Staff says engineers’ estimates differ; berm for flood protection could require about $1 million

Staff presented differing engineering estimates for a proposed project and said the gap leaves a funding need for a flood-protection berm. The staff member said one estimate from their engineer was $2,900,000 while a figure from "Obishar's office" was $1,900,000. "So that looks like we need 1000000 to do the berm," the staff member said.

The Chair and staff discussed what the berm would protect and whether it would affect insurance: staff said the berm would protect a lift station and potentially other infrastructure but that it most likely would not change insurance premiums because it would not be built to Army Corps of Engineers standards. The Chair recommended additional exploratory conversations to clarify project benefits against its roughly multi‑million dollar cost.

Why it matters: the difference between engineering estimates affects the size of any local match or subsidy and whether the project is financially feasible; staff identified both the risk to local infrastructure and limits to insurance benefits, raising implementation questions that will require follow-up.