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Board approves emergency Willow Springs culvert repair; FEMA funding limits upgrades
Summary
Tuolumne County supervisors approved immediate replacement-in-kind for a failed culvert on the single access into Willow Springs and directed staff to pursue an Active Transportation grant for pedestrian improvements; the repair will restore two 12‑foot lanes with two‑foot shoulders and await FEMA approval.
The Tuolumne County Board of Supervisors voted to authorize staff to proceed with an emergency replacement‑in‑kind of the failed Willow Springs culvert damaged in 2023 storms, Public Works Director Scott Heim said Monday.
Heim told the board the project was submitted to FEMA as a storm damage project and FEMA’s program allows only replacement‑in‑kind with minor upgrades to local standards. The county’s planned repair will restore two 12‑foot travel lanes with two‑foot shoulders on each side, add a concrete headwall upstream and riprap in the channel bottom, and generally replicate the road cross‑section to match local standards. Heim said the county immediately had a contractor on site when the failure was discovered and that FEMA approval remains pending; the department will proceed consistent with FEMA rules and seek reimbursement where eligible.
Supervisor Campbell and other board members pressed staff about pedestrian access and whether the project could include a wider, walkable shoulder for children and bicyclists. Heim confirmed FEMA funds do not permit adding a sidewalk as part of the emergency replacement but said the county has applied for an Active Transportation Program grant that would include the Willow Springs segment and could fund a pedestrian path or sidewalk from Soulsbyville Road to the clubhouse if the grant is awarded (grant deadline is next month). Engineering would follow award decisions later this year.
The board approved the staff recommendation to proceed with the emergency repair and to pursue the grant; the motion passed unanimously.
Why it matters: Willow Springs is a one‑way‑in/one‑way‑out community where the culvert serves as a critical access route. Replacing the failed structure conserves safety and connectivity while the county seeks additional funding for pedestrian improvements.
