Red Lodge Mayor Concerned Citizens Don’t Know Facts Regarding City’s Flood Preparations

June 15, 2023

At a public meeting on June 7, the Mayor of Red Lodge, Kristen Cogswell, lamented the ongoing perception of the citizens of Red Lodge that the City wasn’t doing anything to help them prepare for potential flooding.  She was particularly concerned about the messaging surrounding the grassroots citizens effort that organized the April 6 meeting that provided the general public with experts in flood preparation and response as well as providing the opportunity for neighbors to unite to decrease preparation costs and coordinate efforts.  The group later organized a sand bag filling day that the Mayor found was “a little troubling (to) me because, you know, the whole idea is to not create more problems…the sandbags didn’t really do much (last year), as far as I can tell you, I think most of them washed away.” 

On April 3, this reporter requested information from officials around the county on what they were doing to prepare for possible flooding as spring runoff approached.  Officials throughout the county promptly responded with an update except from Red Lodge.  On April 5, the Mayor of Red Lodge referred me to council and committee meeting minutes to discover Red Lodge’s efforts.  On that same day, minutes from the committees and council meetings from the most recent meetings, March 28, were requested from the city. The meeting minutes were received via email on June 1.  The body of the meeting minutes from the March 28, 2023, Red Lodge Public Works Standing Committee are presented in their entirety below:

Red Lodge Public Works Meeting Minutes 3/28/23

Jim Bushnell did not attend this meeting, therefore many of the agenda items could not be addressed. The discussion focused on the City’s (public works) preparations for spring runoff

Key discussion points:

Does the city (public works department) have plans for any preventative measures “pre-spring runoff” on city property along Rock Creek? For example, Finn Park. Finn Park flooded last year which impacted surrounding properties.

The Mayor’s response was No. The city does not have the money or staff or preventative measures.

The Mayor noted there will be a Carbon County Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) meeting in April where spring runoff preparations and strategies will be discussed.

There are residents that will, as preventative measures, want to prepare sandbags in advance to help minimize the danger of damage to their homes/property. The Mayor is aware of the “Spring Runoff Preparedness Meeting” organized by concerned citizens scheduled for April 6th. Per the CCN article citizens are aware that each individual homeowner is on their own financially regarding preventative measures. We asked the Mayor if the city would be willing to provide city land in town where the citizens group could store sand and stage sandbag efforts close to the neighborhoods that were affected last year and are currently at risk. She said no, the citizens group should contact the county.

Following up on the county’s public requests (Commissioner Bill Bullock) that, per Montana Law, the City of Red Lodge assign a DES coordinator....

The Mayor said the city is not going to appoint a City DES coordinator and she, as Mayor, is the city’s emergency contact; she will mobilize her staff under the direction of the county DES coordinator.

We asked the Mayor if there are any emergency plans in place specific to water diversion in town. This would be helpful as citizens plan to strategically place sandbags. She said no, but during an emergency situation she will take direction from the county DES.

The question was asked if there was anything the city was willing to do in preparation for spring runoff, and the Mayor would not commit to any actions on behalf of the city or in support for citizens in Red Lodge. She said the city does not have expertise in this area. There was a suggestion that the City hire consultants to provide expertise and present possible options, has this been done? She stated that she feels bad for the victims of the flood last year, but that is the risk when you live on the creek. It was pointed out to her that Red Lodge people/businesses that don’t live on the creek were also victims of the flooding.

Overall, the mayor’s message, to the public works standing committee was, the mayor understands people need to protect their property but it is not the city’s responsibility or role to help financially or with city resources. She stressed concerned citizens contact her or Courtney with any questions and they will provide contact information for the appropriate resources.