Title
A Resolution in support of the City of Lee's Summit intent to pursue a Project Partnership Agreement with the United States Army Corps of Engineers for the Little Blue River Flood Risk Management Study. (PWC 5/11/26)
Body
Issue/Request:
A Resolution in support of the City of Lee's Summit intent to pursue a Project Partnership Agreement with the United States Army Corps of Engineers for the Little Blue River Flood Risk Management Study.
Key Issues:
• Pursuant to Ordinance No. 9508, the City entered into an Intergovernmental Agreement with the Mid-America Regional Council (MARC) to complete the Little Blue Watershed Flood Risk Management Study
• The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is working with MARC as the lead agency for the watershed study
• MARC has been facilitating the participation of seven local agencies
• Recent changes in USACE rules for engineering reports have reduced the scope of this project and thus reduce the cost
• This resolution demonstrates the City of Lee’s Summit ability to act as a local sponsor with USACE to continue moving this project through the federal process
• The City’s continued partnership enables to City to receive construction grants for up to 65% of the proposed project cost
Proposed City Council Motion:
I move to adopt a Resolution in support of the City of Lee's Summit intent to pursue a Project Partnership Agreement with the United States Army Corps of Engineers for the Little Blue River Flood Risk Management Study.
Background:
The last USACE planning study for the Little Blue River watershed was completed in 1966. That study led to much of the flood control project(s) in the watershed; such as constructing Longview Lake and Dam, Blue Springs Lake and Dam, and levees along portions of the Little Blue River. That study is now obsolete due to the significant changes in land use in the area and more accurate local data relate to topography and rainfall. These changes are evidenced by recurring flooding issues within the basin.
USACE and the local agencies recognize that a best practice to manage stormwater is to manage the entire watershed instead of subdividing into small parcels divided by city limit lines or private parcel boundaries. Rain and flooding follow the watershed, and flooding issues in one community may be inadvertently affected by actions taken outside that community.
The City of Lee’s Summit, and six other local agencies within the Little Blue River watershed, partnered together with USACE to conduct the watershed study to develop conceptual plans to mitigate flood risk potential and restore ecosystems within the watershed. The City of Lee’s Summit covers approximately 25% of the Little Blue Watershed. Two-thirds of Lee’s Summit is within the Little Blue watershed that includes places such as Longview Lake, Mouse Creek, Cedar Creek, East Fork of the Little Blue River, Prairie Lee Lake, Legacy Park, Lakewood, Maybrook, Oaks Ridge Meadows, the large tracts of undeveloped land owned by PRI/LR, and the I-470 corridor.
The study has reached a critical milestone to move forward. The USACE process requires a Command Validation Meeting at the end of the technical studies to move the project forward from the regional to the national level for federal funding. Command Validation approval requires the local partners to declare their intent to move forward. Command Validation is not a financial obligation. The City must declare the ability make financial obligations, the ability to acquire real estate, and the intent to move forward.
The end goal is called the “Chief’s Report” that is issued from the Pentagon by the USACE Chief Engineer’s Office. The Chief’s Report authorized federal matching funds. The City still has the future right to stop local participation based on funding, lobby elected officials to reduce the local match, or partner with other agencies to fund construction.
The flood risk mitigation has been removed from this Command Validation brief due to new rules enacted by USACE for engineering studies. The proposed flood risk mitigation work would require another 18 months of engineering to meet the new USACE rules for design progress.
The report going forward will focus almost entirely on ecosystem restoration along Mouse Creek and the Little Blue River. The estimated cost for that work is a total of $1.5 million with a local match of $575,000. Approving this resolution would allow the City to continue pursuing the federal partnership for improvement along Mouse Creek.
Impact/Analysis
Approving the resolution allows this work to move forward. Not approving the resolution would end the City’s participation in the project and preclude future grant opportunities for the work.
Presenter
George Binger, Deputy Director of Public Works/City Engineer
Recommendation
Staff recommends approval.