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Zephyrhills Won't Pursue Grant to Fix Downtown Flooding

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By LAURA KINSLER | The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 23, 2008

ZEPHYRHILLS - Mayor Cliff McDuffie called it a "no-brainer."

Yes, the city could get its Community Development Block Grant application in by the Sept. 29 deadline. Yes, it could probably score high enough to win the $750,000 grant to relieve downtown flooding well enough for the fire department to move back into its Sixth Street station.

But the proposed fix – adding vertical concrete walls to the drainage pond across from City Hall – would cost $1.3 million. The project would leave the city on the hook for $550,000, plus another $500,000 to repair and renovate the fire station.

Engineer Jeff Middlebrook told the City Council Monday night it could achieve virtually the same drainage improvements for $150,000. Moreover, the city could begin construction in as few as four months by foregoing the grant process altogether.

The council voted unanimously not to pursue the grant and to proceed with design for station improvements. City Manager Steve Spina has recommended gutting and remodeling the station, replacing the roof, and purchasing an inflatable rubber dam to surround the station.

The $25,000 rubber baffle could be quickly inflated with water to create a barrier around the station when the nearby pond overflows, Spina said.

Firefighters have been living and working out of the World War II Barracks Museum at the municipal airport since a Jan. 23 storm flooded the downtown station.

Reporter Laura Kinsler can be reached at (813) 865-4844 or lkinsler@tampatrib.com.

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