Martinsville Levee Project 2024 Update
“Located to the west of Martinsville is the White River. The White River is a lazy river most of the time. When the spring rain comes, the river will frequently rise above flood level. Martinsville has a long history of flooding. Many businesses and homes were damaged or destroyed from flood water in 2008. Banning Engineering was given the task of designing a levee that would help protect Martinsville from flood waters from the west.” ~ Excerpt from Michael Kirsch’s Martinsville Levee Project 2024 video
Building a levee is not something you do every day. In 2021, the City of Martinsville received a $20.2M grant from the Indiana Finance Authority (IFA) to build a new levee and improve its existing one. Banning Engineering was blessed to have been chosen to work alongside the city’s Mayor, Kenny Costin, and his staff leads, Mac Dunn and Gary Oakes, in this endeavor.
The city led the charge in acquiring the necessary state grant assistance through IFA’s State Water Infrastructure Fund (SWIF) grant and working with the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) on taking over another portion of the levee. The project has taken years to negotiate permit and design, and Banning Engineering has led this charge from concept to construction.
The project incorporates so many aspects of civil engineering and permitting that naming individuals who have assisted would be impossible. Still, agencies that have played an integral part include the Indiana Department of Natural Resources – Division of Water, Indiana Department of Environmental Management, United States Army Corps of Engineers, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Duke Energy, AES Indiana, Centerpoint Energy, Davey Resource Group, ArcDesign, Silver Creek Engineering, Terracon Consultants, Indiana Heritage Foundation, Indiana Department of Transportation, Morgan County, Morgan County Surveyor’s Office, and Indiana Southern Railroad.
As you can see in the video, construction is ongoing. It has been a pleasure working with; HWC Engineering inspection group, Striegal Design and Construction, and Reed and Sons Construction during the construction phase.
There is still a long way to go, but with the group involved, we are confident the levee will be finished and provide the protection it has been designed to achieve. The levee will protect over 600 residential properties and dozens of businesses from flooding from the White River. It is a critical piece for the continued growth of the City of Martinsville. The future is bright!
~ Joe Miller, V.P. of Water Resources