Plans laid for drying underpass

Seasonal flooding in the Charleston Boulevard underpass will come under control, Las Vegas and flood control officials said Friday -- but it may not happen before the next monsoon season.

City, state and Regional Flood Control District officials held a briefing Friday at Las Vegas City Hall to give an update on their combined efforts to control the destructive flooding at the underpass and on the state's plans for Interstate 15 improvements nearby.

The $28 million underpass project could begin by February, but officials don't expect the first parts of the project to be in place until the 2001 rainy season. July, August and September traditionally bring the worst floods to Las Vegas and the surrounding valley.

Dan Goodin, project manager for contractor Parsons Brinkerhoff, said water would be redirected from the underpass and surrounding streets into three 12-by-9-foot culverts.

More than 3 miles of underground culverts installed over 2 1/2 years will eventually intercept water flowing from the west and dump it into Las Vegas Wash, Goodin said.

The flooding at the point Charleston goes under Union Pacific Railroad tracks has progressively worsened over the years as the western environs of the city have developed.

"This is a long-term solution," Kevin Eubanks, assistant general manager for Clark County Flood Control, said. The culverts under the Charleston-I-15 area would be able to handle all future development envisioned under the county master plan, he said.

The agency has spent $50 million so far to tame waters flowing into Las Vegas Wash. Next year's work will be the next step in the effort that has moved slowly from the southwest, he said.

The interstate will also be in for some improvements, Frank Csiga of the Nevada Department of Transportation said. The centerpiece of work on I-15 would be $42 million in improvements on and around the Sahara and Charleston ramps. The work would improve traffic flow on that stretch of the freeway, he said.

Part of the work would make the I-15 bridge over Sahara Avenue higher, longer and wider, opening up additional turning lanes, he said. Work on the I-15 improvements should start one to two months after the flood control work begins, he said.

Douglas Selby, deputy city manager, said most of the work on both projects would be done at night or during "marathon weekends" to keep traffic interruptions to a minimum for both residents and businesses in the affected areas.

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