>> Sreenivasan: WE CONTINUE OUR

SERIES, "FURTHER DOWN THE

MISSISSIPPI," WHERE, THIS PAST

MAY, THE RIVER CRESTED IN

DAVENPORT, IOWA, AT RECORD

LEVELS, OVERTOPPING FLOOD WALLS

AND INUNDATING PARTS OF

DOWNTOWN.

DAVENPORT, THE LARGEST OF THE

QUAD CITIES WITH ABOUT 100,000

PEOPLE, IS NO STRANGER TO

FLOODING.

THE LATEST ROUND HAS RE-IGNITED

THE DEBATE ABOUT HOW THIS CITY,

THE LARGEST ON THE MISSISSIPPI

WITHOUT A PERMANENT FLOOD WALL

OR LEVEE SYSTEM, SHOULD PROTECT

ITSELF FROM FUTURE RISING

WATERS.

NEWSHOUR WEEKEND'S CHRISTOPHER

BOOKER HAS THE STORY.

>> Reporter: FRONT STREET

BREWERY FIRST OPENED ITS DOORS

IN 1992.

>> DID YOU LIKE THE "RAGING

RIVER"?

>> Reporter: A YEAR LATER, IT

INTRODUCED ITS RAGING RIVER

I.P.A., A FERMENTED REMINDER OF

THE HISTORIC MIDWESTERN FLOODS

OF 1993.

BUT TONIGHT, THIS BEER IS BEING

POURED IN RECOGNITION OF A MORE

RECENT BATTLE WITH THE

MISSISSIPPI RIVER.

>> INSIDE THE MAIN FLOOR OF THE

RESTAURANT BUILDING, WE HAD

ABOUT 18 INCHES TO TWO FEET OF

WATER.

>> Reporter: SO, IN HERE, THERE

WAS TWO FEET?

>> YEAH, WHERE WE'RE SITTING

RIGHT NOW, THERE WAS ABOUT TWO

FEET OF WATER.

>> Reporter: FRONT STREET'S

CO-OWNER, TIM BALDWIN, SAYS THE

WATER CAME IN, IN A MATTER OF

MINUTES WHEN A SECTION OF THE

TEMPORARY FLOOD WALL ASSEMBLED

TO HOLD BACK A SWOLLEN

MISSISSIPPI RIVER SLIPPED.

THE EXACT MOMENT IN LATE APRIL

WAS CAPTURED ON A SECURITY

CAMERA.

>> WE RAN, OF COURSE, GOT SOME

THINGS WE... WE DEEMED

IMPORTANT.

AND BY THE TIME WE WERE DONE

ROUNDING ALL THAT UP, WE FOUND

OURSELVES IN THE BACK OF OUR

BUILDING, IN OUR PARKING LOT,

STANDING IN NEARLY CROTCH-DEEP

WATER.

>> Reporter: IT WAS THAT FAST?

>> IT WAS... IT WAS THAT FAST,

YEAH.

>> Reporter: BY THE TIME THE

MISSISSIPPI CRESTED A FEW DAYS

AFTER THE BREACH, THE RIVER IN

DAVENPORT WAS 22.7 FEET, THE

HIGHEST LEVEL EVER RECORDED AND

MORE THAN FOUR FEETABOVE WHAT

IS CONSIDERED THE LEVEL OF A

MAJOR FLOOD.

AND FRONT STREET BREWERY AND

MORE THAN 30 OTHER BUSINESSES IN

DOWNTOWN DAVENPORT WERE DIRECTLY

AFFECTED.

WERE YOU THINKING, "IT'’S DONE"?

"THE RESTAURANT'’S FINISHED?"

>> NO, I DIDN'T THINK THAT THE

RESTAURANT WAS FINISHED BECAUSE,

YOU KNOW, WE KNOW THE HISTORY OF

THIS PLACE, AND WE KNOW THAT, IN

1993, THE EXACT SAME THING

HAPPENED.

SO, IT WAS, YOU KNOW, "OKAY,

WE'LL JUST HAVE TO DEAL WITH IT

TOMORROW."

>> Reporter: FLOODING HAS ALWAYS

BEEN A PART OF DAVENPORT, BUT

THINGS HAVE CHANGED.

OF THE CITY'S 15 LARGEST FLOODS,

SEVEN HAVE BEEN SINCE 2008.

