While the two rivers that flank Sacramento bring life to the region, they have historically also brought a persistent threat of flooding. Even in a drought, Sacramento is located at the confluence of two rivers and there will always be a flood risk.

In 1989, in the aftermath of major flooding that served as a wake-up call for the region, Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency (SAFCA) was formed. A joint powers authority, SAFCA finances the local share of the cost to improve Sacramento’s flood control system by creating assessment districts and levying annual assessments on properties that benefit from those improvements.

In 2007, Sacramento property owners overwhelmingly backed a 30-year $326 million assessment district to improve Folsom Dam and strengthen levees along the Sacramento and American rivers. While much has been accomplished to reduce the area’s flood risk, a lot of work remains.

Sacramento still desperately needs a number of projects to protect properties from flooding and meet new state requirements to achieve 200-year flood protection by 2025. Additionally, if the work doesn’t get done to improve the city’s levees, the Federal Emergency Management Agency could declare that Sacramento no longer meets standards to survive a 100-year flood, which could bring a building moratorium across the core of the city (like the one recently lifted in Natomas) and a mandatory, high-cost flood insurance requirement.

In response to this urgency, SAFCA is pursuing a replacement assessment district to fund the work required to prevent a local flood catastrophe. Without this, the majority of our region could be remapped into a high-risk flood zone.

A “yes” vote by Sacramento property owners ensures adequate local funds to obtain the state and federal funding necessary to protect our community from a major flood and sustain our long-term economic viability.

Property owners will soon receive vote-by-mail ballots seeking approval of the replacement district. Ballots will be mailed in late April and are due in early June. While rates will vary by area and the number of stories, many commercial and industrial properties are expected to see a slight decrease in the annual assessment amount.

Learn more about the proposed replacement district and SAFCA’s work to improve flood protection in the region at www.safca.org.

Reducing Sacramento’s Flood Risk

Since 1989, SAFCA has coordinated with federal and state partners to protect the region’s residents and infrastructure from the threat of flooding. Some SAFCA’s legacy achievements include: Approximately $2 billion invested in our flood control system ($1.6 billion from federal and state funding). Folsom Dam 2,100-foot auxiliary spillway with six gated outlets, a new approach channel, and stilling basin has been dug and is nearing completion. Nearly 25 miles of lower American River levee improvements, including 80 foot deep seepage cutoff walls, levees raised to adequate heights, and critical erosion prevention projects More than six miles of levee improvements along the lower Sacramento River in the Pocket-Meadow view areas to address long-term erosion. Almost 40 miles of levee improvements around the Natomas basin and in North Sacramento to address levee height deficiencies, erosion and under seepage. Established the Lower American River Task Force and erosion control improvements to address levee stability while incorporating habitat features, mitigating project impacts, and preserving the wild and scenic character of the American River Parkway. And, many more!

 

 

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