Funding Will Widen Simi Flood Channel

Four years after the Northridge earthquake, the state and federal governments have agreed to pay $2.8 million to widen the Arroyo Simi flood channel, a move that could allow some residents to finally acquire loans to repair their quake-damaged homes.

Officials notified the county Friday that a disaster recovery plan had been approved that would eliminate much of the area’s flood plain, thereby removing many of the barriers that have kept homeowners from securing financial help to rebuild.

Homeowners have been unable to obtain funds to repair quake damage because their homes lie in the flood plain, making it too risky for banks, insurance companies and the federal government to bankroll costly quake repairs.

“This should help resolve one of the most difficult, ongoing problems created by the Northridge earthquake,” Supervisor Judy Mikels said in a written statement. “There are people to this day who still haven’t repaired their homes because of their location in a 100-year flood plain.”

Specifically, the money would be used by the county Flood Control District to widen the 20-foot channel to 56 feet and replace its sloped walls with vertical slabs of concrete for a half-mile between Stow and Stearns streets in the east end of Simi Valley.

Engineers are confident that with the channel’s increased capacity, as many as 300 homes could be lifted off the flood plain list, allowing residents to finally receive the money they need to put their derailed lives back on track.

“These residents have really been put in an odd situation because of the flood plain restrictions,” said Ed Gunen of the Flood Control District. “This project could really help the area and the people.”

But the plan is too late for residents who have either shelled out their own money to make repairs or left the area entirely.

Some residents in the area have been unable to collect money from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and some insurance companies because their homes lie in an area designated as flood-prone in the event of a 100-year storm.

In the days and weeks following the Jan. 17 quake, FEMA assessors told residents who required more than 50% of the value of their homes to rebuild, that they would have to raise the level of the homes to keep them above flood stage, a request that left many residents in the lurch.

“I don’t think they understood what our problems were,” said Charlotte Maciel, whose home sustained significant damage in the quake. “We had just been in an earthquake and all they could talk about was floods. . . . When has it ever flooded here?”

Maciel, who has since repaired her Sabina Circle home with federally backed loans and personal funds, said many of her neighbors were told by FEMA they could receive funds to rebuild. But she said they would have to meet certain and often times costly criteria, like raising their homes on stilts in order to get financial assistance.

“They were telling people that they’d have to spend like $100,000 to raise their homes just to get $60,000 to repair the damage,” she said.

Louise Kisting had to wait for more than two years until FEMA relented on its demands that she raise the level of her home.

“It sure was a headache,” said Kisting, who has since sold her Aurelia Street home. “I lived there for 21 years and I never saw it come close to flooding. . . . That’s what made it all so frustrating.”

Friday’s announcement came too late to help many of Kisting’s former neighbors who have either used their own money to repair or left the area completely.

Despite that, city officials said a new channel will go a long way toward benefiting the city and those who live in the flood plain.

“It’s very good news for us,” said Assistant City Manager Laura Herron. “There is a definite advantage for residents in that area, even for those who aren’t looking for money to repair their homes, because they won’t have to pay for flood insurance.”

The county Flood Control District has not set a date for construction of the new flood channel, but will open the project for bids in late spring.