DUTCHTOWN SEEKS FINAL FLOOD SOLUTION

JACKSON -- Dutchtown residents, the Cape Girardeau County Commission and the Army Corps of Engineers all agree: A permanent solution to flooding at Dutchtown is needed.

But what is the best solution?

A group of Dutchtown residents told the County Commission Monday they want a permanent levee to protect their homes and businesses.

"We found out it's not the 100-year flood we thought it would be," Bob Moss of Dutchtown said of the floods of 1993 and again this year. "It is a recurrent problem, and we need a permanent levee."

Both years a temporary gravel and sandbag levee has been constructed in the middle of Highway 74 at Dutchtown. This year the levee extended about 2,000 feet east of the Highways 74-25 intersection and cost about $45,000.

Another option for Dutchtown residents is a buyout through the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Gerald Jones, presiding commissioner, said anyone in the county interested in a buyout should send a letter to the County Commission as soon as possible. Sending the letter opens the door for a buyout, he explained. A person could turn down the offer if, for example, a levee is built.

At a meeting a week ago Dutchtown residents talked about options. Moss said most people supported a permanent levee. A few would rather let the federal government buy them out and escape future floods.

Clarence Carnell of Dutchtown said he and other residents want to know if a levee is a possibility.

"Today was a very positive first step," Jones said. "But it's a long way from being built."

The County Commission and Dutchtown residents will send a letter this week asking for help from the Corps of Engineers in determining if a levee is a possibility.

Kenneth Bright, a planner with the Corps, said money is available to look at problems caused by Mississippi River flooding. Any feasibility study would determine if a levee would prevent flooding at Dutchtown, where it might be located and how high it would need to be, and would provide a preliminary design. Bright said the cost of the study could be borne by the federal government with money already appropriated for flood-control projects.

Moss said Dutchtown first flooded in 1973, again in 1983, and in 1993, when a temporary levee was built. The area almost flooded in 1994 when the river rose above flood stage, and this year a temporary levee was built again.

"It makes sense to haul dirt one time rather than hauling gravel and sand lots of time," Jones said.

He said the county has also requested that the Missouri Highways and Transportation Department raise a low spot on Highway 74 near Potashnick Construction Inc. The spot goes under water when the Mississippi River reaches 39 feet on the Cape Girardeau gauge. The rest of the road stays dry until it reaches 44 feet.