Monterey Votes To Move Forward With Flood Mitigation Plan

Monterey aldermen have voted to move forward with a flood mitigation plan that will cost an estimated $250,000.

Engineers have recommended new piping and culverts to redirect water from East Commercial to the railroad tracks. Mayor Bill Wiggins said it’s a good start to a process that will take years to complete.

“With the dimensions of the pipe, there will be no excessive amount of water, other than what’s going through there now,” Wiggins said. “Of course, the board is still looking for phase two and phase three. That’s going to be on the other side of the tracks to Industrial Drive and under the Interstate to Pettys Dam.”

The board’s approval of phase one allows the engineer to begin putting together bid documents for the project, but TDEC has to approve permitting before any work can begin.

The city began investigating solutions for the flood-prone area a year ago Wednesday. Aldermen JJ Reels said the lengthy process has caused some residents to become frustrated.

“A lot of the frustration comes from the people who live in that area. It’s been a year since we put a resolution through and they’re still having problems,” Reels said. “But they look down stream. We talk about a three stage approach to the problem. My thought process is let’s take care of what’s holding water from that end. My opinion is, we’re eating the elephant from the wrong end.”

Engineer Jerry Warren said starting the project from the opposite end would cost more money and would not address the flooding along East Commercial.