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Riverside County Flood Control And Water Conservation District history
Riverside County Flood Control And Water Conservation District company history timeline
In 1908, fifteen years after the creation of the County, citizens in the San Jacinto Valley formed the San Jacinto Levee District, with property owners assessing themselves to build and maintain a protective levee along the San Jacinto River with aid from the County, State and Federal governments.
Riverside County weathered many significant storms in its formative years, but it received a wake-up call in March 1938.
The levees were designed to protect the city from severe flood damage similar to that experienced in the flood of 1938.
The Federal Flood Control Act of 1938 provides funding through the Corps of Engineers (COE) that the County should pursue.
San Bernardino County, through action of the State Legislature, created its flood control district in 1939.
The process in Riverside County began in June 1944 with each Supervisor appointing three representatives to what became known as "the Committee of 15". They were tasked with deciding how to best approach this local war on flooding.
Bookman left the District in September 1950 to join the State Division of Water Resources.
The Palm Canyon Levee, constructed in the 1950's, experienced heavy flows for several days.
John Bryant was recruited as the District's Chief Engineer from the Region 6, Bureau of Reclamation office in Billings, Montana in July 1953.
1956 The Santa Ana River levees through the city of Riverside became the first Federally funded District project in 1956.
In addition, Pigeon Pass Dam above Sunnymead was completed in 1957.
Also in 1957, the District became the first public agency to set up an in-house division of photogrammetry to produce maps using aerial photography.
1957 By 1957, staff growth prompted a move from the courthouse to 2,300 square feet of rental space in the Schacker Building, a block away at 9th and Orange Streets.
He had joined the District in January 1962 as its Planning Engineer, coming from the Los Angeles District office of Corps of Engineers.
1962 Completed in 1962, the San Jacinto River levee project was designed and constructed with Corps of Engineers funds and consisted of five miles of levee along Bautista Creek and the San Jacinto River in Zone 4.
The District began using electronic distance measuring (EDM) devices in 1962, significantly speeding up survey distance measuring.
1963 The District maintenance force was originally headquartered on County Road Department property in San Jacinto and much of its work in the early years was along the San Jacinto River in Zone 4.
Faced with increasing workloads, the District purchased its first full fledged computer, an IBM 1620, in November, 1964.
1964 Historically, all calculations for surveys, design, hydrology, etc., were performed using slide rules and mechanical calculators such as the "Frieden". These calculations are quite labor intensive, slow and tedious.
Since then 100-year protection has become standard throughout the state and the nation and was also adopted in the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968.
At the time of its construction in 1968, it was the largest of the nine flood control dams built by the District.
1968 Wide Canyon Dam, east of Desert Hot Springs, was constructed to control flood flows from a large drainage area prone to producing flash floods.
1969 Two storm periods in January and February of 1969 produced flood peaks in the Santa Ana River at Riverside greater than any in the previous 31 years.
The Water Defense Office closed on June 30, 1969, with 4,149 parties, defendant and cross defendant, having been named and served.
The Mira Loma area and the Temescal Creek area in Corona each suffered some $2,000,000 (in 1969 dollars) in damages.
The Oak Street Channel in Corona experienced flooding similarly to 1969.
1971 Armed with the bond funds and higher tax revenues, the District forged ahead with design of major Zone One projects.
1974 By 1974, District staff grew to 110, and the combination of bond funds in Zone One and increased tax rates in all zones pushed the budget to an all time high of $28,550,000.
Purchase of an orthophoto stereo plotter in 1974, enabled the District to become first in the nation, and the world, to produce a digital topographic map in a production environment.
However, in July 1975 a telemetered flood warning system was begun.
1976 Acquisition of a flatbed graphics plotter in 1976 completed the District's automated mapping process, completely eliminating hand-drawn ground contours, a tedious and expensive activity.
1977 The total expended for District constructed projects through 1977 was $42,000,000, with Zone One Bond issue projects being 70% completed in only 40% of the programmed construction period.
In June 1978, the voters of the State of California approved Proposition 13, which amended the State Constitution to, in part, limit the maximum ad valorem property tax to one percent of the value of real property, and future bonded indebtedness was severely limited.
At the same time, Riverside County and the District experienced a most phenomenal growth period beginning in 1978.
