Loebsack says Speaker Pelosi on board with him on Cedar Rapids flood protection for both sides of the river

CEDAR RAPIDS - Congressman Dave Loebsack, D-Mount Vernon, reports that Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House of Representatives, has agreed to support his push for a flood-protection system in Cedar Rapids that protects both sides of the Cedar River through the city.

“I am thankful that I have been able to secure a commitment from Speaker Pelosi to help move forward a flood-protection plan that will protect our families, businesses and homes,” Loebsack said in a statement late Thursday evening.

His office released the statement in the midst of House votes on appropriations to fund recoveries from recent natural disasters, including the 2008 flood in Iowa.

Loebsack acknowledged that such a commitment for a Cedar Rapids flood-protection from Pelosi now is one step in many to come as the city of Cedar Rapids pushes to win Congressional funding for a new flood-protection system.

The city's hope is that Congress will address flood protection at the start of 2011, and the city already is aware that it will not get the flood-protection system it wants without some heavy lifting from Congress.

The city's own “preferred plan” for flood protection calls a system of levees and floodwalls that protect the city on both sides of the river against a repeat of the city's historic June 2008 flood. The Army Corps of Engineers, which is completing a feasibility study for a flood-protection system, is recommending one that provides less protection and one that provides no protection on the west side of the Cedar River in Cedar Rapids. The Corps is bound by a key federal rule that says the Corps can only recommend a system that does not cost more to build than the value of property it protects. The city's preferred plan doesn't meet that standard.

In his statement Thursday evening, Loebsack quoted Speaker Pelosi's commitment to him on the Cedar Rapids plan: “I understand that the City has drafted a plan that they believe is the best option to achieve such protection. As we heard from businesses and homeowners, it is of the highest importance for the economic vitality and future of Cedar Rapids that a proper flood protection plan be implemented with protection for both sides of the river. I stand ready to assist you in moving such a plan forward.”