Assessment
Questions about your assessment? Contact us!
Levees Must Be Maintained, Now and in the Future
The Pajaro Regional Flood Management Agency is transitioning to take on responsibility for maintaining 24 miles of levees, 12 miles of channels, 15 pump stations, and 85 culverts. Levee maintenance activities include – among other things – minor erosion repairs (rock and rip rap), vegetation management, rodent control, soil compaction, environmental and federal permitting, reporting, and compliance, and patrolling the levees when water levels are high.
Why an assessment for levee operations & maintenance?
To adequately fund levee operations and maintenance. The assessment bridges the $1.2 million shortfall between existing and needed revenues for levee operations and maintenance. Currently the levees only provide an 8-year level of flood protection, among the lowest in the state. Without additional maintenance, the levees will continue to degrade and increase flood risk in Watsonville, Pajaro and the surrounding agricultural areas. Adequate funding for levee maintenance is also a requirement for state and federal levee improvement project funding.
How much is the assessment?
The average single family residential assessment for levee operations and maintenance is about $16 per month. Each property’s assessment will be different based on property characteristics, like land use type, and relative flood risk. Learn more.
How much is the assessment for my property?
Proper maintenance of levees provides a benefit to each property. That benefit is the avoidance of flood damages to land, structures and their contents. Benefit is calculated based upon the following factors:
A more detailed description of the assessment methodology can be found in the Engineer’s Report. Questions? Please contact us at (831) 204-3769, or info@prfma.org.
