|
more articles like this
Critical Funding Allocated For Flood Protection
updated: Feb 08, 2012, 11:32 AM
Source: Lois Capps' Office
Today Congresswoman Lois Capps (CA-23) announced the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has allocated $6.089 million in federal funding to complete construction of an additional section of the Santa Maria River Levee and provide complete flood protection to the City of Santa Maria. In December, Capps urged the Obama Administration to include funding for this critical project in its 2012 budget plan. Completion of the "Bradley Canyon Extension" will finish the Santa Maria River Levee repair project and ensure that the levees can withstand a 100 year flood event.
"This is a major victory for Santa Maria homeowners and small businesses, and for our local economy. Repairing the Santa Maria River Levee has been one of my top priorities, and I want to thank and congratulate the outstanding team of public officials, led by Mayor Lavagnino and the Board of Supervisors, and all of the city and county workers, for putting so much effort into getting this project done. This has been a wonderful collaboration, and I'm looking forward to seeing construction work start again as soon as possible," Capps said.
"I am delighted that the Army Corps of Engineers has provided the necessary funding to complete construction of the repairs to the Santa Maria Levee that protect our community from flooding. I am equally grateful for the continued and long-standing support of our Congressional delegation, led by Congresswoman Capps, to not only advocate with the Corps to fund our project, but also within Congress to provide more funding for critical flood control projects such as ours," said Santa Maria Mayor Larry Lavagnino.
"This is extremely good news as it will eliminate the need for homeowners in Santa Maria to purchase additional flood insurance. I'm pleased the Corps realized the absolute need for the completion of this final leg and I want to thank the Congresswoman for her efforts in making this a priority," said Supervisor Steve Lavagnino, 5th District County Supervisor.
Capps has worked closely for years with the City of Santa Maria and County of Santa Barbara to repair the Santa Maria River Levee permanently. In 2007, she worked with Senator Dianne Feinstein to secure the first federal funding for the repair project. Those funds were used to perform a study of the levee and identify fixes. In 2008, Capps and Feinstein were able to secure nearly $7 million in federal funds to design the repair work and begin construction. Capps was also successful in pushing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) to allocate over $40 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds for construction, which was completed last year. Unfortunately, during the rehabilitation work it became known that the Corps would need to extend the project 3,700 feet easterly to include an additional section of levee. The $6.089 million announced today is expected to complete the construction of the Bradley Canyon extension.
###
Be the first to comment on this article.
# # # #
|