THE INCREASED FREQUENCY OF

FLOODS, INCLUDING THIS SPRING'S

BREACH, HAS RE-IGNITED A DEBATE

ABOUT HOW DAVENPORT SHOULD

PROTECT ITSELF FROM THE RIVER.

>> THERE ARE PEOPLE IMMEDIATELY

WHEN IT HAPPENED SAID, "PUT UP A

WALL."

>> Reporter: FRANK KLIPSCH IS

THE MAYOR OF DAVENPORT.

>> WE'VE HAD A LONG-TERM

POSITION IN THE COMMUNITY THAT

WE WANT TO EMBRACE THE RIVER AND

NOT TRY TO FIGHT IT.

>> Reporter: DAVENPORT IS THE

LARGEST CITY ON THE MISSISSIPPI

WITHOUT A PERMANENT FLOOD WALL

OR LEVEE SYSTEM.

RATHER THAN BUILD A PERMANENT

BARRIER, THE CITY INVESTED IN A

TEMPORARY FLOODWALL BUILT FROM

METAL MESH CONTAINERS FILLED

WITH SAND, CALLED HESCOS.

THE CITY HAS ALSO EXPANDED GREEN

SPACE BY BUYING OUT LOW-LYING

PROPERTIES, CREATING A BUFFER

ZONE THAT IS DESIGNED TO FLOOD

AND HOLD WATER AS THE RIVER

RISES.

MAYOR KLIPSCH SAYS IT'S A MODEL

THAT HAS SERVED DAVENPORT WELL.

>> WHEN YOU HAVE A RECORD FLOOD,

IT CHALLENGES YOU.

AND NOW, IT'S A MATTER OF TRYING

TO WORK THROUGH THAT.

AND HOW DO WE, IN FACT,

CONTINUE TO DO A BETTER AND

BETTER JOB DEALING WITH THAT

TEMPORARY NATURE, BUT EMBRACING

THE RIVER OVERALL.

>> Reporter: IN JULY, MAYOR

KLIPSCH FORMED A TASK FORCE TO

STUDY HOW THE CITY SHOULD UPDATE

ITS FLOOD PLAN.

IT HAD REPRESENTATIVES FROM

FEDERAL AGENCIES, INCLUDING THE

ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS AND THE

NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC

ADMINISTRATION, PLUS LOCAL

OFFICIALS AND BUSINESS OWNERS,

INCLUDING TIM BALDWIN.

>> THIS IS DAVENPORT'’S PROBLEM.

>> Reporter: YEAH.

>> THIS IS BETTENDORF'’S PROBLEM.

THEIR PROBLEM IS MITIGATED WITH

THAT WALL.

>> Reporter: DRIVING AROUND THE

REGION, BALDWIN SHOWED ME WHAT

SOME OF DAVENPORT'S OPTIONS MAY

BE.

>> YOU THINK ABOUT WHERE OUR

BUSINESS IS LOCATED ON THE

RIVER, THIS WOULD BE OUR VIEW.

>> Reporter: THE TOWN OF

BETTENDORF SITS RIGHT NEXT TO

DAVENPORT.

IT COMPLETED THIS PERMANENT

LEVEE IN 1987.

IT'S ESTIMATED THAT A SIMILAR

WALL IN DAVENPORT, WHICH IS A

MUCH BIGGER CITY, WOULD COST AT

LEAST $175 MILLION.

BUT, REGARDLESS OF THE COST,

BALDWIN DOESN'T WANT TO SEE ONE

IN DAVENPORT.

>> I CERTAINLY WOULDN'T WANT MY

CUSTOMERS TO CLIMB UP ON A LEVEE

TO... TO BE ABLE TO TAKE

ADVANTAGE OF THE... OF THE RIVER

VIEWS.

SO, SITTING BEHIND A WALL LIKE

THIS JUST DOESN'T HAVE THE SAME

APPEAL.

>> Reporter: BUT DAVENPORT WILL

HAVE TO DO SOMETHING, ESPECIALLY

IF IT WANTS TO PROTECT ITS

LOW-LYING DOWNTOWN.

AND IT'’S NOT ALONE.

INCREASED FLOODING IS AN ISSUE

THAT COMMUNITIES UP AND DOWN THE

MISSISSIPPI ARE DEALING WITH.

