March 28, 2024
City Commission approves land purchase for flood mitigation and economic development
At its Thursday evening regular meeting, Independence City Commission approved a significant land purchase as a first step toward a mitigation solution for neighborhood flash flooding that has plagued Independence since early development of the city. The purchase will include approximately 125 acres of current pasture, agricultural and residential land north of Oak Street, between 13th Street and 21st Street, along the banks of Whiskey Creek which is notorious for flash flooding during heavy rain and damaging downstream residences.
City Manager Kelly Passauer explained that, after the worst documented flooding incident in recent years – 2018 when 50 structures, including residences and businesses, incurred some level of flooding and varying degrees of damage - the City has completed extensive research on flood mitigation solutions, attempted some more affordable stop-gap remedies and applied on multiple occasions for grant funding to support larger-scale improvement projects, all with little or no success.
A 2019 hydrology study, Passauer explained, recommended the construction of an artificial water detention lake as the highest-impact solution to prevent downstream flooding.
“The City has been studying the problem and working toward a solution for many years,” Passauer said. “Now, all conditions have aligned, including property owners willing to sell the necessary acreage and opportunities to achieve several other community benefits with development in the area,” Passauer said.
She explained that with the acquisition of the property, the City will be able to pursue not only the development of the detention lake, but other improvements that will meet the needs and wants of the community, including one of the top-identified shortfalls – housing. To provide access to the lake and future housing developments, the project plan also would include extension of existing city streets in the vicinity, which would yield another significant benefit by helping to relieve traffic congestion around the neighboring schools.
“We want to get the greatest value for our investment and maximize the benefit to the community with this project,” Passauer said.
Total cost of the property purchase comes in at $1,054,900, which includes two existing homes and several farm buildings. She said the City will continue to apply for all available state and federal grant funding to support the project, and she expects significant funding to become available to support any street and infrastructure improvements that would support the schools thanks to an anticipated early payoff of bonds issued after the school district’s 2009 bond issue election for school improvements. Early payoff is anticipated, she said, in part due to local sales tax collections outpacing previous projections.
“As plans and opportunities develop, we certainly will work closely with USD 446 to best design any improvements that may impact the schools,” Passauer said.
She noted professional engineering/design firms have been engaged to develop concepts for the artificial lake construction and adjacent property development. From there, the City will be able to select the best options and more precisely determine anticipated costs and timelines, but she expects the “monumental” project to take years to complete.
“Whiskey Creek flooding and its impact on downstream residences in neighborhoods across the community has been a problem for many years,” she said. “This proposed project will be completed in phases and will not be an overnight fix, but will yield multiple benefits for our citizens and the community as a whole.”
Whiskey Creek Corridor Flooding:
Working Toward Solutions & Maximizing Community Benefit
FAQ’s
- Essentially since the city of Independence was developed, Whiskey Creek has been prone to flash flooding during quick, heavy rain events, often resulting in damage to downstream properties. While the creek’s flooding affects adjacent property at multiple points throughout the community, the primarily residential neighborhood located south of Oak Street between 13th Street and 21st Street has experienced the most dire impact. The documented event most devastating in recent years occurred in 2018, when 50 residential and commercial properties incurred flooding with varying degrees of damage.
- In 2019, the City of Independence commissioned a Whiskey Creek hydrology study to identify potential flood mitigation efforts in the area.
- Acting on recommendations from the study, the City of Independence completed some of the more affordable mitigation efforts, such as clearing debris from the Whiskey Creek corridor in 2020 and 2021. More costly recommendations were not feasible within the City’s budget (i.e., improving drainage at 20th & Sycamore Streets and replacing the Cherry Street bridge downstream), so multiple grant applications were attempted to help fund these projects. To date, all grant applications have been unsuccessful.
- In the 2019 hydrology study, construction of an artificial detention lake was identified as the highest-impact solution to mitigate the flood problem. To date, funding and property availability have not successfully aligned to make this project possible.
- Now, the City of Independence has reached an agreement with landowners of acreage surrounding Whiskey Creek (north of Oak Street between 13th Street and 21st Street) to purchase the property for development of a several-acre detention lake, as well as other important uses to address high-priority needs of our community.
- The parcel amounts to approximately 125 acres of pasture, agricultural and residential land. The purchase price comes in at $1,054,900, which includes houses and multiple farm outbuildings.
- The City’s long-range plan is to develop the artificial lake with a primary purpose of water detention/flood control, and secondary uses would be considered as well.
- While the lake would consume several acres of the property, several additional acres would be available for housing development, which is identified as a critical need and current shortfall in our community.
- In conjunction with the property development, additional street access would be needed, and the City proposes not only the construction of new streets but the extension of existing streets in the vicinity, which would have the additional positive impact of alleviating traffic congestion around neighboring schools.
- Any and all applicable state and federal grant applications will be submitted to help fund the above-mentioned projects. Additionally, infrastructure improvements, such as street extensions, may benefit from significant funding anticipated to be available thanks to USD 446’s likely early payoff of school bonds from the 2009 bond issue election to support school improvements. In part because local sales tax collections have outpaced earlier projections, the school bonds are expected to be paid off ahead of schedule, leaving a future surplus of sales tax potentially available for street and infrastructure improvements directly benefiting the schools. The City will partner and work closely with USD 446 when considering any improvements that may impact the schools.
- Next steps in the project include engaging two engineering/design firms to develop concepts for the detention lake and adjacent recreational spaces and residential lots. From the concepts created, the City will determine final projected costs and select the options with optimal community impact. The “legacy” project is expected to be completed in phases over a period of several years.
