Lakeport Public Works director offers update on 2017 flood repair projects
- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On
LAKEPORT, Calif. – On Tuesday night the Lakeport City Council received an update on city staff’s efforts to get federal funding and approval for 2017 flood repair projects.
Public Works Director Doug Grider gave the council the latest news on his department's progress on projects that center primarily around the city’s Library Park, which had been closed for weeks and sustained significant damage during the flooding that took place in January and February of last year.
While it’s been a slow and complicated process, Grider and his staff’s efforts have so far garnered the city $250,000 from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, with Grider estimating that the city could ultimately recoup between $1.5 million and $2 million, which would cover almost all of its repair costs.
City Manager Margaret Silveira emphasized the city’s gratitude for help from the federal and state agencies involved in the repair funding process.
Some of the key projects in Library Park – such as seawall and sidewalk repair – are still in the process of being approved and so the chain-link fence that cordons off the damaged areas of the park from the public will stay up for another summer. Silveira said the goal is to do that work when the lake is lowest, with a target date of this fall.
The process
During his Tuesday night presentation and in a followup interview on Wednesday with Lake County News, Grider explained the process that the city is following in seeking FEMA funding for the repair projects.
Grider explained that two separate presidential disasters were proclaimed in response to the floods. The first declaration was in January, the second in February.
“Once the president makes a declaration then FEMA comes in,” he said.
Under the January declaration, Grider said the city submitted eight projects, including three small road projects scattered throughout the city that are the result of isolated roadway failures; a road project involving damage to the culvert headwalls on North Street; the Fifth Street boat docks, which Grider said will be removed and repaired; debris removal; protective measures; and the First Street boat ramp.
Grider said the First Street boat ramp has been denied by FEMA, and the decision hasn’t yet been made whether or not to appeal it. He said the city has strategies in place for dealing with that project, including some available insurance coverage.
The other seven appear to still be going through the process, with tentative approval. The city just needs the last piece in getting final approval, which is an obligation letter, he said.
Debris removal and protective measures already were completed. “The city is slowly getting funding coming in to pay for those,” Grider said.
Grider said the city’s second disaster declaration, for February 2017, had 12 projects, 10 of them approved and two that were denied.
Projects include repairs on Green and Sayre streets, Loch Drive, Esplanade at E Street, and Esplanade at Konocti Avenue, the Third Street dock, along with more projects at Library Park, including replacing decomposed granite, ADA-accessible bark for the playgrounds, sod replacement, park lighting repair, the park irrigation system, debris removal and protection measures, the seawall and sidewalks behind the seawall, Grider said.
The two projects that were denied were the repairs on Esplanade at E Street and at Konocti Avenue. Grider said they’ve filed an appeal on the E Street project and appear to be likely to get it, while they never received an official denial letter on the Konocti Avenue project and are trying to get clarification to submit an appeal.
Grider said the city went ahead and fronted its own money to replace the bark in the playgrounds, and it looks like the city will get reimbursed for that work.
Another project that’s already been finished is repairing the park’s lighting, which included checking all of the wiring connections and grounds, and making necessary repairs such as replacing broken globes, he said.
Also completed is the park irrigation project, which Grider said involved Public Works staff digging out every sprinkler head in the park, cleaning and testing them, and repairing the irrigation lines. The city will be reimbursed for those costs.
He said the repairs to the crank up dock at Third Street is upcoming. “We’re hoping they can repair it where it’s at.”
Perhaps the biggest project of them all is the seawall replacement. Not only is it substantial in scope – the wall measures 536 feet long – but Grider said several other projects depend on it.
He said the old seawall is built of cinder blocks. FEMA appears to be in agreement with the city that the new seawall should be built of steel sheet piling.
The sidewalks and center promenade are separate from the sheet piling wall, but Grider said the seawall needs to be completed first due to the order of progression. Because there are failures under the sidewalk, materials will need to be compacted underneath the new sidewalk and up against the seawall.
Grider said he hopes to have confirmation from FEMA within the next 30 to 60 days that the seawall project has been approved so they can begin the environmental process that will be necessary due to federal funding plus the county, state and federal permits needed because the project involves Clear Lake.
The city is trying to get all of its projects wrapped up with insurance companies and with FEMA, and hopes to have a meeting with officials the first week of April, Grider said.
Grider said he can’t believe the city has gotten as many projects approved as it has.
“It was worth sticking to our guns and following all of the steps,” he told Lake County News, noting that it appears that the city will be made whole.
He said that the city is going through the process to save city residents and taxpayers money, and while they apologize for the inconvenience of the delays, they don’t want the city to be hit with a $2 million bill.
Council members on Tuesday night praised Grider for his work, with Silveira also crediting the city’s success to Grider and his staff’s efforts.
In other council action on Tuesday night, council members set an April 3 public hearing on a new ordinance to move to June 1 the date to have hazardous vegetation such as weeds abated on city properties, unanimously approved appointing Cindy Ustrud, Jen Hanson and Ben Moore to the Parks and Recreation Commission and also approved the mayor’s appointment of Councilwoman Stacey Mattina and Councilman Kenny Parlet to the city’s finance committee, which will work on creating an investment strategy for the city.
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