The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, along with the Flood Diversion Authority, will host a public meeting Thursday, Sept. 13, to update the public on the proposed changes to the project, including the channel alignment at the southern end of the project.
The changes are being proposed to minimize impacts, decrease risk and reduce project costs.
In addition, an informational meeting for elected officials from the member entities of the Diversion Authority will be held at 7:30 a.m. on Sept. 13.
The public meeting will be from 6-9 p.m. at the Courtyard Marriott, 1080 28th Ave. S., in Moorhead. There will be an open house at 6 p.m., followed by a formal presentation from 7 to 8 p.m. and a question and answer period ending at 9 p.m. The informational meeting for elected officials, which is open to the public, will also be held at the Courtyard Marriott, starting at 7:30 a.m. and ending at 9 a.m.
The proposed project will involve the construction of a 35-mile long diversion channel located in North Dakota that would direct floodwater around the Fargo-Moorhead metropolitan area. The project would temporarily store up to 200,000 acre-feet of flood water immediately upstream of the diversion channel inlet in order to minimize downstream impacts. The plan would remove much of the Fargo-Moorhead area from the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s regulatory floodplain.
The diversion project will achieve reliable flood risk management that will protect approximately 200,000 people in the Fargo-Moorhead metropolitan area, our economy and quality of life.
[mappress]
Press Release, September 5, 2012