IE Business Daily Business news for the Inland Empire.
FEMA has removed a high-risk flood designation from a part of Palm Springs that includes a mobile home park and condominiums.
That decision, which affects 514 structures and a little more than 100 acres, means businesses and homeowners in that part of the city will pay less for their flood insurance, according to a statement on the city’s website.
City officials are crediting Palm Springs Line 41, a $16 million flood control project built by Riverside County, with making FEMA’s action possible.
That project included more than one mile of an underground storm drain and construction of a flood basin. It prevented damage to the Safari Mobile Home Park, 2601 Cherokee Way, and the nearby Backstreet Art District when Hurricane Hillary struck Palm Springs in August, 2023.
Both of those areas flooded in 2017.
“This flood risk reduction project is the result of years of engineering, community collaboration, and major investment in regional flood protection,” said Jason Uhley, general manager and chief engineer of the Riverside County Flood Control and Water Conservation District, in the statement.
“Its value was proven during Hurricane Hillary, when it protected neighborhoods from severe flooding.”
The change is scheduled to go into effect July 18. Residents in that part of Palm Springs should ask their insurance agents how much flood insurance they might still need, according to the statement.
