ORANGE COUNTY PERSPECTIVE : Not Exactly a Flood of Details

The $1.4-billion project to control flooding of the Santa Ana River has had everybody playing a frustrating waiting game.

Orange County had been on hold for more than a decade while Congress plodded ahead with funding. There may be a drought now, but the project is important because it’s aimed at avoiding what experts say would be a devastating flood in the future. It’s good that work will begin this summer, now that Congress has finally appropriated $20 million for preliminary work.

Also waiting are about 300 property owners near Corona in Riverside County whose land might be below the 566-foot elevation line that planners say marks the level to which the water could rise behind the improved Prado Dam in the event of a “200-year” flood. Although they are aware, for the most part, of the impending project, the property owners have been forced to glean almost all their information from newspapers. Meanwhile, they have been unable to sell their land or utilize it as they could if the future were more sure.

Public officials say they are finally ready to let these property owners in on the planning. Letters will go out this month, and ground surveys will begin in June. There will also be public meetings later this year.

Information was delayed, officials said, for fear that people might be unnecessarily alarmed. As of now, it is not known which properties will be inundated and which will be above the high-water line or protected by dikes.

Not all such questions can be answered at this point. But by leaving property owners in the dark, project planners have caused unnecessary anxiety for them. While those who will lose their property will be compensated and receive relocation money, they have a right to know soon what’s ahead so that they can plan.

Earlier efforts should have been made to keep them informed. Now every attempt should be made to let them know how the project is proceeding.