El Paso County works to address ‘inadequate’ Security-Widefield drainage infrastructure

SECURITY-WIDEFIELD, Colo. (KRDO) -- El Paso County is gearing up for storms headed into the region, prepping its snowplows and treating the roads for ice, but rain impacts are a challenge of their own.

Residents of Security-Widefield say they are well-acquainted with flooding at the intersection of Security Blvd. and Main Street.

El Paso County officials said they have projects planned to improve drainage, but because Security-Widefiled is an older area, the drainage infrastructure is inadequate to handle the rainfall it gets.

"We will do preventative stuff to make sure that when it does rain that we can mitigate the impacts as much as possible," said County Engineer Josh Palmer, "but if the drainage infrastructure is inadequate, it doesn't matter how clear those culverts or those bridges are. The water is going to be an issue going through there."

Right now, the county is working on an intersection project at the intersection of Security and Main. The project will primarily work to update the stoplights and other intersection functions, but it will also address minor drainage issues.

Additionally, the county is working on a project for the Security drainage ditch using ARPA grant funding.

The project will work to restore the crumbling concrete lining of the ditch, and the goal is that the project will be finished by winter 2024.