With the heavy snow cover, Redwood Falls and other cities along the Minnesota River are getting ready for floods this spring.
According to Redwood Falls City Administrator Keith Muetzel, the city of Montevideo is estimating the chances of heavy flooding this year are at about 82 percent.
Residents of North Redwood know what that means. The lowermost section of Redwood Falls saw heavy flooding in 1997 and 2001.
At Tuesday’s Redwood Falls City Council meeting, the council was updated on current plans in case of flooding this year.
Muetzel pointed out the plans are all tentative at this point, and are still being worked out by the city and county.
Muetzel said that if necessary, the city would like to reconstruct the 1,000+ foot long sandbag dikes that were set up in 1997.
“Our number one responsibility is to protect public infrastructure,” Muetzel said, listing items like sanitary and street sewers.
The city will also put a high priority on protecting a lift station adjacent to Coon Street. If the station gets flooded, it could result in significant damage to nearby property.
The city’s second priority would be assisting property owners in North Redwood. Up to 11 property owners could be affected, based on what happened in previous flooding.
According to project manager Jim Doering, the city has 45,000 empty sandbags in reserve, and might start filling them as soon as the middle of March, if necessary.
Muetzel said one North Redwood resident told him that in 1997, the city provided the sandbags, but left the resident responsible for directing the placement of them.
Muetzel recommended the city provide a similar arrangement this year, but that county engineers be available for technical assistance.
Muetzel said the National Guard has informed him that, unlike in previous years, it will not help in providing protection to private property.
It is unclear at this point if the National Guard Armory would be available this year as a staging area for flood relief efforts.
If not, the main hanger at the Redwood Falls airport may be used.
Muetzel suggested it not be considered the city’s responsibility to protect “mobile property,” such as vehicles or heavy tools in sheds. He said it should be the owners’ responsibility to take care of those items.
The city and county flood preparedness team will meet ever Thursday at 1 p.m. in City Hall to refine ideas.
The city will hold an informational meeting for property owners and other interested people on Thurs., March 11 at City Hall.
In other city news, the council:
• Discussed the possibility of canceling the annual spring clean up of residential streets.
Every spring and autumn, the city has picked up leaves and other lawn materials, and carried them to the city burn and compost site.
If the clean up is canceled, city residents would have to dispose of the materials themselves.
Mayor Gary Revier said with the state threatening to cut almost over half a million dollars in promised funds this year, the budget committee has been looking at items as small as $500 to cut from this year’s budget.
Muetzel said city crews are already paid for most of the hours they spend on the clean up. However, most of the cost of the spring and autumn clean ups comes from fuel and overtime costs.
If the spring clean up is canceled this year, the city crews would focus on other aspects of getting ready for the season, such as cleaning and doing repairs on the sewer systems.
According to project manager Jim Doering, every winter the city puts about 300 tons of sand and salt on city streets.
If the street clean up is canceled this year, city crews would still sweep the streets to get much of the sand and salt off the roads. Doering said the state requires it in the form of an unfunded mandate.
Councilor Mike Salmon asked Muetzel and the streets department to put together some definite numbers about how much money could be saved by canceling the spring clean up, and suggested the council revisit the idea at its next meeting.
• Approved the second reading of an ordinance providing for the annexation of a parcel of property in Redwood Township owned by B.J. and Sheila Tersteeg. The annexation was requested by the property owners for the purpose of building a new house, and gaining access to city utilities.
• Awarded the 2010 road oil contract to Flint Hills Resources, of Marshall and St. Paul.
