NORFOLK, Nebraska – The Lower Elkhorn Natural Resources District (LENRD), in partnership with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), will host two public meetings for the North Fork Elkhorn River Flood Risk Reduction Plan. The first meeting will be held on Monday, Nov. 6, from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at Osmond City Hall, 413 N. State Street, Osmond, Nebraska. The second meeting will be held on Wednesday, Nov. 8, from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Pierce County Fairgrounds Pavilion, 622 N. Brown Street, Pierce, Nebraska. The format of the meetings will be open house, with no formal presentations planned. However, both LENRD and JEO Consulting Group representatives will be present to help explain the project and answer questions. As each meeting will feature the same information, community members are invited to attend the meeting that is most convenient or works best for their schedules. 

In August 2023, the Lower Elkhorn NRD Board of Directors selected JEO Consulting Group for the development of a flood risk reduction plan for the North Fork Elkhorn River watershed, which spans approximately 242,563 acres and includes the communities of Foster, Magnet, McLean, Osmond, Pierce, Plainview, and Wausa. Developed in accordance with NRCS requirements, this plan will document existing flooding issues, evaluate strategies that reduce the risk of flooding, and outline an implementation plan. 

The two meetings in early November serve as the first of three rounds of public meetings planned for the project. The purpose of these first meetings is to provide an overview of the project and collect input regarding flood-related experiences and concerns within the watershed. Written comments will be accepted until Wednesday, Dec. 6, 2023.   

Current planning efforts started in late August 2023 and are anticipated to be complete in early 2025. Funding for this project is provided by the NRCS Watershed and Flood Preventions Operations (WFPO) Program. For more information, visit the project website at jeo.com/north-fork-wfpo.

Project-related questions or written comment can be submitted to Curt Becker, Projects Manager, at (402) 371-7313 or cbecker [at] lenrd.org.