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BEE BRANCH WATERSHED
FLOOD MITIGATION PROJE T
LA multi - phased, fiscally responsible investment to mitigate
flooding, improve water quality, stimulate investment, and
enhance quality of life within the Bee Branch Watershed,
Imagine waiting out a tornado warning
with your family in the safety of your
basement when, suddenly, heavy rains
produce flash flooding and water starts
pouring into the basement around you.
Do you continue to seek shelter from
the tornado in your basement at the
risk of electrocution, fire or drowning?
Or go upstairs and risk the tornado?
Bee Branch Watershed residents have
faced this difficult decision.
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The Bee Branch Watershed area encompasses
historic neighborhoods offering some of the
community's most affordable workforce housing.
This area is also hit hardest by flash flooding
during significant rain events with much more
than "just a little water in the basement."
Too frequently, it is flooding that inundates water
heaters, furnaces, and electrical boxes, and can cause
fires. It rushes down streets from curb to curb -- stalling
vehicles, stranding motorists, displacing manhole covers,
and damaging pavement, water mains, and stormwater
and sanitary sewers.
O Flood disasters have repeatedly impacted residents and employees of the businesses within the watershed.
Between 1999 and 2011, six Presidential Disasters were issued with total damage estimates of almost $10
million.
O The flooding in the Bee Branch Watershed also has had a major impact on public infrastructure and City
services both within and outside the flood- impacted area. Direct public sector costs include emergency
response activities, street and utility infrastructure repairs, and debris clean -up and removal. The disruption
of essential City services and street closures due to flooding and damage also has a negative economic
impact on the entire community.
0 Based on a 2009 Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) study, 1,313 homes and businesses in the
watershed are prone to flooding, including 10 businesses that employ over 1,400 people and have over
$500 million in annual sales.
! The Bee Branch Watershed Flood Mitigation Construction Project will prevent an estimated $582 million in
damages over the 100 -year design life of the project and create an incentive for individuals and businesses
to reinvest in this vital area of our community.
Mayor Roy D. Buol and the Dubuque City Council have made infrastructure projects a high priority and they are committed
to the Bee Branch Watershed Flood Mitigation Project, a multi- faceted approach to addressing the severe and frequent
flash flooding experienced in the watershed.
The City of Dubuque was recently awarded $98.5 million* from the Iowa Flood Mitigation Board in
the form of state sales tax increment financing spread over the next 20 years. When combined
with other state and federal grants and local donations, the City has received over $127 million
to help fund the project. Additional funding sources are being explored.
*This is the largest amount ever awarded to the City of Dubuque and will enable the City to implement the comprehensive
flood mitigation plan much sooner than previously anticipated at a lower cost to Dubuque citizens and businesses.
Bee Branch Watershed Flood Mitigation Project Phases
Phase
Stat
Cost
Phase 1: Carter Road Detention Basin
Completed in 2003
$1,076,315
Phase 2: West 32nd Street Detention Basin
Completed in 2009
$4,158,589
Phase 3: Historic Millwork District Complete Streets
Completed in 2012
$7,977,311
Phase 4: Lower Bee Branch Creek Restoration
Est. Completion - 2014
$21,274,685
Phase 5: Flood Mitigation Gate Replacement Est. Completion - 2015
$2,099,000
Phase 6: Impervious Surface Reduction (Alley Reconstruction)
Phase 7: Upper Bee Branch Creek Restoration
Est. Completion - 2033
Est. Completion - 2016
$57,420,000
$64,823,636
Phase 8: 22nd St. Storm Sewer Capacity Improvements
Phase 9: Flood Mitigation Maintenance Facility
Est. Completion - 2020
Est. Completion - 2020
$3,380,000
$4,360,000
Phase 10: North End Storm Sewer Capacity Improvements
Est. Completion - 2019
$1,160,000
Phase 11: Water Plant Flood Protection
Est. Completion - 2020
$3,800,000
Phase 12: 17th St. Storm Sewer Capacity Improvements
Est. Completion - 2020
$7,520,000
Total cost, excluding
interest on debt:
$119,049,536
The combined phases will reduce
the volume of stormwater,
slow the rate of stormwater
through the upper watershed,
increase the safe conveyance
of stormwater through the
flood -prone area, and provide
floodwater protection to the
City's water treatment plant on
Hawthorne Street.
Bee Branch Watershed
WHAT IS A WATERSHED?
A watershed is an area of land that drains to
the same place. The Bee Branch Watershed
drains to the Bee Branch Creek. The Bee Branch
Watershed is located entirely within the city
limits of Dubuque and covers approximately
6.5 square miles of Dubuque's total area of 29
square miles. This watershed area includes the
city's most developed areas,
here over 50% of
Dubuque residents either live or work.
DD .E RD
• Bee Branch Watershed
Bee Branch Creek Restoration Area
(Phases 4 & 7)
City Limits
FAQs
What is the Iowa Flood Mitigation Program and what is the source of the $98 million?
Authorized under the Flood Mitigation Bill in 2012, the Flood Mitigation Program is administered by the Iowa Department of Homeland Security on a
competitive basis by a citizen board that began considering applications on November 21, 2013. It is funded by a portion of state sales tax revenues.
The program provides funding to cities and counties to implement long -term flood mitigation projects. Specifically, the funds are an annual sales tax
increment, or a percentage of the increase in state sales tax revenue generated within the city or county.
How will the Bee Branch Watershed Project impact stormwater utility fees?
Dubuque's current stormwater utility fee is $5.60 per month for the average single - family home in Dubuque. (Properties that are exempt from property
taxes, such as non - profits, only pay 50% of the stormwater fee, as do low- income individuals.) Due to the costs associated with maintaining the current
stormwater management system and implementing the Bee Branch Watershed Project overthe next 20 years, the City is projecting annual increases to the
stormwater utility rate to reach $9.00 per month on July 1, 2021. Prior to the state grant program, the rate was projected to rise to $9.00 per month on July
1, 2016, and the improvements would have taken 50 years or more. With the state grant, they will be completed in 20 years with most completed overthe
next six years. The protection will be provided sooner at a lower cost to Dubuque residents and businesses.
What is the difference between the Bee Branch Watershed Project and the Bee Branch Creek Restoration?
The Bee Branch Watershed Project is a 12- phase, 20 -year construction project to address stormwater management issues throughout the entire Bee
Branch Watershed area, which stretches approximately from the Mississippi River west past John F. Kennedy Road, north to the Northwest Arterial, and
south to West Fifth Street. The Bee Branch Creek Restoration is two of the phases of the watershed project and is scheduled to be completed in 2016.
For more information on the Bee Branch Watershed Project, visit
www.cityofdubuque.org/beebranch or call 563.589.4210.
ino Alleys scheduled for reconstruction
Phase 6, "Impervious Surface Reduction," will involve
the reconstruction of 240 alleys within the watershed.
These alleys will be converted to pervious surfaces
(pavers) to allow stormwater to filter back into the
ground instead of creating run -off to surrounding
properties and downstream in the watershed.
Approximately 70 alleys will be completed in the first
three years of the project, with the remainder completed
over the next 17 years. (Abutting property owners will
be assessed for a portion of these costs. The average
paving assessment portion is estimated to be $800 per
residential property. These assessments can be paid over
15 years at 3% interest. Financial assistance is available
for income - qualified, owner - occupied properties.)
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