he said. Floodplains by Design, a program under the Department of Ecology that provides grants for projects aimed at maximizing floodplain efficiency, would be an obvious first choice as a funding source, Rash said.
The Harbor, Carr added, would be more competitive than similar projects in urban areas.
“Your community has a better chance of getting these grant monies than Seattle any day of the week, you’ve just got to get your ducks in a row,” Carr said. “Seattle doesn’t need this kind of stuff — you do.”
Other funding, according to Rash’s presentation, could come from federal sources like FEMA, the Department of Agriculture and the Environmental Protection Agency; state departments, including Ecology and Fish & Wildlife; and local or private sources like storm water fees and community foundations.
The collaborative flood management talks come on the heels of the Chehalis River Basin Flood Authority’s approval of a $3.2 million grant to the City of Aberdeen for a levee along the city’s north side. City of Aberdeen Community Development Director Lisa Scott said there had already been talk about putting that money toward this larger project, with the flood authority’s permission.
Aberdeen Councilwoman Kathi Hoder, who’s served as the council’s liaison to the flood authority, said she would make calls Friday morning to investigate those options.
“I’m praying they will,” Hoder said after the meeting. “In fact, I’m just going to say they’ve got to, because we need this so bad.”
By the meeting’s end, there was no question that everyone was on the same page. Hoquiam Councilman Richard Pennant’s assessment about possible public opposition brought laughter from the entire room.
”I don’t think you’re going to find anybody coming to a council meeting saying, ‘You’re going to have to pry my $7,000-a-year flood insurance coverage out of my cold, dead hands,’” Pennant said.
Aberdeen Mayor Bill Simpson, after the meeting, said he hoped his council would to be ready to approve a plan within the next month. Hoquiam Mayor Jack Durney, on Friday morning, said he hoped for a similar timeline.
Durney, who’s said in recent discussions that addressing the flood problem is the most important work today’s local officials will do, said he was happy to see the project gaining some traction.
“Everybody knows there’s a problem and it’s got to be fixed,” he said. “I was pleased that there’s a solution.”
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