Officials: New 12th Avenue floodgate important, but flood protection efforts must continue

Even as federal, state and local leaders gathered March 28 for a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new 12th Avenue SE floodgate in Cedar Rapids, speakers were compelled to acknowledge a persistent truth: The Cedar Rapids flood protection system remains a work in progress. “Completion of this feature is a significant and honorable accomplishment, and worthy of a formal and public ceremony,” said Brig. Gen. Kimberly Peeples, Mississippi Valley Division Commander for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the key federal agency in Cedar Rapids’ ongoing recovery from the flood of 2008. “I'm wearing my military fatigues (today) in recognition that while today, we cut this ribbon and celebrate progress, we have important work left to do. There are and there will be challenges in front of us, but I want to assure you today … flood protection for the Americans that live and work in this beautiful city and surrounding communities is a top regional and national priority. We will persevere and we will deliver. We must deliver. It's not negotiable.” The 12th Avenue floodgate, completed in the fall of 2023, is the latest segment in the city’s progress toward a Cedar Rapids flood protection system, with a planned overall price tag of $750 million by project’s end and completion anticipated in the mid-2030s. However, according to information distributed at the ribbon-cutting ceremony, less than half of the system is completed or in progress. On the east side of the Cedar River, 22,311 linear feet of flood protection is in place, comprising 43.7% of the overall east-side project. Another 22.6% is being constructed, leaving 33.7% for future construction. Progress has been slower on the west side of the river. So far, 17,259 linear feet of flood protection has been installed on the west side, or 19.7%, and another 6.5% is actively being built. That leaves 73.8% of the west-side system remaining for future construction. Overall, the city’s flood protection system is 33.2% complete, with 15.6% in progress. But more than half of the system – 51.2% – is left to be built at some point in the future. Still, the new floodgate, at a total cost of nearly $6.4 million, is a significant development. The retractable floodgate is eight feet high, 79 feet long and four feet, nine inches thick, weighing in at 70,000 pounds. It’s similar to the First Avenue East floodgate, which was completed earlier in 2023, and is built to protect to the city’s 2008 flood volume. It stores in place and will roll across 12th Avenue SE when needed, closing and locking into place in about an hour. https://corridorbusiness.com/officials-cedar-rapids-flood-gates-completion-signals-irreversible-momentum/ Cedar Rapids Mayor Tiffany O’Donnell praised the city’s partnerships with Iowa’s congressional delegation, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the design and construction crews that helped bring the project to fruition. She also stressed the cooperation with the African American Museum of Iowa, which worked with the city to coordinate the flood protection efforts with the museum’s own renovation project. “Our flood control system is impressive by any standard,” Ms. O’Donnell said. “It is more than just walls and pumps. It is the backbone to a series of greenways, parks, trails, amenities, even an amphitheater, that are vital to the vibrant connections that we want to provide our citizens here in Cedar Rapids. We look forward to continuing our relationship (with the Corps of Engineers) as we complete the rest of this system, which is not only crucial in protecting our city and our residents, It is a vital investment in ensuring our community's resilience and reducing disparities that we see in health outcomes, promoting economic growth for sure, and improving the quality of life for more residents than before.” U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson said the latest step in the city's flood protection system stands as a testament to the public-private partnerships that helped the city recover from the 2008 flood, as well as the community's resilience in rebounding from the flood's devastation. "Flood mitigation is about saving lives, but it's also about saving livelihoods," Ms. Hinson said. "And that is really what is at stake here." Ms. Hinson also said she's worked to secure federal FEMA funding for the Flood Hazard Mapping and Risk Analysis program, "so that Iowa's businesses and our homeowners are aware of any potential flood risks for their properties going forward." "While we can't predict the weather, obviously, we can make smart investments and we can be as prepared as possible to make sure we're keeping people safe and preventing property damage," she added. Cedar Rapids city manager Jeff Pomeranz highlighted the cooperative efforts with the African American Musuem of Iowa, including a focus on keeping the museum in its current location as a flood protection system developed around it. "It's much more than a symbol," Mr. Pomeranz said. "It's a remembrance and an opportunity to look to the future as to how our community recognizes the plight of the African American population, but also the success and the future of that population." He also noted the flood protection system wouldn't have progressed to this point without public and private entities, particularly the Corps of Engineers. "It would have been easy to just not make these improvements, to sit back and say 'it's good enough, but there's only so much we can do,'" he added. "But in Cedar Rapids, with the help of our federal representatives and with the help of our entire team and the Corps, we decided to make Cedar Rapids greater and better than before." Other speakers at the ribbon-cutting ceremony included U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, Sen. Joni Ernst, and Rochelle Fuller, representing U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley.