A $12.8 million contract has been awarded to Hendrickson Transportation, LLC to complete the Oxbow-Hickson-Bakke Ring Levee portion of the FM Area Diversion.
Amy Dessner is a Civil Engineer and Technical Lead with the US Army Corps of Engineers. She says this portion of the diversion will shield residents of Oxbow, Hickson and Bakke from spring floodwaters.
"This ring levee will protect these three communities from the project when it's operating. So, instead of having to relocate the residents in these communities, the ring levee serves the purpose of protecting them from the risk of flooding during an event in which the project would operate."
The three communities are located in the upstream staging area of the Diversion, and this portion of the project is the final phase of construction. It will include 11,400 feet of levee, a road raise at Main Avenue, storm and sanitary sewer piping, riprap replacement and turf establishment.
Dessner says construction will begin as soon as weather allows, and should be wrapped up in early 2025.