Broken Bow council approves pursuit of $250,000 floodplain mitigation grant with 25% local match

The Broken Bow City Council on April 10 approved a resolution authorizing city staff to pursue a $250,000 Hazard Mitigation Grant from the State of Nebraska and to commit a required 25% local match of $62,500.

Deputy Clerk Jacob Holcomb told the council the funding would be used to “explore projects in the community and do a cost benefit analysis to determine what would be the most beneficial projects,” with the stated goal of removing properties from the floodplain so homeowners and businesses can avoid additional flood insurance costs. Administrator Schmidt said the city must formally commit the 25% match for the grant process to proceed and asked the council for official approval.

Councilmember Travis Kleeb moved approval of Resolution 2025-04; Joe Wamsley seconded. Roll call vote recorded Russ Smith, Travis Kleeb and Joe Wamsley voting aye; there were no nays and Councilmember Paul Holland was absent. The motion carried.

The resolution directs the city’s Floodplain Administrator(s) to pursue the grant and to proceed with the scoping project if the grant application is successful. Deputy Clerk Holcomb described the scoping work as a cost-benefit analysis and project exploration; the council did not specify project-level details or sites during the meeting.

Next steps identified in the meeting record include staff continuing the grant application and, if awarded, using the local match to support the scoping work that could inform future project proposals to reduce the number of properties within the federally defined floodplain.

The City of Broken Bow meeting packet and formal resolution number are recorded as Resolution 2025-04.