LYNNWOOD — A community task force has been assigned to study flooding problems along Scriber Creek in Lynnwood.
Development along the creek has aggravated urban flooding, most often between Scriber Lake, just south of 196th Street SW, and Highway 99, said Bill Franz, the city’s public works director.
The new task force is made up of neighbors, landowners and business owners. They’ll meet about a half-dozen times over the next few months, public works project manager Robert Victor said.
The task force members will provide recommendations for an environmental engineering study planned later this year. The task force also includes folks from the parks board and the Edmonds School District.
“We’re going to be looking at the (creek flooding) corridor pretty openly with no preconceived notions, trying to figure out what’s important to the local community and what potential solutions we might have,” Victor said.
The city has hired a consultant and approved up to $59,000 for the public outreach phase of the project, Victor said.
That will be followed by a drainage management plan.
Scriber Creek is a natural drainage system, and some of it passes under roadways and driveways. The Scriber Creek basin covers about 3,000 acres, making it the largest drainage basin in Lynnwood, said Jared Bond, the city environmental and surface water supervisor.
Nearly half of the land in Scriber Creek basin is used for commerce or transportation. The creek’s headwaters begin in the city-owned North Scriber Wetland west of Highway 99. It flows into Swamp Creek nea Brier.
Some cutthroat trout live in Scriber Creek, and Scriber Lake is home to frogs, lizards and other critters. An online video from flooding in 2012 shows water several inches deep in spots on streets and driveways.
The Scriber Creek Flood Reduction Study is being paid for through the surface water utility fund.
Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com.
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