The Washington State Department of Ecology announced Friday that Lewis County will receive $200,000 out of a total of $1.4 million in grants aimed at funding projects to prevent future flood damage.
The money will be used to elevate homes in the Cowlitz and Chehalis river basins, said Ecology spokesman Curt Hart. He said the funds would pay to raise six or fewer homes one foot above the record flood level, estimating that the cost for each elevation could be around $50,000.
“We wanted to make sure we got the money where it was needed,” Hart said.
During the 2009 legislative session, state lawmakers created a funding mechanism to help local jurisdictions fund targeted flood damage prevention activities.
The Legislature directed Ecology to give priority to communities least able to fund flood mitigation projects and those projects most ready to proceed, according to a release from Ecology.
“The recent catastrophic floods we experienced in 2007 and earlier this year highlight how critical it is to get these funds out to our local communities,” said Gordon White, who oversees Ecology’s statewide shoreline and environmental assistance activities.
The cities and counties can use the money for various purposes such as acquiring flood-prone properties, install water-tight access lids to prevent stormwater infiltration into local sewer systems, and removing levees to improve flood protection and restore natural stream functions.
The county will decide where and when the money is spent, Hart said. Lewis County Building Official Fred Chapman was out of the office Friday and unavailable for comment.
In all, 38 communities submitted applications for 41 projects worth $18 million. Ecology, however, only had $1.35 million for 12 projects for state assistance, according to the release.
Steve Bell
I think spending public dollars to raise private homes sends the wrong message; that government is the solution. That's inconsistent with our county's values. Raising houses only prolongs the problem.Setting back levies and purchasing flood prone structures from willing sellers is a one-time permanent fix. We taxpayers get more bang for the buck by removing flood-prone houses and restoring the flood plain. Removing structures and setting back levies will create more area for the flood waters, fewer people will need to be rescued in future floods, and we would not have to spend public money to repeatedly rebuilding private homes in harms way.
Sam Spade PI
The houses should be raised higher than usual because the flooding is only going to get worse.The present code of buiilding one foot higher than the highest flood is a 1960 idea that is out of date.