MONTEVIDEO -- City Council members in Montevideo are hoping the city can repair the picturesque rock walls and bridges that are so integral to the appearance of Lagoon Park.
Council members approved action Monday to repair the bridges, but tabled work on the walls for now, according to City Manager Steve Jones.
By their action, council members authorized Short, Elliot and Hendrickson to develop specifications for repairing the bridges.
Initial estimates indicate that it will cost $71,347 to repair the north and south bridges.
The city is hopeful of obtaining Federal Emergency Management Agency funding toward the project, but as much as $27,889 could be the city's costs, based on the initial estimates.
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The estimates show that costs to repair the walls could total $33,214, with FEMA funds available for only about $9,639 of the total.
Four major floods in the last 13 years have damaged the bridges and decorative rock riprap walls in the park. The structures were built by the Works Progress Administration.
Jones said the engineers will look at ways to protect the bridges from further flood damage.
It is far more difficult to protect the walls, he said. They are entirely submerged during flood events and are subject to the full velocity of the flood waters.
The city is also working with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources on the possibility of removing or modifying the dam on the Chippewa River.
The DNR will be looking at options for its removal or modification, and how that will affect the upstream reservoir.
