Ventura County Public Works Agency Seeks Community Input for Upcoming Flood Protection Project

VENTURA, Calif. - July 9, 2021 - PRLog -- Ventura County Public Works Agency  Watershed Protection (VCPWA-WP) is soliciting input from the community regarding the scope and content of the Santa Clara River Levee Improvements Upstream of Highway 101 (SCR-1) Project Environmental Impact Report (EIR).

The project would consist of improvements to the existing SCR-1 levee to meet Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) levee certification criteria. The improvements would provide adequate flood protection to structures and roadways while increasing the level of protection to residents and businesses in the northern portion of the City of Oxnard that is located within the one percent annual chance flood zone.

Project Objectives Include:

• Construct new as well as upgrade and maintain existing SCR-1 structures to provide continuous, cost-effective flood protection to properties in the City of Oxnard that would otherwise require flood insurance under the National Flood Insurance Program.
• Achieve compliance with FEMA levee certification requirements through the implementation of structural improvements to the SCR-1 levee system.
• Design flood protection structures that accommodate a future bikeway in support of the City of Oxnard Santa Clara River Trail Master Plan
• Incorporate watershed health public education features, in coordination with the Rio School District and other interested parties, if deemed feasible and funding becomes available

VCPWA-WP invites the community and other interested persons and organizations to submit comments on the scope and content of the environmental information to be included in the EIR. Please focus scoping comments on the issues to be considered, including environmental concerns, feasible ways in which impacts may be minimized (mitigation measures), and potential alternatives to the proposed Project that meet the primary flood protection objective.

Comments and feedback may be submitted via mail addressed to Ventura County Public Works Agency - Watershed Protection, Attn: SCR-1 Project, 800 S. Victoria Ave., #1600, Ventura, CA 93009 or via e-mail at SCR1info@ventura.org, no later than July 27, 2021

For current project information, please refer to the SCR-1 Project website page https://www.vcpublicworks.org/wp/santa-clara-river/santaclarariverlevee/