IS CLIMATE CHANGE CONTRIBUTING

TO AN INCREASED NUMBER OF

FLOODS?

>> ABSOLUTELY.

>> Reporter: DEFINITIVELY?

>> DEFINITIVELY.

>> Reporter: LARRY WEBER IS AN

ENGINEERING PROFESSOR AT THE

UNIVERSITY OF IOWA AND THE

CO-FOUNDER OF THE IOWA FLOOD

CENTER.

IT'S AN ACADEMIC CENTER CREATED

TO HELP THE STATE PREPARE AND

PROTECT ITSELF FROM FLOODS.

>> WE GET A LOT OF RAINFALL IN

IOWA.

AS CLIMATE CHANGE HAS IMPACTED

OUR WEATHER IN IOWA, WE DON'T

GET THE RIGHT AMOUNT AT THE

RIGHT TIME AS MUCH ANYMORE.

YOU KNOW, WE HAVE THIS

INTENSIFICATION OF RAINFALL.

YOU KNOW, IT'S THE RAINFALL

EVENT WHERE WE HAD EIGHT INCHES

OF RAIN, AND THEN WE GET ANOTHER

SIX-INCH RAIN, AND THEN ANOTHER

TEN-INCH RAIN, AND THEN NO RAIN

FOR SEVERAL WEEKS OR MONTHS.

>> Reporter: SO, FLOOD, DROUGHT,

FLOOD, FLOOD, DROUGHT.

>> YEAH, YEAH, THAT'’S RIGHT.

>> Reporter: HE SAYS THE

INCREASE HAS BEEN NOTICEABLE FOR

IOWANS OVER THE LAST QUARTER

CENTURY.

>> IN 1993, THE GENERAL SENSE

AMONGST MANY PEOPLE THROUGHOUT

THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER WAS, WE

HAD JUST EXPERIENCED THE FLOOD

OF A LIFETIME.

YOU KNOW, WE EXPERIENCED THE

"500-YEAR FLOOD."

AND SO, WE WOULDN'T EXPECT TO

SEE AN EVENT LIKE THAT AGAIN.

>> Reporter: LO AND BEHOLD,

THOUGH, WE'VE SEEN MANY MORE

500-YEAR FLOODS.

>> YEAH.

IN 2008, PEOPLE WERE SURPRISED

WHEN THE IOWA AND CEDAR RIVER

BASINS FLOODED AGAIN AT LEVELS

THAT WERE EQUAL TO OR MUCH

GREATER THAN 1993.

>> Reporter: IN JUNE OF 2008,

IOWA EXPERIENCED THE LARGEST

NATURAL DISASTER IN ITS HISTORY

WHEN THE CEDAR RIVER FLOODED

CEDAR RAPIDS, CAUSING AN

ESTIMATED $5.4 BILLION IN

DAMAGES.

MORE THAN 11 YEARS LATER, THE

CITY IS STILL RECOVERING AS IT

IMPLEMENTS A $550 MILLION FLOOD

PROTECTION PLAN.

FUNDED WITH FEDERAL, STATE, CITY

AND PRIVATE MONEY, THE PLAN

INCLUDES LEVEES, WALLS AND

ENTIRE NEIGHBORHOODS THAT WERE

BOUGHT OUT AND RETURNED TO GREEN

SPACE.

THE COST AND TIMELINE OF CEDAR

RAPIDS' RECOVERY IS NOT LOST ON

OFFICIALS IN DAVENPORT.

>> IT TAKES THAT LONG TO PLAN,

AND IT TAKES THAT LONG TO GET

THE PROPER FUNDING IN PLACE.

SO, IT'S NOT A... A QUICK

PROPOSITION, UNFORTUNATELY.

>> Reporter: NICOLE GLEASON IS

DAVENPORT'S DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC

WORKS.

SHE'S RESPONSIBLE FOR

IMPLEMENTING THE CITY'S FLOOD

PLAN, INCLUDING THE PLACEMENT OF

TEMPORARY BARRIERS.

IS IT POSSIBLE TO BALANCE THESE

TWO IDEAS, THE IDEA THAT YOU

WANT TO HAVE AN ACCESSIBLE

RIVERFRONT AND YOU ALSO WANT TO

HAVE A DRY DAVENPORT?

