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The Kickapoo River is back in its banks now, a week after it crested at nearly 7 1/2 feet above flood stage and not even 10 months after it surged nearly that high.
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Gary Lawrynk of La Crosse observes water still surrounding the First Congregational Church in Gays Mills, Wis., last week. AP photo |
But the damage is still evident.
Even the Gays Mills Community Building on Main Street was still being cleaned and dried right up until more than 200 people crowded in Tuesday night to talk about whether, after decades of flooding, it’s time to move the town of 625 and its business district to higher ground.
They wore muddy sneakers, work boots and sandals. Federal and state officials lined the walls, emblems of various emergency aid agencies on their polo shirts.
There was a state senator and a congressman who invoked President Abraham Lincoln, urging the village to find consensus before deciding anything.
“A community divided cannot stand,” U.S. Rep. Ron Kind said.
Those who spoke seemed unified in their sentiment that something needs to be done and that levees can’t be trusted.
“Nothing is going to keep the water out of this town,” said Christopher Smith. “The only option is to move the town.”
That drew applause.
Smith, whose Blackhawk Auto shop was closed for about two weeks and sustained $25,000 in damage in August, complained there is no help for business owners — except for federal loans that people like him can’t afford.
“There is not a business in this town that can afford a loan,” said Steve Mickelson, owner of Mickelson’s Market and Meats.
Mickelson said the town should explore all its options but that relocation seemed like a good one.
“This flood is it for me,” he said. “If we have another, I’m done.”
Upriver, the town of Soldiers Grove relocated to higher ground three decades ago. The park that occupies the former business district was ravaged by last week’s flood. But only a handful of homes were seriously damaged, according to Roger Martin, Crawford County emergency management director.
More than 50 homes and businesses in Gays Mill were severely damaged.
Kind said he would do what he can to help fund whatever the town decides — and that he was sure it would be done with consensus.
“It’s hard to envision a Gays Mills 10 years from now that is a checker board,” he said.
The next step will be for the Gays Mills Village Board to come up with a process for exploring options and determining consensus, said member Pat Brockway, who favors relocation. Most likely, that would involve a referendum, he said.
Many at the meeting still haven’t recovered from the flash flood that hit the town in August.
Dolph Diemont, the coordinating officer for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, reminded them that this is a separate disaster and that people whose homes were damaged could apply for new help.
His mention of rental assistance brought a guffaw from Fred Schlegel, who said later he has been out of his Orin Street home since August.
“We can’t make you whole again,” Diemont said, repeating a FEMA mantra. “But we do have programs that can help you get on your feet.”
That got Schlegel on his feet and out the door.
He wasn’t the only one frustrated with the bureaucracy of government aid and the lack of salve in long-range mitigation plans.
“We need something concrete, and we need it soon,” said one woman. “If we can build cities overseas ... why can’t we do it in this community.”
