Flood-weary residents and business owners in East Columbus will have the opportunity to vent their frustrations and explore federal intervention during a public meeting Thursday evening at Trotter Convention Center.
The purpose of the meeting, which begins at 5:30 p.m., is to gauge interest in the city”s efforts to apply for funding to purchase previously flooded structures at appraisal value or elevate buildings for those who wish to stay on their property.
City officials, including Ward 3 Councilman Charlie Box and Ward 2 Councilman Joseph Mickens, will be present, along with flood mitigation specialists from the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
The deadline for the city to apply for funds is in December, and City Planner Christina Berry said interested persons would most likely be given a November deadline to submit the necessary documentation to the city. No one will be forced to participate in the program.
The Masonic subdivision, off Tuscaloosa Road, is the main area that will be discussed, but anyone in Columbus who has received a claims payment from the National Flood Insurance program is eligible to apply.
Though the city has made some attempts to alleviate flooding in the area, including digging ditches and installing culverts to handle the overflow of water from Magby Creek, Box said the situation has been “complicated” by the construction of the Highway 82 bypass, and he feels the state”s plan may be “a viable answer” for some people.
Past solutions that have been discussed but not enacted include allowing the U.S. Corps of Engineers to build a retention lake in Alabama.
“We”ve been in there. … It”s just such an overwhelming problem,” Box said. “A few more ditches aren”t going to get the job done. It drives the citizens crazy, because they want something done, but it”s such a huge situation. It”s not something easy to solve.”
Bill Nelson, who owns R&N Factory Warehouse Furniture on Highway 50, said he is definitely interested in the program. Over the past three decades, his store has flooded five times — twice in 2009. Though he likes the steady stream of traffic that passes his door, he”s tired of the intermittent stream of muddy water through his 13,000-square-foot warehouse and showroom. If funds were made available, he”d like to move to a dryer location.
With the housing market still struggling to recover from the recession, Nelson feels if the state is willing to purchase property at its appraised value in flood-prone areas, people should be “extremely excited and interested.”
“It”s frustrating to have to deal with the flooding,” Nelson said. “It”s a lot of work to get the old, wet furniture out. You can”t just snap your fingers and make it happen overnight.”
It”s even worse for the homeowners, he said. He remembers an elderly couple that lived behind his store and slept across the street in their car for two days when their house was flooded.
Under the stipulations of the state flood mitigation assistance, any structures the city purchases will have to be torn down and the land cleared as green space. Elevation would allow the homeowner or business owner to stay in their present location, but the structure would be raised above flood level.
Box said he hopes residents will attend the meeting and at least hear the options available.
“It”s really been quite a hot-button type issue,” he said.
Carmen K. Sisson is the former news editor at The Dispatch.
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