The Juneau Assembly unanimously agreed to commit $3 million in city dollars to a possible U.S. Army Corps of Engineers study that would examine engineering solutions for long-term glacial outburst flood prevention.
Members made the decision during a special meeting Monday afternoon. They also agreed to spend $100,000 from the city’s general fund to cover the cost of creating more accurate and detailed inundation maps and models of the Mendenhall River.
The city has already set aside $300,000 from an emergency appropriation and this year’s capital improvement budget that can be put towards studying and mapping the flooding this winter.
City Manager Katie Koester said these are just pieces of the puzzle as city leaders and the Assembly work with state, federal and tribal agencies to make both short and long-term plans in anticipation of another flood.
The Assembly’s approval of the funds comes after Koester, Juneau Mayor Beth Weldon and representatives from the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska traveled to Washington, D.C. last week to advocate for additional federal money and support for the study.
On Friday, Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy also requested a federal declaration of emergency from the president through the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Alaska’s congressional delegation quickly backed the move in a joint letter of support.
A federal declaration would free up more individual assistance for homeowners who experienced property damage.
The Governor and Tlingit and Haida President Chalyee Éesh Richard Peterson also submitted a request for technical assistance from the Army Corps of Engineers flood fighting team. Koester said Monday that the team is now on the ground in Juneau.
