Little Calumet River levee repairs continue

MUNSTER | As the deadline for completion of the Little Calumet River levee project draws near, the Little Calumet River Basin Development Commission continues to dole out dwindling funds for long-deferred maintenance in older portions of the levee system.

Contractors recently uncovered three culverts along Chase Street in Gary that were buried under asphalt and concrete from a collapsed roadway. Riprap was installed along the river and a small boat ramp was built, Executive Director Dan Repay said during Wednesday's monthly commission meeting at Munster Town Hall.

The ramp can be used by recreational canoeists or kayakers who want to travel the river from Chase Street west to Lyman Avenue in Hammond. It also will give crews access to the river to remove blockages and beaver dams.

Another major culvert that provides drainage for Gary and Lake Station was recently exposed near Martin Luther King Drive. The project was a joint effort between the commission, NIPSCO, the Indiana Department of Transportation and the two municipalities.

This culvert runs under Interstate 65 and also helps drain both I-65 and I-80/94. It was completely submerged and unreachable without that team effort, Repay said. Beavers had built dams that kept the culvert flooded.

"I especially want to thank INDOT for sending a full crew out to block one lane of I-94 while we worked," Repay said. "We were right along the side of the road, and it was scary."

Commissioner Ron McAhron offered an update on a request to the Federal Emergency Management Agency to remove areas along the river in Hammond and Munster from the flood plain. The change would allow residents and businesses to pay less for their flood insurance premiums.

FEMA has sent a letter to the commission requesting additional information and action before the agency will consider the request. Requirements the commission must fulfill include naming a person in each community along the river who is responsible for flood protection implementation; providing FEMA with information on the drainage provisions in the levee system plan; confirming the commission isn't involved in any litigation; and submitting a "more robust" report of the levee project and its completion date.

"This is not heavy lifting," McAhron said.

FEMA is modernizing its maps, which will require approval from all communities along the river. Usually it takes a year for FEMA to complete the mapping process, McAhron said.

"I think we can beat that year that it takes for their physical map revision," he said.

In other business, the Porter County Chapter of the Izaak Walton League of America asked the commission to implement wetland mitigation in the Hobart marsh area near I-65. League member Sandy O'Brien spoke during the public portion of the meeting to make the formal request.

A news release O'Brien distributed said the marsh is part of a 1,000-acre natural area just south of the Little Calumet River. The Porter County chapter of the Izaak Walton League has been involved with the planning and design of the flood control project since the commission was formed in the 1970s, the release said.

McAhron said the Indiana Department of Natural Resources extended the commission's deadline for the project from Sept. 29, 2012, to December 2014.

"The commission had to buy that land back in 2005 for $2.5 million, which was above market value," McAhron told O'Brien. "That was $2.5 million that wasn't spent on building levees."