WATSONVILLE — Since 1990, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has been studying ways to improve the levees along the Pajaro River.
In the time since, the river flooded the town of Pajaro in 1995, leading to one death and $95 million in economic losses, and two other floods struck the area in 1997 and 1998, displacing hundreds of residents.
Now, after last winter’s storms caused $10 million in damages to the federal levee system, including some flooding, the improvement project has kicked into high gear.
On Thursday, in front of a crowd of about 70 people in the Watsonville Civic Plaza, county Flood Control Program Manager Mark Strudley announced that the Army Corps plan to release a draft feasibility study and environmental assessment of the project on Oct. 31.
“What has re-energized this project was the horrific winter we had last year,” he said. “It was a reminder of what has happened here in the recent and distant past.”
The draft report will include a description of the Corps’ recommended improvements for flood risk reduction along the Pajaro River system. This will consist of improving existing levees, and constructing new levees and floodwalls.
The project area includes 11 miles of the Lower Pajaro River from the Pacific Ocean to Murphy Crossing Road, and extends to the creeks of Salsipuedes and Corralitos.
While the report will include the project’s cost and benefits, among other things, it will not state how it will affect flood insurance rates, and will not describe the exact design of the project, Strudley said, adding that those factors will be determined later in the process.
Once the report is released, the public is encouraged to provide input on the project. Another community meeting will take place on Nov. 8 from 6-8 p.m. at the Watsonville Civic Plaza Community Room, 275 Main St., fourth floor.
The report will be available at a number of places, including the main branch of the Watsonville Public Library and online at www.pajaroriverwatershed.org.
After the public comment period ends on Nov. 30, the goal is to move into the initial stages of design and project construction as soon as July 2018, according to Strudley.
He added that advocacy from Santa Cruz and Monterey counties, as well as Congressman Jimmy Panetta, helped put the project on an “accelerated timeline.”
In a press release, Panetta said he has made the project a “top priority.”
“As last winter’s storms showed, improved flood protection along the Pajaro River is critical to the communities and farms that depend upon the levees for protection of their homes and businesses,” he said.
