We’re about to enter the rainy season again in South Sound. If – God forbid – the region is soaked with torrential rains and the Chehalis River basin floods again like it did in 2007 when Interstate 5 was submerged, all accusatory fingers will rightfully point to the flood authority which was assembled to get a flood mitigation plan in place.
The public wants, and expects, its elected and appointed officials to get along and produce results. That’s not the record of the flood authority this year.
The bickering and squabbling among the 11 authority members in south Thurston, north Lewis and eastern Grays Harbor counties, drew a rebuke from Gov. Chris Gregoire this summer.
In an interview with the Daily World in Aberdeen, Gregoire said, “This is a very frustrating situation. We cannot do that to ourselves. We have to step up, come together and get something done.”
The governor was right, just as she was right when she said, “We’ve got to come together or we’re just setting ourselves up for another devastating flood at some point in the future.”
The flood authority was appointed in 2008. The previous year devastating floods slowed commerce on the I-5 corridor, inconvenienced motorists, and caused millions of dollars in damage to private property. State and federal leaders trusted the flood authority to do the work to get a mitigation plan adopted and improvements in place to lessen the risk of future flooding.
Millions of dollars have been spent in studies and consultant fees. But as plans started to come together, participants staked out positions and began moving further apart, unable to agree on a plan forward. Tempers flared, there were claims of abuse of trust and the representative from the Chehalis Tribe simply walked away.
A separate group, the Watershed Cooperative, was formed with Grays Harbor, Thurston County and the tribe.
It was at that point that Gregoire intervened and called for unity and cooperation.
Lawmakers were equally critical. Rep. Hans Dunshee, D-Snohomish, chairman of the House Capital Budget Committee – a key to flood district funding – said. “They should be embarrassed. ... It’s sad the place can’t get its act together.” He said the state was not going to “throw money into the battle.”
Dunshee said if local officials couldn’t get their act together, the state would move ahead to protect the freeway. The state has set aside nearly $50 million to aid in the construction of the Army Corps of Engineers’ Twin Cities Project, which will add 11 miles of levees in and around Centralia and Chehalis.
Local community leaders and legislators have said they would like to come up with a more comprehensive flood solution, saying the levees will only protect the freeway.
The criticism from the governor and legislators appeared to have played a role in forcing the warring parties back together. At the flood authority’s September meeting, the parties seemed more willing to get along.
Stipulations on funding and the addition of professional staff members are credited with moving the authority forward.
“There were no heated arguments and no real disagreements, which is huge,” Flood Authority Chair Vickie Raines said after the meeting.
Isn’t that what the public expects?
Efforts to develop a new relationship with the tribe continue. That’s a step forward, as are the planning and consultant reports that are providing authority members with key information upon which to base future decisions.
The flood authority is on a tight leash from the Office of Financial Management – the governor’s budget office. The authority must meet specific tasks by specific dates and within a defined budget or face a loss of funding.
After a spring and summer of discontent, it appears the authority members are back on track. They had better stay focused and meet key deadlines, or they will be stripped of their authority and the state will proceed on its own.
It is better that these decisions be made at the local level.
