Our View: Use FEMA flood-repair money to create safe access to Kern River

The banks of the Kern River, as it runs through the heart of Kernville, need to be stabilized and protected from future floods. The community's popular park, along those banks, should be improved to encourage economic development.

Kern County can achieve both goals. But it will require Kern officials to collaborate with residents, businesses and community groups. It's not a question of which goal should be a priority; rather, it's how to achieve both.

County plans are underway to stabilize and protect the river banks by installing riprap, which consists of angular rocks placed along the banks to resist erosion during floods.

"It performs well in locations where public access is not a priority, such as highways, levees and industrial areas," noted water resources engineer Shane Sigle in a recent Californian opinion article. "However, Riverside Park is not one of those places. It is a community gathering space, where families swim, fish, launch rafts, picnic and enjoy the Kern River.

"The very characteristics that make riprap effective also make it undesirable in a public park. The large angular rock creates unstable footing, sharp edges and limited access to the water. Installing continuous riprap along Riverside Park would significantly reduce safe river access and diminish one of the park's greatest assets."

In a separate Californian Community Voices, Kern County Supervisor Phillip Peters, whose district includes Kernville, defended use of riprap, noting that the project is being funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency to restore the banks to their pre-2023 condition, when the existing riprap was washed away by a flood.

"Federal disaster funding comes with strict requirements," he wrote. "Funds cannot be redirected to build new recreational amenities, or redesign the river corridor."

Does that mean that nearly $700,000 in FEMA funds can only be used to replace the riprap that washed away in 2023? Does that rule out spending the money on modern river engineering to accommodate both flood protection and recreation?

Engineer Sigle noted strategically placed structural boulders, engineered toe protection, vegetated banks, terraced access points and naturalized stabilization techniques can provide durable erosion protection, while preserving safe access to the river.

In another Californian Community Voices, Roberta Piazza Gordon, owner of Kernville's Pine Cone Inn, stressed the importance of Riverside Park and the need to provide safe access to the river.

"This park matters. Riverside Park has been part of my life for as long as I can remember," wrote Gordon, adding, "I recommend Riverside Park to guests as the easiest, safest and closest place to experience up close the beauty of the Kern River."

That should be a goal shared by Kern County officials, who bemoan the river's dangers and post a running tally of the number of people who unsafely enter the river and drown.

A related, but separate project proposed by community activists is the creation of a whitewater enhancement within the park.

In her letter to The Californian, longtime Kern River kayaker Julianne Finch noted how whitewater parks have attracted tourists and promoted economic development in many communities, including Golden, Colo., where an estimated 40,000 visitors annually contribute $2 million a year into the community. Finch and others noted grants focusing on recreation, habitat and community resilience often are available to help fund such projects.

Clearly FEMA money shouldn't be spent on creating a whitewater park in Kernville. The money is intended to repair 2023 flood damage. But how those repairs are made - how the county decides to make the river banks stable, resilient, but also safe and accessible - will determine the community's future ability to create a whitewater park.

Riverside Park advocates appeared at this week's meeting of the Kern County Board of Supervisors to plead their case. Supervisor Peters agreed to consider the community's concerns and alternatives.

We urge county officials to do more than listen and "consider." We urge them to become partners with the community in repairing the river's banks and someday creating a whitewater park.

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