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County gets more repair money Mail Tribune / Jim Craven Welder Brad Govenor works on a retaining wall railing adjacent to the Bear Creek Greenway bikepath in Talent. The project is one of many flood-related repairs funded by federal dollars. FEMA makes up the difference from 1997 flood By Jessica Smith Nearly three years after creeks topped their banks and flooded the Rogue Valley, the Federal Emergency Management Agency gave up an additional $447,686 to reimburse the county for repairs to roads and bridges. Gerry Douglas, Jackson County roads department assistant director, said FEMA made the additional reimbursement payment to the county Wednesday. "We were surprised at how easily they agreed (to make the payment)," Douglas said. "We thought we might have to spend more time negotiating the reimbursement, but FEMA actually took our information very well." When FEMA teams visited the county to survey damage caused by the 1997 New Year�s Day flood, the agency estimated road and bridge repairs at $626,398. The county has already been reimbursed for those costs. But a county review of 84 road projects showed that repairs at 40 sites exceeded federal estimates, Douglas said. The roads department actually racked up more than $1.27 million in costs related to flood damage, Douglas said. County engineers tracked costs and submitted their findings to FEMA last fall. Following its own review, FEMA concurred with the county�s assessment and agreed to pay nearly $450,000 to cover a portion of the additional costs. FEMA representatives were unavailable for comment Thursday. Sandra Eccker, the county�s emergency management coordinator, said she was "shocked" by the amount of additional federal funding given to the roads department. "I think FEMA was very generous with us (when it made its original estimate). It surprised me that there was such an increase," she added. "It worked to the advantage of our roads department to have kept good records." Since the flood three years ago, FEMA has awarded about $3.86 million in disaster relief funding for repairs in the county, the valley�s 10 cities and a number of special service districts. Likewise, residents and business owners countywide received about $7.1 million in federal aid for home and business repairs, as well as rental and unemployment assistance. According to Douglas, the county has one last road project to complete before it finishes its FEMA-funded repairs. A section of the Bear Creek Greenway trail wiped out by the flood in Talent is now being rebuilt, he said. FEMA has approved a $120,000 reimbursement for the project, but Douglas said the work may cost a bit more. Reach reporter Jessica Smith at 776-4481, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.