Total flood damages in 1978 exceeded $9 million.
The District suffered a 60 percent reduction in projected property tax revenue for Fiscal Year 1978-79.
Congress then authorized funding for a debris basin at the upper end of Oak Street Channel, and the District completed its construction in 1979 in cooperation with the Soil Conservation Service, at a cost of $1.5 million.
The Oak Street Channel Debris Basin was put to its first test in February 1980.
1980 February 1980 rainfall (following excess rain in January) was record breaking in many County areas.
The flows undermined the concrete face toe protection and floodwaters briefly breached the levee on February 21, 1980, but rapid District response with heavy equipment closed the breach and contained the flood flows within the stream.
However, the floods of 1980 also demonstrated a need for additional flood control and drainage improvements throughout the District, where the widespread flooding in western Riverside county accounted for at least ten deaths, and in excess of $70 million in property damage.
The project would reduce lake flooding levels such as occurred in 1980 and eliminate flooding along the outlet channel from the Lake to Temescal Wash near Riverside Drive.
Micro-tunneling is a concept first developed in Europe and first utilized in the United States in the mid to late 1980's to tunnel under existing operating structures through soft ground (not hard rock) with fairly shallow cover.
Steve began his career with the District in 1981 as a Junior Engineer.
1982 Because of the reduced funding from property taxes brought on by Proposition 13 the District placed an issue on the November 1982 ballot for the voters to consider a flood control benefit assessment to fund critically needed projects in all of the zones.
Constructed in 1982, the Monroe Retention Basin, better known locally as Don Derr Park, is used by the citizens of Riverside as they enjoy the soccer and baseball fields on the basin's floor.
As a result, mobile office units were moved onsite to provide additional work space in 1983.
The original 1983 estimated cost of construction for the Riverside County portion was $12 million dollars, yet the actual cost of construction cost over the 20-year build out totaled approximately $15 million.
In 1984, the first analytical stereo plotter was acquired.
1985 In 1985, the Army Corps of Engineers completed a Reconnaissance Study of a project to improve the Lake Elsinore Outlet Channel.
The Board of Supervisors and the Lake Elsinore City Council approved the plan and the issue was placed before the Zone 3 voters in November 1986, and a strong majority approved the assessment and the issuance of the bonds.
The Temescal Creek Channel improvement project through Corona was completed in January 1987 at a cost of $7.5 million.
In 1988, the District, along with the Riverside County Surveyor and with the support of the National Geodetic Survey, adopted the Global Positioning System (GPS), developed by the United States military.
The design and construction of a new, more adequate, office building began at this time, with completion occurring in May 1991.
The final project phase was completed in May 1991 at a cost of $12.2 million, of which $1 million was expended on recovery and documentation of Indian cultural resources.
1993 During the two week period beginning January 5, 1993 over ten inches of rain fell on western Riverside county, resulting in seven deaths and causing more that $10 million in public property damage.
By February 1993, the second building of our new office complex was completed, adding another 27,000 square feet.
The project was completed and dedicated at a ceremony in Lake Elsinore in October 1994.
1996 Twenty-seven years after joining the District staff, David P. Zappe was appointed Chief Engineer in March 1996.
After many years in the making, the Salt Creek MDP was adopted in 1996.
Other construction projects completed in 1996 include the Arlington Channel Stage 4, and the Perris Valley Channel Lateral A.
1997 Construction of the Whitewater River Right Bank Levee, Stage 2 project was completed in November 1997.
1Other projects completed in 1998 include Sunnyslope Channel Stage 7; Perris Valley Line J, Stage 3; and Sunnymead Line M4 and Line B7.
Other projects completed in 1999 include the San Sevaine Channel Stage 8; Winchester Line F; Moreno Line 1, Stage 2; Indian Canyon Debris Basin; and Perris Valley Channel Stage 1.
2000 In 2000, District employees were connected to the World Wide Web to conduct research and development.
Construction projects completed in 2000 include South Norco Channel Stage 3 and Line SA; Palm Canyon Channel Stage 5; Day Creek/Martin Creek Storm Drain; Pedley 64th Street Storm Drain; and Southwest Riverside Line G Stage 1.
