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Onalaska reviews La Crosse County hazard mitigation plan; staff urged to add ice storms, flooding and rail risks
Summary
The city reviewed a draft La Crosse County Hazard Mitigation Plan prepared by the Mississippi River Regional Planning Commission. Presenter Jack Sembrowski said joining the plan preserves FEMA grant eligibility; board members urged adding ice storms, local flooding areas, wildfire and railroad risks and to consult schools on active‑shooter preparedness.
Onalaska officials reviewed a draft La Crosse County Hazard Mitigation Plan on Tuesday and were asked to flag local risks and project needs so the city can remain eligible for FEMA mitigation grants.
Jack Sembrowski of the Mississippi River Regional Planning Commission told the Board the county plan lists and ranks top hazards and that communities participating in the plan can apply for Hazard Mitigation Grant Program funds if a mitigation project appears in the finalized document. “If you have a mitigation project that is in the plan, you become eligible to apply for those grants,” Sembrowski said.
Sembrowski said the draft identifies vulnerable populations — residents 65 and older, low‑income or isolated households, people in flood‑prone areas and mobile home parks — and asked staff to check a packet that lists eight mobile home parks. He also proposed potential projects such as tornado/high‑wind shelters and NOAA all‑hazard radios as examples other communities include.
Board members pressed for additions and local detail. Jared Holter, director of public works, said an ice storm should be ranked among the top three hazards because a heavy ice event would be regionwide and strain mutual‑aid resources. “That is probably one of the biggest threats because it would be citywide,” Holter said. Sembrowski agreed that flooding and wildfire can be added to the local entries and noted the plan team will meet with school districts to gather more information after the county survey identified active‑shooter incidents as a concern.
Alder Larry Jurasic asked that railroad and critical transportation corridors be reflected in the plan after a recent rail accident closed portions of the community; Sembrowski said transportation lifelines are already noted and he will add the local railroad concerns to the Onalaska write‑up. Board members also discussed whether tornado shelters sited on private mobile‑home property could be eligible for grants; Sembrowski said private owners have participated in other communities but cost sharing and property ownership raise practical questions.
Sembrowski said staff will update the three‑page Onalaska write‑up, remove projects already completed, add any missing features to the map layer (including mobile home parks) and return the updated document to La Crosse County. The county will approve the consolidated plan and then the Board will be asked to adopt it by resolution.
Next steps: staff will circulate revised packet pages and maps for review, consult police and fire as part of the update, and bring a final recommendation and an adoption resolution back to the Board and County for formal approval.