>> I THINK IT IS, BUT I THINK

THAT IT'S GOING TO HAVE TO BE A

BALANCE OF FIGURING OUT CRITICAL

INFRASTRUCTURE, CRITICAL ASSETS

AND MAYBE LOOKING AT PROTECTING

THOSE SPECIFICALLY; AND THEN

LOOKING AT OTHER WAYS TO TURN

THOSE AREAS THAT ARE MORE

DIFFICULT TO PROTECT OR DON'T

MAKE AS MUCH SENSE AND TO

PROTECT INTO MORE... MORE

PARKLAND, MORE WETLANDS, THINGS

LIKE THAT.

>> Reporter: BUT FIGURING OUT

HOW TO BALANCE PROTECTING

DIFFERENT PARTS OF DAVENPORT'S

NINE-MILE RIVERFRONT, AND WHO

SHOULD BEAR THE COST, COULD BE A

CONTENTIOUS PROCESS WITH SO MANY

STAKEHOLDERS.

>> YOU START THIS BATTLE BETWEEN

DOWNTOWN BUSINESS OWNERS OR

THOSE THAT LIVE ALONG THE RIVER,

AND THE REST OF THE TAXPAYERS IN

THE CITY OF DAVENPORT SAYING,

"YOU'RE THE DUMMIES THAT BUILT

DOWN THERE, OR OPERATE

BUSINESSES DOWN THERE, OR LIVE

DOWN THERE, WHY SHOULD WE PAY

FOR THIS?"

AND ON THE SURFACE, YOU KNOW,

THAT'S PROBABLY A NATURAL

REACTION, AND PROBABLY WITH SOME

ACCURACY THERE.

BUT, YOU KNOW, WHAT PEOPLE DON'T

THINK ABOUT IS THAT THIS FLOOD

MITIGATION IS A PROBLEM FOR THE

ENTIRE CITY.

>> Reporter: AND BALDWIN

CONCEDES THAT PERMANENT FLOOD

PROTECTION FOR DAVENPORT MIGHT

MEAN RETREATING FROM THE RIVER.

>> YOU KNOW, IF... IF THE CITY

AND FEMA CAME IN AND SAID, "THIS

IS WHAT WE NEED TO DO," WE

WOULDN'T HAVE HAD A LOT OF

PUSHBACK.

>> Reporter: IF THEY SAID, "WE

NEED TO BUY YOUR BUILDINGS AND

TEAR THEM DOWN"?

>> TO TEAR THEM DOWN.

I MEAN, CERTAINLY, WE'D WANT TO

BE COMPENSATED APPROPRIATELY,

BUT, NO, WE WOULDN'T HAVE PUSHED

BACK ON THAT BECAUSE IT SEEMED

TO BE THE RIGHT THING TO DO.

THERE'S OTHER PLACES WE CAN

OPERATE FROM, RIGHT?

>> Reporter: BUT, FOR NOW, THIS

PUB REMAINS ON THE RIVERFRONT,

CELEBRATING A GRAND-REOPENING

SEVEN MONTHS AFTER IT WAS

FLOODED.

(GAVEL BANGS )

>> I WOULD LIKE TO CALL THIS

SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING...

>> Reporter: MEANWHILE, FRANK

KLIPSCH'S TERM AS MAYOR JUST

ENDED, BUT HE SAYS THAT THE

CITY'S FLOOD TASK FORCE HAS

IDENTIFIED SEVERAL SHORT-TERM

PRIORITIES, INCLUDING

COMMISSIONING A COMPREHENSIVE

ENGINEERING STUDY.

HAS THIS CHANGED THE WAY THAT

YOU THINK ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE?

>> I THINK THE REALITY OF IT IS

THERE'S STILL... I HAVE FOUND

THERE'S SOME PEOPLE THAT WANT NO

TALK OF... OF HOW IT'S

HAPPENING, BUT EVERYONE CAN

UNDERSTAND THERE'S A NEW NORMAL

NOW, AND WE'VE GOT TO DEAL WITH

IT.

>> Reporter: AND OFFICIALS NOTE

THAT THIS PAST FALL WAS WETTER

THAN 2018, NOT A GOOD SIGN FOR

KEEPING DAVENPORT DRY THIS YEAR

AS THE WINTER SNOW MELTS AND THE

SPRING RAINS COME.