Hoquiam, Aberdeen will work toward dike system to raise property values
Officials in Aberdeen and Hoquiam plan to work together toward creating a dike system that would encompass both cities with the intent of lowering insurance premiums and raising the value of homes in the area.
Public discussion between the two cities for the plan began in earnest at Monday night’s Hoquiam City Council meeting, where Aberdeen Councilwoman Kathi Hoder, speaking as a guest, urged council members to attend a meeting scheduled for early November to discuss the plan.
The project would, in part, build a dike around the Hoquiam River, create a set of parks that would double as water-retention areas and make changes to the cities’ flood zoning to substantially reduce flood insurance costs.
“Nobody’s going to buy a $50,000 building if the flood insurance alone is $10,000 a year,” Hoder said, explaining the crux of the problem that both cities are facing with high flood insurance rates and premiums.
The plan, still in its preliminary stages, has garnered support and resources from Nicholas Carr, an outreach representative for Rep. Derek Kilmer’s office based in the Seattle area, and from the Chehalis River Basin Flood Authority.
During her short presentation, Hoder said the project began in Aberdeen with the conception of the northside levee project. That project is now at the top of the Chehalis River Basin Flood Authority’s list of prioritized projects, Hoder said.
In planning the project in Aberdeen, officials in the city’s Public Works Department suggested building the dike into Hoquiam. Officials from both cities will meet on Nov. 5 at the Grays Harbor Public Utility District’s commission chambers to hear a presentation from Carr and a representative from Seattle-based consulting firm Forterra and discuss funding options for the plan.
Before and after Hoder’s presentation, Durney implored council members to clear their schedules for the meeting.
“There is nothing more important than any of us will ever work on in our political careers than this issue of solving the flooding,” Durney said.
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