TO: Mayor and Members of City Council
THRU: Adam Lindsay, Assistant City Manager
FROM: Sheila Thomas-Ambat, Public Services Director
DATE: October 7, 2024
RE:
Title
Discussion of a Potential Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) Grant
end
COUNCIL DISTRICT(S):
Council District(s)
6
b
Relationship To Strategic Plan:
Goal I: Safe and Secure Community
Goal III: High Quality Built Environment
Executive Summary:
Staff is seeking Council guidance on pursuing a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) grant for Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) to assist with debris and sediment removal and stabilization of the embankment under the former Siple Avenue. Through EWP, NRCS may pay up to 75% of the construction cost of eligible recovery measures. The City would need to identify the remaining 25% in cost, with potential funding sources being state grant funds or funds provided by the property owner.
Background:
On October 8, 2024, as a result of Tropical Storm Debby, the privately owned section of Siple Avenue failed and washed out. Members of the Rayconda subdivision have reached out to the City to see if there is any recovery assistance that could be provided to restore the former road.
Siple Ave is a former City street that was constructed over and atop a private dam in the Rayconda subdivision. For some time, Siple Avenue was the only public access for a portion of the Rayconda Subdivision. On August 24, 2015, City Council unanimously voted to acquire property by condemnation for the purpose of constructing Pinewood Terrace as an alternative city street for access to the subdivision. The City Council unanimously voted to close Siple Avenue for safety reasons due to the Rayconda Dam being classified as high hazard. Per the Resolution, Siple Avenue was to be permanently closed September 30, 2017. Although Siple Avenue remained open, the City did transfer its right of way to the homeowner’s association via Resolution in 2015.
The City under a previously awarded grant obtained EWP funding to perform sediment removal, culvert repair and bank stabilization for Siple Ave, however the work was never performed. For more information on past efforts and the street ownership, refer to the attached Administrative Report 2021.03.22 Emergency Watershed Protection Mitigation Effort for Siple Avenue.
Issues/Analysis:
Private Property:
The area of Siple Avenue that failed during Tropical Storm Debby is not City maintained right of way, it is private property. By pursuing a grant through EWP, NRCS may pay up to 75% of the construction cost of eligible recovery measures. The remaining cost would have to come from the City using cash or in-kind services.
The previous EWP grant the City received, the City was able to cover the remaining 25% with grant funds received from The NC Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. At this time, staff is still investigating if these NCDA funds are still available for eligible projects.
Scope of EWP Grant:
EWP is a USDA-NRCS program that assist communities with recovery efforts from watershed impairments. If the City were successful in receiving funding, the funding would be used for eligible recovery measures such as sediment and debris removal as well as bank stabilization. The funding would not cover construction or repairs to infrastructure such as repairing the road and culvert. If the desire is to reconstruct the road to pre-storm conditions, additional funding would need to be identified. For more information on EWP assistance see the attached EWP NC Fact Sheet Aug2024.
Connectivity Analysis:
Staff recently presented the results of the Comprehensive Transportation Plan (CTP) that looked at connectivity and single access neighborhoods. Initially the Rayconda neighborhood was assumed to have two existing points of access. Post TS Debby, the neighborhood was reevaluated assuming a single point of access. A proposed connection of the neighborhood via Siple Avenue ranked well below the cutoff for the top 17 when evaluated through the connectivity analysis that all other neighborhoods in the City were evaluated against.
Environmental Benefits:
The former Siple Ave has left a significant amount of sediment deposits from where the roadway failed. There is also debris from infrastructure and the roadway that are now located in the stream channel. Both the sediment deposits and the debris could potentially cause a clogging of the stream channel and cause the remaining roadway embankment to further erode and undermine. This will lead to future impairment to the stream flow and overall water quality to the stream. At a minimum, the sediment and debris should be removed in the short term.
Next Steps:
If Council wishes to pursue this EWP grant, a formal request for consideration must be presented to NRCS. The attached NC EWP Request for Assistance would need to be sent to the State Conservationist for consideration.
Additional Sites:
City staff could also preliminarily assess if there are additional sites within the City that could potentially be eligible for EWP funding. Those sites could then be incorporated into the Request for Assistance.
Budget Impact:
The City would need to identify where the 25% match would come from as well as the potential cost in excess of any grant awards. Staff can pursue state grants as applicable or the property owner could be asked to provide funds to cover sponsor’s portion for Siple Ave specifically.
Options:
Direct staff to submit a request for assistance to USDA-NRCS for EWP funds as a result of damages caused by TS Debby.
Direct staff to not submit a request for assistance and provide further guidance.
Recommended Action:
Attachments:
2021.03.22 Emergency Watershed Protection Mitigation Effort for Siple Avenue EWP NC Fact Sheet Aug2024
NC EWP Request for Assistance
Potential Emergency Watershed Protection Grant