While repairs to the Riverwalk on the West Cola side are complete (as of yesterday, ~2 years after the destructive flooding + washouts), it’ll still be about another 2 years before some parts of the Riverwalk in Columbia + Cayce are fixed. Why?

A total of $169 million was requested to fix the entire greenway – billed to FEMA, who’s still reviewing to make sure all the money is being used only for damages that occurred •during the flood.• It’s a strict + long process when federal money is being used – and you have to do things exactly the way the government wants, so you don’t risk them taking back the money.

What’s open, what’s not, why + when:

💦 West Columbia | completely fixed + open | $1 million cost | took ~2 years to fix

💦 Columbia | parts of Three Rivers Greenway unfixed + closed | repairs may start next year + take ~2 years | the holdup: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission requested the City upgrade the whole Columbia Canal (3.5 miles), on top of the greenway work

💦 Cayce | Phase 2 of Three Rivers Greenway still under repair + closed | $1.4 million requested of FEMA

One thing’s for sure: Hurricanes Harvey + Irma certainly aren’t going to help speed up the lengthy process of FEMA approvals.

4 min read / Free Times