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Story County adopts Gold Canyon Area Drainage Master Plan to target flood risks
Summary
The board unanimously adopted the Gold Canyon Area Drainage Master Plan after a presentation from consultant J. Fuller and Carson Water Subconservancy District partners; Story County priorities include two project areas (south of the railroad crossing and Devil's Gate) with estimated construction and 20‑year operations costs and potential FEMA and NDOT funding sources.
The Story County Board of Commissioners unanimously adopted the Gold Canyon Area Drainage Master Plan on June 16 after a technical presentation from Mike Kellogg of J. Fuller and collaboration acknowledgement from the Carson Water Subconservancy District.
Kellogg said the project re‑modeled the Gold Canyon watershed using higher‑resolution mapping and hydraulic models, incorporated resident flood experience and photographic evidence collected at public meetings, and identified sediment transport and flood‑risk areas. The study initially flagged 10 high‑risk zones, narrowed to six in coordination with Story and Lyon counties, and ultimately prioritized nine potential projects down to three concept designs; two projects directly concern Story County.
For Story County the team prioritized a diversion system south of the railroad crossing to reduce flooding of homes east of the highway, and improvements to undersized culverts at Devil's Gate to reduce sediment and roadway impassability. Kellogg said the study includes full construction cost estimates, 20‑year operations and maintenance projections, and net present value calculations, and identified FEMA grant programs and NDOT cost‑share as potential funding paths.
Kathy Canfield noted the counties did not fund the technical study directly; Carson Water Subconservancy District and grant resources supported the work and the county contributed staff time. "We narrowed it down to two project areas for Story County," Kellogg said, "and developed mitigation alternatives to divert floodwater and improve roadside channels."
The board directed staff to consider the adopted plan when programming capital improvements and to coordinate permitting and grant pursuit with NDOT and partnering agencies.
What it means: The plan gives Story County engineered, project‑level options to reduce flood risk in the Gold Canyon watershed and provides a funding and implementation framework that will be used to seek grants and to integrate projects into capital schedules.
Next steps: Staff will evaluate incorporation of the prioritized projects into the county's capital improvement program, pursue grant opportunities such as FEMA mitigation programs, and coordinate with NDOT for cost‑share where projects intersect state right‑of‑way.
