Levee System Altered to Facilitate Urban Growth and Connectivity to Parks and Greenspace

Converging in historic downtown Rome, Georgia, the Oostanaula and Etowah Rivers form the Coosa River leaving the city prone to flooding. After a severe flood in 1886, the USACE recommended a levee system and in 1939, as a response to the 1937 flood of record, the City of Rome’s levee system was constructed. As part of ongoing efforts to maintain and improve the flood protection infrastructure as well as an attempt to mitigate the negative impacts the levee system imposes on the cityscape, Rome decided to permanently decommission two floodgates and construct one new, larger structure. These floodgates permit vehicle passage through the earthen levees which allows the floodplain areas to be used for parks, green space, river access, and other public recreational purposes. Although they have served the city well for almost 70 years, the floodgates were in need of modernization due to the time and effort required to close the stop-log closures, the poor aesthetics of the stop-log storage houses, and the lack of two-way vehicular access.