Why it makes sense to relocate an area that had suffered constant flooding:

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http://lacrossetribune.com/articles/2008/06/22/news/00lead.txt

Soldiers Grove: Relocated town spared heavy flood damage; former site inundated:

SOLDIERS GROVE, Wis. — The flood that damaged much of Gays Mills last week only hit a handful of homes upriver in Soldiers Grove, but it destroyed the town’s park.

The water tore playground equipment and benches from the ground, chewed up blacktop, ate swaths of land and dumped tons of rock and mud onto the land that was once downtown Soldiers Grove.

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The park was created three decades ago, when, after suffering through multiple floods, the village relocated about 30 businesses, 24 apartments and 10 houses to higher ground.

“It was a godsend,” Hestetune said of the relocation. “If it had been downtown where it used to be, there would be nothing left.”

Only a handful of homes in the town of 650 sustained major damage in last week’s flood, Martin said; in Gays Mills, there were 51.

It makes sense to relocate areas that suffer constant and sometimes severe flood damage whether it is a few houses, a neighborhood, or a small community. Millions of dollars are already spent for flood cleanup as peoples' homes and livelihood are damaged and destroyed. It's not only the loss of the physical dwellings, but the loss of lifetime memories and the comfort and safety that make a house a home.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

1. They relocated Shawneetown IL in the 1930s

after a devastating flood. The old village is still there, mostly historic buildings, but the new town, located several miles away from the Ohio, was planned out with nice streets and looks lovely. I used to live in the Ohio River valley, and know how bad floods can get. Personally, I'm glad I live in the mountains now, and not anywhere near a flood plain.