Flagstaff flood relief projects moving ahead, making sandbag-weary residents happy
FLAGSTAFF — Since the Museum Fire severely burned nearly 2,000 acres of land just north of Mount Elden, Mike Martinell's family has been on high alert during the monsoon.
The 2019 fire ultimately damaged a significant portion of the Spruce Wash watershed, creating a large flood area that includes the house Martinell's in-laws have owned for more than 50 years.
"They've lost half their backyard because of barriers that they've put up to protect the house from floodwaters," Martinell said.
Many residents of this area gathered alongside Martinell at Flagstaff City Hall on Thursday night as city staff and engineers presented updates for the various planned flood mitigation projects in the Spruce Wash watershed.
This area was largely spared last summer. But the memories of multiple flash flooding events caused by storms in 2021 are still fresh in the minds of residents eager to find a more permanent solution than the miles of concrete barriers and sandbag walls that line their properties.
"Every time we get an alert about a flood, no matter where my wife and I are, we're hustling over there to make sure that they're OK and we're there in case water breaches one of these barriers," Martinell said.
Crews have completed three alluvial fans in this watershed, which help to slow and spread out the water while depositing debris, making it more manageable downstream. One of these alluvial fans is north of Martinell's family, and he said they've already started to see the positive impacts.
"It did a lot of good to slow the water down, and there wasn't nearly as much debris as there had been in previous floods," he said.
One of the proposed projects that could bring major benefits for Martinell's family are the Parkway Sediment Basins, upstream of his family's property, that will serve as a depository for around 5,000 cubic yards of sediment and debris and hopefully slow the water as it continues downstream. The city is still evaluating bids for this project, which is funded by the Coconino County Flood Control District and needs to be completed by June.
In addition to that project, Flagstaff voters in November overwhelmingly supported Proposition 441, the allocation of $26 million for various flood control projects specifically for the Spruce Wash/Museum Fire area. The city is proposing seven different projects that include road reconstruction, channel stabilization and the construction of larger box culverts to help ease the flood impacts on residents.
The final design process for these projects is still underway. The city is looking for qualified contractors with the intent to start construction later this year, after the upcoming monsoon season. Work is planned to be completed by 2026.
A handful of residents who spoke at the meeting expressed frustration that their properties and neighborhoods have been overrun with sandbags and concrete barriers for so long and with no end in sight.
While the work that already has been done restoring the watershed has brought the runoff estimates below what they were immediately after the fire, they are still considerably higher than in pre-fire conditions.
City staff members emphasized that while they understood residents' frustrations, they could not advise anyone to remove any of their short-term mitigation measures yet.
"We need the water in Arizona, but I hope it comes in ways that we can manage it," Martinell said.
Contact northern Arizona reporter Lacey Latch at llatch@gannett.com or on social media @laceylatch. Coverage of northern Arizona on azcentral.com and in The Arizona Republic is funded by the nonprofit Report for America and a grant from the Vitalyst Health Foundation in association with The Arizona Republic.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Flagstaff flood mitigation projects moving forward thanks to Prop. 441
