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<br />Once the communi ty is aware of the hazard, public education can be <br />used to transform concern into action. Evacuation plans should be posted <br />and practiced. When the warning sounds, people will knOw why and what <br />action to take. Public education is the key to saving lives in a flash <br />flood situation as the short lead time requires quick, positive action. <br /> <br />7. Historic Preservation: St. Marys, Ontario, Canada <br /> <br />The town of St. Marys is located in southwestern Ontario at the <br />junction of the North Thames River and Trout Creek. Incorporated in 1855, <br />it is in many ways similar to Manitou Springs. It contains significant <br />historical architecture, and the majority of the downtown business <br />district is located in the floodplain. St. Marys' 1984 population was <br />approximately 4700. and tourJ.sm is the staple of ,the town's econcrny <br />(Mitchell, 1984). <br /> <br />The agency which is responsible for flood control in St. Marys is the <br />Upper Thames Ri ver Conservation Authori ty (lTfRCA). In many communi ties <br />within its district, the Authority advocates acquisition of riverfront <br />land, and consequent demolition of any bulldings on that land, to provide <br />a greenway. However, in St. Marys, the UTRCA has responded to the <br />historic nature of buildings in the floodplain and the town council's <br />opposition to acquisition by adopting a different strategy utilizing <br />floodwalls and floodproofing (Mitchell, 1984). <br /> <br />In 1982, the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Ministry of <br />Municipal Affairs and Housing provided that in existing commercial, <br />retail, industrial, or residential developments located in floodplain <br />areas, "rehabilitation, redevelopment or replacement of structures in such <br />areas are seen as necessary to continued community viability and major <br />relocations are not considered feasible." The Upper Thames River <br />Conservation Authori ty' s floodplain management strategy in St. Marys is <br />consistent with this approach and gives historic preservation a greater <br />priority than flood damage reduction. In doing so, "the community has <br />accepted a higher risk of flood damages" (Mitchell, 1984). <br /> <br />8. Sense of Future Communi ty Vision: Estes Park, Colorado <br /> <br />Estes Park is similar to Manitou Springs in that its economy is based <br />primarily on summer tourism. Although the year-round population of <br />Manitou Springs is greater, Estes Park receives more visitors and <br />generates more sales tax dollars (Duea, 1982). During the summer of 1984, <br />a quarter of a million people visited Estes Park's Chamber of <br />Commerce/V isi tor Center (Larry Stumpp, 1985), while only 20,000 cars were <br />estimated to have visited the Manitou Springs Chamber of Commerce and <br />Information Trailer on Highway 24 (Rayer, 1985). Nevertheless, these two <br />cities share similar histories and were, until the 1950's, the two major <br />tourist resort destinations in Colorado. <br /> <br />On July 15, 1982, Lawn Lake Dam failed, and water rushed down the <br />Roaring and Fall Rivers and into Estes Park, inundating three-fourths of <br />the downtown business district and causing substantial damage and <br />destruction in many other areas. The recurrence interval of the flood has <br /> <br />-46- <br />