FORT WORTH, Texas – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Fort Worth District announced today at the Dallas Regional Chambers’ All Chambers Luncheon that it recently awarded a contract to Kickapoo Empire LLC of Eagle Pass to construct Phase 1 of Wetland Cell A west of the Martin Luther King Jr. Bridge over the Trinity River in the Dallas Floodway System.
The $1.2 million 8(a) sole-source, small-business contract, awarded Sept. 30, marks the construction start of a second interlocking chain of perpetual wetlands. These wetlands will serve a dual purpose: reducing flood risk for Dallas citizens and providing ecosystem restoration, which creates new quality habitat in the heart of the city.
"Public Safety is the No. 1 priority of the Corps’ Levee Safety Program. This wetlands construction contract is part of the ongoing Dallas Floodway Extension Project, initiated in 2001, in partnership with the city of Dallas," said Col. Charles H. Klinge, the Fort Worth District commander during a briefing to approximately 10 Dallas Chamber organizations.
When complete after a second phase, new Wetland Cells A, B and C will form the Upper Chain of Wetlands. The new wetlands will be similar in design and function to the Lower Chain of Wetlands, built earlier by the Corps of Engineers for the city. Both wetland chains are key components of the Dallas Floodway Extension Project to build new levees, enhance existing ones, and provide additional recreational opportunities in an area stretching along the Trinity River from the Santa Fe Trestle Trail to Interstate 20.
The Dallas Floodway Extension Project area experienced property damage during floods in 1989 and 1990. The project was designed to reduce risk for about 2,550 structures southeast of downtown Dallas. The project also reduces flood risk to a second Corps project area -- the Dallas Floodway – just upstream, providing an additional $6.7 million in average annual benefits to about 10,000 more structures.
The DFE wetlands reduce water surface elevations within the existing system by adding overbanking capacity along the west side of the Trinity River from the north end of Cadillac Heights to Loop 12 just north of Lemmon Lake. This reduces the risk to life and safety for those protected by existing levees.
The Corps of Engineers and city of Dallas are also examining what improvements need to be made to the levee system located within the Dallas Floodway Project area. The DF Project area includes downtown, Oak Cliff, West Dallas and the Stemmons Corridor. Those recommendations are due by year’s end.
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About the Fort Worth District: The Fort Worth District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was established in 1950. the district is responsible for water resources development in two-thirds of texas, and design and construction at military installations in texas and parts of louisiana and new mexico. visit the fort worth district web site at: www.swf.usace.army.mil and SWF Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Fort-Worth-District-US-Army-Corps-of-Engineers/188083711219308