Hazard Mitigation Plan for Crow Wing County Currently Awaiting State Approval

Crow Wing County Emergency Management is working to update their hazard mitigation plan, which contains a wide variety of historical hazard information and a series of mitigation measures and strategies that will help during storms, natural disasters, and other events in Crow Wing County.

In the state of Minnesota, all 87 counties are required to have an all-hazards mitigation plan put in place. Crow Wing County originally developed a plan around 2010. Every 5 years, FEMA requires counties to look at that plan and re-update.

To move forward and update the plan, it will cost the county $63,000 to go through a contractor approved by the state. They are planning on using the University of Minnesota Duluth, the same contractor they used five years ago to help with a similar project.

In this plan, they would be allowed to apply for mitigation funds and work with school districts on proper safety measures. The plan would include storm shelters and a school’s long-range plan of what might be built. That would include more buildings and city parks, as well as making sure they have approved storm shelters built.

The plan also looks at every community from the beginning on what disasters and natural disasters they have had. In the past, these funds are used heavily for buying out homes from flooding or flood risk properties.

In years before, many county board members had participated in a previous plan. Now, emergency management is asking board members, county departments, cities and townships to see this through once again.

Even though townships don’t have to sign off on a plan resolution, Crow Wing County Emergency Management director John Bowen said at a recent board meeting that with the storms the county has received the last few years, he thinks it’s critical to get everyone involved in the planning process.

The board was all in favor to get this plan updated, but through this process, they still need approval from the state. Once that step has been approved, it will go through FEMA and make one more return to the county board for a final vote.