2001 In 2001, the District completed the Compton Avenue Storm Drain Phase 2 project.
2002 Construction projects completed in 2002 include Corona Storm Drain Line 7A, Stage 1; Belltown Line D, Stage 1; Pedley 64th Street Inlet Modifications; Sunnymead Line D, Stage 3; and Homeland Line 2.
Other projects completed in 2003 include Day Creek Lateral A-2; and Eastvale Line E, Stage 1 and Stage 3.
In 2004 alone, 439 land development cases were reviewed by the District for stormwater and drainage compliance, while 317 were approved.
Other construction projects completed in 2004 include Salt Creek Channel Stage 6; Four Corners Storm Drain Stage 4; and Norco Line NA-S, Stage 2.
2005 Some construction projects completed in 2005 include San Jacinto Line E, Stage 2; Hemet Line D, Stage 3; and Southwest Riverside Line C, Stage 5.
The Homeland MDP and the Romoland MDP were both revised in 2006.
In 2006, the District completed the Gavilan Hills/Smith Road dam and debris Basin.
Other construction projects completed in 2006 include the Perris Valley Channel Lateral B, Stage 2; El Cerrito/Kanye Street Storm Drain; Hemet Line D, Stage 6; and the Mission Lakes Levee.
Projects completed in 2007 include Corona Line 7A, Stage 2; Corona Line 46, Stage 1; Hemet Line D, Stage 4; Day Creek Channel Stage 6, Phase 1; La Sierra Cypress/Campbell Lateral, Stage 1; and Wildomar Channel, Stage 5.
Additionally in 2008, Dusty was appointed to the National Committee on Levee Safety (NCLS). The NCLS is a committee of federal, state, local, and private sector members with a Congressional mandate to prepare recommendations and a strategic implementation plan for a National Levee Safety Program.
2009 The District began to automate level-monitoring devices at District dams, which allows the District’s Emergency Storm Center to remotely monitor water levels behind the dams during severe storm events.
Construction projects completed in 2010 include the Monroe Retention Basin Rehabilitation; and the Gavilan Hills Wetlands Habitat Creation Project.
The District released its Low Impact Development (LID) Design Manual in 2011.
The District hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony to officially open the LID facility in May of 2012.
2012 Realizing that there is power in numbers, in 2012, the District helped establish an informal coalition with six other counties (Santa Barbara, Ventura, Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, and San Bernardino) to focus on issues unique to Southern California.
In conclusion, effective November 2013 those homeowners were no longer required to purchase flood insurance, although they could still voluntarily purchase insurance, but at a much lower rate!
2013 The District completed the Day Creek Channel system, which conveys a 100-year flow of 10,000 cubic feet per second, and provides flood protection from the San Gabriel Mountains (in San Bernardino County) to the Santa Ana River.
Other projects completed in 2013 include the Calimesa Avenue L Storm Drain, Stage 2; Lakeland Village Orange Street Lateral, Stage 1; and the Mira Loma Beach Street Storm Drain, Stage 2.
Late in 2013, the District commenced construction on the Arroyo Del Toro Channel in Lake Elsinore.
In 2013, the District began preparing dam inundation studies as part of an effort to create Emergency Action Plans.
For the 23rd straight year, in May 2014, the District proudly accepted a "Certificate of Achievement" for "Outstanding Financial Reporting for the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR)" from the Government Finance Officers Association.
Other projects completed in 2014 include North Norco Laterals N-1D and Spirit Knoll Court; and Sunnymead Line P-6, Stage 2 and the Corps’ Santa Ana River Below Prado Reach 9 Phase 2B project.
The Moreno MDP was revised in 2015.
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Riverside County Flood Control And Water Conservation District competitors
| Company name | Founded date | Revenue | Employee size | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Olympic Land Trust | 1990 | $660,000 | 7 | - |
| Six Rivers Land Conservancy | 1994 | $500,000 | 5 | - |
| Alliance Consulting Engineers | - | $1.6M | 30 | - |
| Allen & Major Associates | 1973 | $4.7M | 53 | - |
| DOWL | 1962 | $64.5M | 200 | 122 |
| Hanover Engineering Associates | 1970 | $6.1M | 100 | - |
| Fuscoe Engineering | 1992 | $21.5M | 100 | - |
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