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City of Sterling,Colorado <br /> Pawnee Creek Flood Hazard Mitigation <br /> Feasibility Study <br /> I. INTRODUCTION <br /> The City of Sterling, Colorado, is bordered by Sand Creek and Pioneer Ditch to the north <br /> and west, the South Platte River to the east, and Pawnee Creek to the south. Each of <br /> these drainage ways provides a source of flooding for the City during large storm event. <br /> Three major.floods and at least three other minor floods have impacted the City in the last <br /> 65 years. Through previous studies, improvements to the Pawnee Creek flood plain <br /> would create the greatest benefit to the City and portions of the county. <br /> The objective of this project is to develop a Flood Hazard Mitigation Feasibility Study for <br /> Pawnee Creek and to provide a report to be included with the Colorado Water <br /> Conservation Board (CWCB) loan application. This report is formatted to meet the <br /> criteria outlined by the CWCB for their Water Project Construction Loan Program. <br /> II. PROJECT SPONSOR <br /> The City of Sterling is the county seat for Logan County. The City is located <br /> approximately 125 miles northeast of Denver, and 126 miles southeast of Cheyenne, <br /> Wyoming. A general location map of the Logan County/Sterling area is shown on Figure <br /> 1. Sterling is the largest community in Logan County, having a population of about <br /> 11,000 (1995 estimate). The total population within Logan County is about 19,000 (1995 <br /> estimate). The City operates with sources of revenue from taxes, licenses and permitting, <br /> intergovernmental, charges for services, and fines. Approximately 75% of the City's <br /> total revenue comes from taxes of which approximately 70% of the tax revenue comes <br /> from sales tax. <br /> The climate of Sterling is primarily affected by northwestern winds. The average annual <br /> precipitation is 19 inches and the average annual snowfall is 39.4 inches. The mean <br /> annual temperature is 48.6° F., and the average annual number of clear days is 299. The <br /> coldest month is January with a mean temperature of 38.8° F. and the warmest month is <br /> July with an average temperature of 89.0° F. The topography of the City consists of high <br /> rolling plains, with the predominate feature being the South Platte River which flows <br /> through the City and County from the south to the north. The South Platte River <br /> floodplain is broad and relatively flat. Sterling is bisected from southwest to northeast by <br /> State Highway 6 and a parallel railroad track operated jointly by BNRR/UPRR. <br /> Pawnee Creek is a left bank tributary to the South Platte River and drains an area of about <br /> 645 square miles. The upper portions of the basin are located in Weld County, and the <br /> lower portion, along with the confluence with the South Platte River are located in Logan <br /> County. The mouth of the creek is located about 5 miles southwest of Sterling and about <br /> 1 mile northeast of Town of Atwood in Logan County. The watershed elevation ranges <br /> 1 <br />