Santa Maria River Levee

SANTA MARIA RIVER LEVEE
IMPROVEMENT PROJECT

At the toe of the levee, crews
excavate 15 to 20 feet below
the riverbed (note where the vegetation ends), then backfill
with a thick mixture of soil
cement up to the top of the levee.

Steel Pilings for Strength

To avoid digging up
environmentally sensitive riverbed
habitat along one section, a row of
massive steel pilings awaits a
crane and hammer that will
drive them deep into the earth.

Finished Section

Looking west and downstream
from Suey Crossing Road,
the repaired levee is stronger
with soil cement (gray)
and the sandy riverbed has
been backfilled.

Click on photos for larger views.

Rehabilitation of 6.3 miles of the levee is substantially complete as of April 2011, thanks to the extraordinary efforts of Congresswoman Capps, Senator Dianne Feinstein, Mayor Lavagnino, the County and the Army Corps of Engineers. Fixes to the structure began in January 2009, to ensure that a rain-swollen Santa Maria River does not damage the levee and flood nearby urban areas and farmland.

An additional 3,700 feet of the levee directly east of the completed work - which is directly east of the landfill - needs to be rehabilitated (see map, above). The challenge is that there will be $2.8 million in additional Federal funding and $3.3 million in local funding required to construct this project. In this era of no Federal earmarks and substantially reduced Federal expenditures for domestic programs, the funds available for these types of projects are severely limited. This, accompanied by severe reductions in local revenues, makes for a substantial financial challenge.

For much more information, check out these links:

Project Team Phone: (805) 734-4670 for Army Corps Vandenberg Office

News Releases From 2007 to the present

Photos Photographs of the Levee and the 1998 Breach

Summary The Levee's History and Proposed Repairs

Answers to Common Questions Timetable, Job Opportunities, and More

Funding and Economic Impact Funding sources, Bid Results, Job Creation Study

Reports Two Project Reports by the Army Corps of Engineers

U.S. Army Corps Website Direct link to the Los Angeles District

Flood Maps & Insurance Which properties are in the flood zone?

The City of Santa Maria successfully lobbied for levee repairs, to protect approximately 20,000 properties from the risk of flooding. The City does not own or maintain the levee. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built the levee; its maintenance is the responsibility of Santa Barbara County.

Funding and Economic Impact

The Santa Maria River Levee improvement project received $40.231 million in funding through the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009 (ARRA). The funding was announced on April 28, 2009 by the Army Corps of Engineers (news release). Earlier, the project received $6.7 million contained in the Omnibus Appropriations Act signed by President Obama on March 12, 2009. Bid Results. Bids for Reach 1-2 were opened September 8 in Los Angeles.

The award of the bid for Reach 3 was awarded March 19, 2010. Reach 3 is 3.13 miles from Suey Crossing Bridge to the Bradley Canyon Confluence.

To ensure a long-term fix for the levee and to again remove much of the City from the 100-year flood zone, at the urging of the City and the County, Congress appropriated $280,000 in late 2007 and directed the Army Corps to perform a study of the levee and identify fixes.

The City and County will continue to work with the Corps of Engineers to ensure speedy completion of any studies or other work.

Read a study about projected job creation as a result of the levee improvement project.

Reports

These documents were prepared by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Draft Environmental Assessment (April 2009) (3.13 MB, 256 pages)
Preliminary Design Deficiency Report (December 2008) (3 MB, 118 pages)

This webpage was updated on May 26, 2011.