The flood of 2008 is rapidly becoming a memory for many in Iowa City, but for those impacted most severely, the results will be felt for a long time to come. Credit is due for the handling of the evacuation and flood relief efforts by the City council and, particularly, Mayor Regenia Bailey, and City Manager Michael Lombardo. They have been working tirelessly to make sure that city services did their best to stave the flooding and, more importantly, to insure that residents were safe.
Certainly there are questions to be answered about the flood plain designations and this, hopefully, will lead to redrawing the maps so that either a) persons living in those areas will have flood insurance or b) FEMA/city will purchase those parcels and reduce the likelihood that families will go through what the folks in Idyllwild, Normandy Dr., Thatcher/Maculis Trailer Park and other areas experienced.
For the city council, it is hoped that closer attention will be paid to developments and their impact on existing developments. Some unintended consequences of the University of Iowa's growth may have impacted the flooding situation.
For the university, the impact of the flood will take time to sort out. The funding needs alone to clean up the buildings that were flooded will cause class scheduling problems and housing concerns for the foreseeable future. Sally Mason's leadership in clearing the university is to be commended and was a good test of her leadership capabilities (though the test goes on as she will press for funding to assist in UI's recovery).
John Deeth offers more on the flood recovery here.
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