Demand for funding: Central Coast leaders ask for funding to expedite Pajaro River levee protection

CENTRAL COAST, Calif. (KION-TV) -- U.S. Representatives Jimmy Panetta and Zoe Lofgren, as well as U.S. Senators Alex Padilla and Laphonza Butler signed a letter calling for previously requested funding to be approved to expedite protection work needed along the Pajaro River levee.

In the letter, $200 million was reportedly requested from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to complete the work to prevent disastrous flooding like what was seen back in March 2023 and multiple times before in Pajaro.

The letter indicates officials with the Office of Management and Budget and the Pentagon are the ones signing off on the Work Plan for the USACE for the fiscal year.

$149 million in funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law was previously received for the project, but Central Coast leaders argue more is needed in the town they see as ag workers that are contributors to a $750 million industry in the area.

"The residents and businesses of Watsonville and Pajaro have been waiting for decades for urgent
flood protection and during that time have suffered significant damage and loss of life due to
flooding," the statement reads.

Pajaro continues to feel the impact of the flooding with revitalization efforts still underway.

This includes not just homes, but also the middle school that saw extensive damage in the wake of the flooding.