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<br />Westemport Flood Mitigation Project <br /> <br />In Septenilier 1996, a major flood event resulting from Hurricane Fran, <br />devastated many of the homes located along Georges Creek in the Town of <br />Westernport, Maryland. Following Immediate clean-up efforts, a team led <br />by engineers from Allegany County, Maryland, Maryland State Highway <br />Administration (SHA), and USDA Natural Resources Conservation <br />Services (NRCS) began working with the Town to develop, secure funding, <br />design and construct the Westernport Flood Mitigation Project. The $2.5 <br />million project involved the purchase and removal of 27 homes from the <br />floodplain, construction of streambank retaining walls to protect a major <br />highway, repair and relocation of sanitary sewers, and restoration of the <br />stream and riparian areas for a one-half mile section of Georges Creek. <br /> <br />The Town than initiated a second phase in their Flood Recovery Program- <br />a community planning effort to identify open space uses and activities for <br />the buyout area. At the Town's request, the Rivers, Trails, and Conservation <br />Assistance Program (RTCA) of the National Park Service joined the <br />planning team to assist in the coordination, development, and <br />Implementation of a Floodplain Park Concept Plan. A community-based <br />planning approach was used that included community workshops, citizen <br />surveys, interest group meetings, outreach through the local media, and <br />the development of a local steering committee to oversee plan <br />development. <br /> <br />The Westernport project demonstrates the Importance of interagency <br />cooperation and grassroots community involvement in developing long <br />term solutions to flooding problems. By integrating flood mitigation, <br />stream restoration, infrastructure development, and park planning, <br />Westernport was able to Improve stream health, reduce the cost of future <br />flooding, and increase opportunities for recreation and education. Most <br />in1portantly, through an extraordinary level of cooperation between local, <br />state, and federal agencies, residents of Georges Creek were able to <br />permenantly move out of harm's way. <br /> <br />BACKGROUND <br /> <br />On September 6, 1996, Hurricane Fran deposited 7 inches of rain on the <br />Georges Creek watershed in Allegany County, Maryland, resulting in <br />devastating floods that literally ripped apart many homes located in the <br />steeply sloped mountain valley. Particularly hard hit was the the Town of <br />Westernport, located at the confluence of Georges Creek and the Potomac <br />River. Over 10 homes along Front Street and Main Street Extended were <br />rendered structurally unsound, with a dozen more seriously flooded. In <br />addition, the embankment of Maryland Route 36 was seriously eroded, <br />and sections of the sanitary sewer were washed away or plugged with <br />debris. <br /> <br />Allegany County was subsequently declared a Federal Disaster Area, the <br />third of three declarations in less than 12 months. Although the declaration <br />brought needed financial assistance from FEMA and NRCS to remove <br />debris from the stream, there were no readily available funds to assist those <br />homeowners who wished to relocate permanently out of the floodplain. <br />Being a small town in an economically depressed area, Westernport had no <br />financial resources to address this problem. <br />