(KNSI) – The city of St. Cloud is getting some federal funding to help redirect a storm sewer to protect a ravine and let bats have a new hibernation space.
FEMA is granting $2,363,580 to the city, which will cover 75 percent of the costs for its ravine stabilization project. Currently, a storm drain north of the St. Cloud State University campus leads storm runoff through a ravine to the Mississippi River. The project would reroute that stormwater through a new path under 4th Street South, still draining into the Mississippi, which aims to protect the ravine from further erosion and allow bats to hibernate in the old storm pipe.
“The Hazard Mitigation Grant Program provides funding for communities to implement critical mitigation measures to reduce disaster losses,” said Kevin M. Sligh, acting regional administrator, FEMA Region 5. “This project will help restore the area’s natural infrastructure and reduce the damage that flooding could cause the community in the future.”
FEMA will also cover management costs for the project, approximately $79,000.
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