Cedar Valley-Rompot neighborhood hit hard, but 'still wonderful' to residents

In 1941, at age 4, Delores Korsmo and her family moved to the Cedar Valley-Rompot neighborhood in Cedar Rapids and fell in love.

The area, which maintains its privacy from the bustling commerce of Cedar Rapids, features towering trees, quaint homes and sprawling green space along the scenic Cedar River. In its prime, Korsmo said, everyone knew each other. Many people were related – or at least felt that way.

While chatting with friends on a neighbor's porch last month, Korsmo, now 76, said she left the community in 1967 before finding her way back to Rompot Street in 2007.

Her return came a year before the most devastating flood in city history, but Korsmo said she never considered that a risk for the area she had come to know so well.

'It never seemed possible,' she said. 'I grew up in this neighborhood, and we had no problems with it ever flooding.'

On June 11, 2008, the impossible happened. But even with flood waters rising and crest predictions topping historic highs, Korsmo said she felt safe in her home.

'It was not going to happen to us,' she said. 'My husband had Alzheimer's, and we were going to stick it out.'

A knock on her door changed that. Authorities told Korsmo that she and her husband had to leave, so she grabbed two pillows, two blankets and a change of clothes before rushing out. But even as neighbors packed up moving vans, Korsmo said she maintained confidence in her home's safety.

'We were laughing at the ones who were packing up,' said Korsmo's friend and neighbor Jolene Rohret, 70, who has lived in the neighborhood since 1976. 'Now we feel like the people with Noah.'

In the end, Korsmo's home received 37 inches of water and was completely destroyed. Plenty of homes in her neighborhood had to be torn down, but Korsmo – insistent on staying, in part, for her husband's sake – stripped the inside up to the ceiling and endured a massive renovation, with the help of federal aid.

'I didn't want to leave,' Korsmo said. 'It's such a wonderful neighborhood.'

According to the Neighborhood Development Corporation of Cedar Rapids, every one of the more than 50 homes in the Rompot-Cedar Valley neighborhood was damaged by the 2008 floodwaters, which reached the rooflines on many houses.

The city listed about 10 percent of the homes in the neighborhood as ones they'd like to buy as part of its Voluntary Property Acquisition Program, according to the Neighborhood Development Corporation. Unfortunately, the homes are not eligible to be included in the federal program that supports the acquisitions.

'This leaves few existing options for rebuilding or buyouts,' according to the neighborhood group. 'At an average value of $80,000, it is likely that even if buyouts occurred, most residents would not be able to find comparable housing in the Cedar Rapids area.'

Because of the chance of future flooding, the group notes little to no interest among private developers in investing in the Rompot area. Likewise, the city also has few options to get funding for infrastructure repairs and other civic services.

'For the land where rebuilding is feasible, flood insurance rates will be so high as to be prohibitive,' according to the group.

Korsmo said the flood washed away a lot of the community's memories – historic homes and a small grocery store. And still, Korsmo and Rohret agree, the neighbors who could return did, and their attitude is the same.

'It's still wonderful,' Korsmo said. 'There are not very many who didn't want to come back.'

Even though little has been done to mitigate future flooding in the neighborhood, it was unaffected by this season's flooding. And the community has seen some improvements since the 2008 flood, including a new park and splash pad.

Some residents have complained that they've been forgotten by the city in its renovation efforts, but Korsmo and Rohret said they're thankful for what has been done.

'I can't imagine anyone complaining,' Rohret said.

She called efforts by FEMA, the Red Cross, the Salvation Army and smaller volunteer groups 'awesome.' And, Rohret said, some parts of the neighborhood needed renovating when the flood arrived.

'I think a lot of these places are improved,' she said.