The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Levees near completion
Esty, Carbone join Army Corps engineers for inspection of flood-protection system
TORRINGTON — More than six decades after the Flood of ‘55, the city is on course to have the Naugatuck River officially considered as an asset, not a threat, as it puts the final touches on restoring the levee system in the city.
U.S. Rep. Elizabeth Esty, D-Connecticut, Mayor Elinor Carbone, and Col. Bill Conde, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers district commander for New England, took a walk along the river Tuesday to discuss the status of the city’s efforts and future possibilities for the waterway.
The corps began work on the city’s flood-protection system after the flood of 1955, Esty said.
Over time, that levee system has been worn down by the river and the elements, Conde and Esty said. Regulations have changed, and the maintenance has not always been done, Conde said.
“Just over the course of the years, when you have infrastructure that’s 60, 70 years old, it needs routine maintenance,” said Conde.
Mike Bachand, levee safety program manager with the Army Corps of Engineers, said Torrington has made progress by addressing deficiencies in the levee system for the past four years.
Now, piping and shoaling along the system need to be evaluated and in-
spected before the system can be deemed acceptable and safe, Bachand said.
“The Corps has been really working with the city here for quite some time on the levees, on vegetation,” said Esty. “This is in part a check-up, and seems we’re pretty close.”
Carbone said the city welcomes the relationship with the Army Corps of Engineers as it works to “recapture” the river through development, and turn deficiencies in the levee system into positives.
“We’re awfully proud to show off our river, and grateful for the work that they’ve done,” said Carbone.
Once the system is deemed acceptable, the city would become eligible to receive federal funding if the levees are damaged through another flood, according to Conde. Esty said it would also open opportunities for redevelopment, as the city would be assured of the river’s safety.
“That’s really what all of this is designed (to do) — make sure it’s safe, make sure that if something goes wrong, the federal government will be there to support the city’s efforts, and then the positive part is the economic development opportunities,” said Esty. “It’s down to the final details.”
Public Works Director Jerry Rollett said the city sets aside approximately $50,000 per year to maintain the system, with about half of that going for mowing. Paul Kundzins, deputy city engineer, said that, weather permitting, the city will be finished considering the piping by Christmas and submit reports to the Army Corps of the Engineers early in 2018.
The Army Corps of Engineers inspects the system each year and will continue to do so in the future, Banchand said.
Carbone said completing work on the levees would represent a new era in the city’s relationship with the river.
“For far too long, we’ve been turning our back on this river and ignoring it. The fact that all eyes are on this, from the federal government, from the state, and locally, I feel this is a new chapter, a beginning,” said Carbone. “It’s all about safety, it’s all about flood control, it’s about setting the stage to redevelop the properties that run right along the river.”