The deck post of a property at 170 Coal Creek Road in Packwood sits only six inches away from the Cowlitz River which has continually eroded the bank.
After the Timberline Community Association declared a state of emergency for two homes that are under immediate threat of being lost to the migrating channel of the Cowlitz River near Packwood, a meeting on Saturday brought together around 50 people and various representatives working to address the emerging problem.
Property owners within the association expressed concerns that their neighbors’ homes would not last long enough for officials with Lewis County to complete plans to address the eroding banks currently threatening the structures.
There are two homes in danger, one of which is located at 170 Coal Creek Drive that has a deck post located 6 inches from the crumbling banks, while another at 165 Coal Creek Drive is a couple dozen feet away from the bank that in the last several months has shrunk by half its size.
A cul de sac at the end of Coal Creek Road has been washed away, as have several other cabins.
Steve Albert, president of the Timberline Community Association, said the community needs to get a berm built to protect the homes.
Lewis County, with the help of a consultant, submitted an 84-page alternative analysis to the Federal Emergency Management Agency earlier this year. Currently, the county has focused in on two of six alternatives that have been tentatively approved by FEMA.
Erik Martin, the county’s public works director, said the plan for both alternatives would include rip rap, or large logs anchored to boulders that would be strapped in with cable to stabilize the bank. The construction alone — without permitting or design work — would vary between $1,069,000 and $1,586,000 depending on which option is selected.
Because of the various permits required through federal agencies, the project likely would not be constructed until 2019, a timeline that people stated wasn’t fast enough to save the threatened homes.
“We will work directly with you until this berm is built, but unfortunately right now, what I am hearing is quite disappointing ... We don’t have until summer 2019 when the stars align and you get the permits,” Albert said.
In an email, Albert added that for now, the community can hope for “low water levels in the Cowlitz River for months to come to avoid further erosion.”
Gary Urbas, the FEMA liaison with the state Emergency Management Division, said since the solution stretches more than 300 feet, the process needs to go through an environmental assessment to look at the impacts that could happen up and downstream from the stabilization project.
Anything shorter than 300 feet could cause problems down the road, since the water of the Cowlitz would likely migrate behind the berm and threaten other areas of the community. The county, state and federal agencies have limited capacity to help address issues that affect private property. If it wasn’t for the destruction of the end of Coal Creek Drive, the agencies’ hands would likely be tied with no fix to be offered.
“The good news is although the project you are going to see was intended to and submitted to FEMA for the protection of the road, there are auxiliary benefits for the protection of private property,” Martin said.
Cedar Sedustine, owner of 165 Coal Creek Drive, purchased his property four months ago and rents it out as an Airbnb.
Sedustine said the community is looking into other methods to get the work completed privately and within a faster timeframe by working with the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.
He doesn’t know how much longer his home can withstand the migrating waters, but said the meeting gave him hope.
The first meeting held recently consisted of four people, and now subsequent meetings have grown in attendance, to the around 50 people that were present on Saturday.
Anytime the river rises above eight feet, he loses land. That’s occurred two times in October and November.
Others members of the Timberline Community Association have watched the river take property and cause issues for 35 years.
Dino Basil and his father Bill detailed past incidents of the Cowlitz River washing away cabins.
In 1978 a cabin and campsite were taken. A berm was built along the river bank but failed. Then in 2006, the river changed its course again claiming another cabin, followed by a second in 2016.
Dino said he also believes the best opportunity is to do something privately, but he said that all comes down to funding.
“Even when the water levels are low, it’s still eating away the dirt,” he said. “The houses won’t be here if private action is not taken,” he said of the structures currently threatened.
Commissioner Gary Stamper said the county will continue to do everything it can to help the property owners.
“As far as the county coming in and having a magic wand and being able to purchase properties, we just have never had any type of program like that and again, funds are very, very tight,” he said. “Unfortunately it doesn’t help Dave and Cedar and all the people that are compromised right now. We are working on it to do everything we possibly can.”
When asked if there was a plan B if the FEMA funding did not go through, Martin said there wasn’t, but he assured FEMA would not turn the project down.
Members of the Timberline Community Association have reached out to their state and federal representatives for help. They will also consider forming a local improvement district that could bypass the county on certain approvals to move the project forward.
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Reporter Justyna Tomtas covers Lewis County government for The Chronicle. She can be reached at jtomtas@chronline.com or 360-807-8239.
