On Tuesday evening, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Orange County Drainage District representatives presented information to the Orange City Council on a $2.4B Orange County Coastal Storm Risk Management Project (Orange County Levee Project). This project aims to deliver cost-effective and ecologically-sound solutions to reduce risks from coastal storm surge to communities, businesses, and industry in Orange. The main features authorized for the Orange County Project include:
- Approximately 15 miles of new earthen levees
- Approximately 10 miles of new concrete floodwalls
- Approximately 50 gravity drainage structures and multiple new pump stations, providing interior drainage for areas behind the levee/floodwall
- Approximately 30 closure structures located at road and railroad crossings
- Two navigable sector gates, with adjacent vertical lift gates, at Adams and Cow Bayous
- Restoration of approximately 450 acres of coastal marsh and 560 acres of forested wetlands, as mitigation for the project’s unavoidable environmental impacts
The project is to be funded 65% through Federal Funds (U.S. Army Corp of Engineers) and 35% through non-Federal funding (Gulf Coast Protection District).
According to representatives, the project is in the Pre-construction Engineering and Design phase. A projected timeline shows that during this phase, engineers focus on the details needed to protect the city from storm surge while preserving the amenities in Orange such as the boat ramp, the amphitheater, the boardwalk, businesses, homes, etc. Construction would not begin until 2025 or 2026 and would take four years to complete. Currently, Orange has no large-scale coastal storm risk management system.
The full presentation can be found HERE.
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