KSHB 41 News reporter Braden Bates covers parts of Jackson County, Missouri, including Lee's Summit. Send Braden a story idea by email.
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The Little Blue River, which runs through several Jackson County cities including Lee's Summit, is receiving increased attention as plans move forward to address flooding concerns.
Eric Kennedy has lived in the Oaks Ridge Meadow neighborhood for 15 years. This is a spot specifically called out for flooding in a city presentation about the concerns.
"Blue River is just over there, just down the hill at the tree line," Kennedy said as he pointed to the water about 50 yards away.
While it's never crested the hill to his home, in past years he has seen the impact next door.
"I mean, it just looks like a pond out there instead of a park," Kennedy said.
He was talking about Velie Park off Anderson Road in Lee's Summit.
The park sits just off a creek connected to the Little Blue River and often fills with water when the river rises.
Lee's Summit city leaders said some of the issues came with growth in areas like Independence, Lee's Summit and Grandview since the 1960s.
"The channel is about 60% of the capacity from that time. And a lot of that has to do with the ecosystem standpoint, siltation, and other changes in the environment," George Binger, the City of Lee's Summit engineer, said.
The river's neighboring cities and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers ordered a floodwater survey in recent years.
One of the findings from the Corps showed how much sitting still could cost the local communities.
"They evaluated the damage to private property and infrastructure over a 50-year period, and it comes out to about $47 million per year of damage within this watershed," Binger said.
That is, if nothing changes, he said.
"Flooding has always been a recurring problem," Binger said. "It's trying to be more proactive."
One solution could be dry water basins, which would capture excess water and release it over a period of time.
Plans are early, and changes could take years, but local and federal efforts have started.
The local city governments will present the plans to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, who will then move them forward through the federal government.
While the survey was a 50/50 split between local and federal funds, the next steps will be a 65% federal and 35% local cost.
For Kennedy, he's happy where he is.
"I've been here a while. I don't have any plans to go anywhere," Kennedy said.
He believes the right steps are being taken.
"Proactive is the right thing. I'd rather them do that now before it's a problem as opposed to after, after it's a problem," Kennedy said.
You can see more on the City of Lee's Summit's presentation here.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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