Forum Editorial: This is a big deal for the diversion, thanks to Sens. Hoeven and Klobuchar – InForum

The push for a flood solution that eliminates the need for the mad rush to build sandbag walls and earthen levees in Fargo-Moorhead has continued since water receded from the record flooding of 2009 Red River.

It has been an exhausting effort, filled with lawsuits, administrative challenges and a major overhaul of the $3.2 billion diversion scheme to gain Minnesota regulatory approval.

The saga has been so long and convoluted that the average person can be forgiven for tuning out, despite the enormous significance of the project.

But it has been clear for months now that the diversion project will be built, thanks to a series of favorable developments, and is on track to begin protecting against extreme flooding by the spring of 2027.

The last good news is a doozy: Meaning. John Hoeven, RN.D., and Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., announced last week that they had secured $437 million to complete the federal portion of the project, fulfilling the $750 million federal commitment. dollars.

This is a huge accomplishment from the two senators, who worked well together to move the bill forward, which has now won federal approval for 16 acts of Congress, nine bills authorizing aspects of the bill. and seven supply bills.

The lump sum commitment for the remaining federal share is the rare product of bipartisanship. It was made possible by the bipartisan infrastructure bill and through the consistent and determined efforts of neighbors Hoeven and Klobuchar, who walked across the aisle to collaborate on a variety of legislation.

The senators and their local allies were so persistent in pushing their congressional colleagues and administration officials that Klobuchar joked that they had approved the balance of the federal payout so that the two senators would walk away.

Their completion means that the federal part of the project – the construction of a 20-mile earth embankment and three massive, enclosed control structures to regulate the discharge of floodwaters downstream on the Red River – can proceed without the normal annual credits.

The commitment from the Biden administration’s budget director removes any remaining uncertainty about federal funding for the project, meaning the Army Corps of Engineers can move forward “full steam,” eventually finding efficiencies that will allow the project to be completed a little earlier.

The rest of the funding comes from $1.1 billion in special sales taxes in Fargo and Cass counties and $870 million from the state of North Dakota.

There is a friendly rivalry between the federal and local branches of the project. A steak dinner goes up on which finishes first: the Corps or the consortium of companies called the Red River Valley Alliance that is building the billion-dollar floodway in partnership with the Metro Flood Diversion Authority.

Dirt will fly later this year as work continues on two control structures, the Bypass Entrance, now 80% complete, and the Wild Rice Control Structure, 50% complete. Work will also begin on the diversion channel and the larger control structure, to regulate the passage of water from the Red River through the channel.

“It’s a really big day for anyone who loves economic development,” said Shannon Full, President and CEO of the Fargo Moorhead West Fargo Chamber of Commerce during a roundtable last week on the triumph of funding.

Construction will provide 1,100 direct jobs and additional indirect jobs through payroll and material purchases, as well as spending by workers and their families. In the long term, it will provide the flood protection insurance that residents and businesses have sought for decades.

The federal commitment of $437 million is significant for the Fargo-Metro region and surrounding communities. Congratulations and thanks to Hoeven and Klobuchar for making it.

Forum editorials represent the views of Forum management and the Editorial Board.