Tuesday, Jun. 30, 2009

St. Clair, Madison and Monroe counties look for a solution to levee problem

The economic recession gripping the nation has dealt a one-two punch to St. Clair, Madison and Monroe counties' efforts to meet a federal mandate to upgrade their flood protection levees to the 500-year standard.

Punch No. 1: Revenues from a special quarter-cent sales tax, which took effect Jan. 1 to pay for levee repairs are on track come in 12.5 percent less than anticipated for the three counties combined.

Punch No. 2: Earlier this month, at a meeting in Alton, an Army Corps of Engineers representative informed officials from the three counties that the 65 percent federal match for levee repairs might not show up until 2044.

"That's unacceptable," St. Clair County Board Chairman Mark Kern said.

As a result, Kern and his counterparts in Madison and Monroe counties are realizing they must get both creative and self-sufficient if they are to make the mandated levee improvements with little or no federal aid.

Otherwise, property owners in the Mississippi River basin face soaring flood insurance costs that could drive many away, freezing development in the basin.

"First of all, it's clear that we need to get to at least the 100-year level" of flood protection, Kern said. "So what we have to do is figure out is there a way to get to that level for the dollar amount we have available?"

Madison County Board Chairman Alan Dunstan expressed confidence that sales tax revenue will increase once the economy picks up again.

Dunstan also is optimistic that solutions will be found with the help of Les Sterman, who starts work July 22 as construction chief for the Southwestern Illinois Flood Protection District Council.

Sterman, an engineer by training, served for more than 25 years as executive director of the East-West Gateway Council of Governments in St. Louis. There, he had played a key role in negotiating a wide range of projects dealing with bridges, highways and public transit.

"He comes with a record from East-West Gateway that's unbelievable," Dunstan said. "He will be working on this situation full-time, which we never had before."

For more on this story, read the News-Democrat on Wednesday or return to bnd.com on Wednesday.