FLAGTAFF — The City of Flagstaff received $1 million in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) fiscal year 2017 work plan for the Rio de Flag flood control project.
The $1 million will complete the 100% design resulting in more accurate cost estimates, allowing the City to engage with Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad Company (BNSF) regarding land acquisitions and places Flagstaff in a better position for future construction funding. In addition, this allows the City to engage citizens with final design and seek community support for the project.
Flagstaff Mayor Coral Evans and the City Council are particularly grateful for the efforts of U.S. Senator John McCain and Congressmen Tom O’Halleran and Paul Gosar in landing funding for this critical infrastructure project. Mayor Evans said, “we appreciate their commitment to this project and their positive impact is extremely valuable moving forward.”
The Rio de Flag Flood Control project (RDF) was originally authorized in the Water Resources Development Act of 2000 (WRDA 2000) and subsequently reauthorized in WRDA 2004 and 2007. It was most recently reauthorized in the Water Infrastructure Improvements Act for the Nation (WIIN) in 2016. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) feasibility report proposes to contain the 100-year flood event through construction of 1.6 miles of flood control channel improvements, a 72-acre detention basin, property acquisition, utility relocations and three new bridges.
A significant flood event would directly affect more than half of Flagstaff’s nearly 70,000 residents and would result in damages to approximately 1,500 structures valued at over $916,000,000. Implementation of the City’s Downtown and Southside Redevelopment Initiative are entirely dependent on the completion of the Rio de Flag Project. In addition to flood damage reduction, other benefits include elimination of mandatory flood insurance and restrictive floodplain management regulations.
The Rio de Flag Flood Control Project is a critical component to the long range protection and continued development for the City of Flagstaff.