Coconino News

After the fire flood mitigation efforts from this year, Coconino County is facing a $745,000 budget deficit and is actively looking for solutions. 

On Tuesday, Feb. 18, the Flood Control District, the Board of Supervisors and other town mayors and managers in Coconino County met to discuss solutions to the current budget deficit. 

Since the Museum Fire in the summer of 2019, Coconino County’s Flood Control District has increased its flood mitigation efforts with more plans to be completed before this year’s monsoon season. 

County officials were able to help reduce the costs for mitigation efforts, County Flood District Director Lucinda Andreani said, but a deficit of $745,783 still remains, which is approximately 16 percent of the district’s budget for the 2020 fiscal year. 

The county has used $1.2 million of the budget this year on emergency flood mitigation after the fire and expects to spend $107,500 more on stabilizing the fan above Mt. Elden Estates, clearing out sediment from drainage channels and preparing for a potential museum flood. An additional $700,000 is expected to be used to improve residential drainage channels and $50,000 preparing for a flood. 

Secondary property taxes are the primary source of funding, which can supply $223,000 to Coconino County, but Andreani said it will not be enough to cover all the flood mitigation needed. 

A 14 percent increase in tax rate would be needed to cover the costs needed. 

Andreani said potential federal grants totaling $870,000 would help with future and current flood mitigation efforts. 

The U.S. Forest Service gave $158,000 to Coconino County to stabilize the alluvial fan above Mt. Elden Estates. 

Coconino County is also looking into a hazard mitigation grant from the state emergency department, which would total $128,000 and require a match of $43,000 from the county to make residential drainage channels ready for storms. 

“If we have the rainfall events that we’ve seen historically, we’re going to have flooding,” Christopher Tressler, Flood Control District engineer, told the Arizona Daily Sun. “Nothing’s a guarantee, but all the indicators are there and we want to prepare and respond in such a way to be ready for it.”

In a letter to county property owners, it said a community meeting will be held for mitigation projects within two months and that flood mitigation is suggested to be kept in place through the monsoon season. A drainage project for the Mountain Dell neighborhood was also discussed in the meeting.