Gov. Ferguson visits Stehekin for flood recovery discussion
Six months after flooding damaged parts of Stehekin and its infrastructure, residents had an opportunity Tuesday to bring their concerns to Gov. Bob Ferguson, who visited the area along with state and local officials.
Stehekin residents met with state and local officials Tuesday at the Stehekin School at 3 Mile Main Valley Road to discuss ongoing recovery efforts following December's floods, which damaged roads and infrastructure.
The meeting brought together the governor, a Chelan County commissioner and representatives from Washington's state and congressional delegation as officials worked to identify potential paths forward for rebuilding on federally managed land.
Stehekin, which can only be accessed by boat, small aircraft, or foot (Ferguson said he hiked in), is managed by the National Park Service, with about 100 residents. In December, multiple parts of the state suffered flooding due to extreme weather, including the Stehekin community.
The flooding left mud and fallen trees in driveways and footpaths, debris blocked Stehekin Valley Road, power was knocked out, and the park service's water treatment plant was destroyed. Private properties were also damaged and flooded.
State Rep. Keith Goehner, who toured the damage during Tuesday's visit, said the extent of the destruction was difficult to comprehend without seeing it firsthand.
"It's a totally different landscape than what was there, and the road was wiped out. So there was no road that, after the flood, was there," Goehner said.
Joe Kitchell, a year-round resident of Stehekin, attended the meeting Tuesday and spoke about what he described as the challenges of protecting private property from flooding within the constraints of National Park Service regulations.
"It's kind of a complicated situation that the federal government doesn't really have the systemic capability to deal with private property and roads in a recreation area," Kitchell said. "It's a odd situation, there's not a lot of it inside the U.S., and so not a lot of precedent has been set for how to deal with this."
Kitchell said property owners face a complicated regulatory process when seeking to protect their land from flooding.
A National Park Service law, regulations and policies document states the agency generally would not prevent landowners from taking actions on their own property unless those actions would harm recreation area resources or violate local, state, or federal regulations.
However, projects involving river work, shoreline modifications, floodplain development, or bank stabilization may require permits and approval from multiple agencies.
During the meeting, residents also discussed potential long-term solutions to reduce future flood damage, including river management strategies and infrastructure improvements.
Residents urged officials to consider projects they believe could better protect private property, roads and other community assets from future flooding.
Goehner said there isn't much the state could do regarding permanent solutions, as Stehekin is federal land, but is seeking to get the attention of federal officials.
"We haven't been able to heighten the interest in remedying this situation, and it's kind of an out-of-sight, out of mind kind of thing," he said.
He added that the number of regulations needed from the National Park Service can be challenging.
"It's a major commitment to get there. That's what those people have signed up for. They want to live there, but they also don't want the federal government to tell them that they can't protect their property," Goehner said. "We're talking about all the federal permits and environmental issues, and that I understand to a degree. But as I said, that typically applies more toward projects, looking to the future. This is a response to the past."
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