KPLU Local News
(2010-07-30)
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Colonel Anthony Wright of the Army Corps of Engineers and Senator Patty Murray speak at a Seattle press conference, July 30, 2010. Kent Mayor Suzette Cooke and Auburn Mayor Pete Lewis cheered the federal allocation for dam repairs.
Gary Davis/KPLU photo.
(KPLU) - The next phase of interim repairs to the Howard Hanson Dam in south King County will begin soon. President Obama's signature on a federal spending bill means money is on the way.
The news brought relief to local leaders who banded together with King County and federal leaders to fight for the appropriation. At a Friday afternoon news conference in Seattle, the mayor of Kent, Suzette Cooke, high-fived fellow mayors from the Green River Valley danger zone.
They flanked Patty Murray at the podium. The state's senior senator brought home $44 million for the work.
"There's no senator on the floor of the senate who doesn't look at me and go, I know Howard Hanson Dam now!'" Murray said. The key selling point, she added, was its urgency. "Spending this money now and getting this interim fix in would save literally millions and millions of dollars that would be at risk if something happened and we did nothing," Murray said.
The money is expected to flow in over the next 90 days. That means the Army Corps of Engineers can start construction this fall. Colonel Anthony Wright is in charge of repairs.
"We have a corrective action that will take the dam back to its design capacity, and once it gets there, we believe it has considerable durability," Wright told reporters.
One problem: the short-term repairs won't be finished before the rainy season starts. Forecasters warn this winter could be particularly wet. If flooding can be avoided, the repairs should hold up for at least five years. That should buy time to design - and find money for - a permanent fix.
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