Hazard Mitigation Planning in Alabama
About Us
Lehe Planning, LLC was established in October 2000 to provide local governments and agencies access to professional planning and project management services. Our goal is to assist local governments and agencies with their total planning and project management needs.
Our firm offers a multi-disciplinary project team approach. We have established relationships with professional planners, GIS analysts, engineers, hydrologists, architects, emergency management specialists, and other professionals. With our network, we can assemble the right mix of professionals to meet any project's demands.
300 Century Park South, Suite 216
Birmingham, AL 35226
205.978.3633
Lehe Planning, LLC provides quality services with effective results delivered to our clients. Our firm uses a personable approach that facilitates a full partnership with each of our clients, respective of the unique needs and special conditions required for successful consulting services. Quality, thoroughness, innovation and responsiveness are the cornerstones of our successes. We are committed to deliver customized services that fully meet each of our client's needs.
Our firm's experience across public sector organizations assures responsiveness to a community's planning and project management demands. Leveraging Federal funds, where available, minimizes the financial burden to localities during these harsh economic times. Our comprehensive knowledge and experience in achieving results assures the client of the value of professional services offered by Lehe Planning, LLC.
What is Hazard Mitigation?
Hazard mitigation is any action taken to permanently reduce or eliminate long-term risks to people and their property from the effects of both natural and man-made or technological hazards: tornadoes, floods, hurricanes, severe storms, winter freezes, wildfires, heat waves and droughts, landslides, land subsidence, earthquakes, dam failures resulting from natural disaster crises or technological/human-causes crises. Communities can take steps to prepare and implement mitigation measures for almost any type of hazard that may threaten its citizens, businesses and institutions.
Lehe Planning, LLC provides expertise in hazard mitigation planning, project management and securing Federal funding.
Mitigation Planning Projects
Voluntary Assistance to Alabama Communities Affected by the April 27th Tornadoes. Lehe Planning has been providing voluntary professional services to the City of Tuscaloosa (guidance on FEMA Hazard Mitigation Assistance programs; identification of potential hazard mitigation projects for emergency generators, community safe rooms, flood warning system, weather radio distribution, floodway acquisition, and mitigation plan update and risk assessment studies; and drafting of an HMGP Letter of Intent for Water Department generators), the City of Fultondale (guidance on FEMA Public Assistance for municipal complex damage, Letter of Intent and development of FEMA HMGP applications for three community safe rooms in progress), Town of Cordova (guidance on FEMA Hazard Mitigation and Public Assistance Programs), the Jefferson County EMA (Letters of Intent for HMGP funding of community safe rooms, flood warning system upgrades, and advance mitigation planning tools), the Town of Waverly (HMGP application assistance for community safe room), and the Mobile County EMA (Letters of Intent for community hurricane shelters and emergency generators). Similarly, Lehe Planning provided voluntary professional services in 2005-2006 to Mobile County communities affected by Hurricane Katrina as an active participant in the Long Term Recovery Planning process. We helped identify recovery projects and potential funding sources through a vast array of programs, including a Congressional Disaster Relief Initiative appropriation through the HUD Community Development Block Grant Program.
City of Tuscaloosa Moody Swamp Tributary 3 Drainage Project. Lehe Planning examined the economic feasibility of over $4 million in drainage system improvements to mitigate flooding in this mixed use, urbanized area of 258 structures threatened by flooding. The proposed improvements would lower flood elevations by up to 12 feet in some locations. The feasibility study led to our successfully obtaining a FEMA Pre-Disaster Mitigation grant funding for $3 million. (2008-date)
City of Tuscaloosa Flood Plain Acquisition Project. FEMA awarded funds under the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program to cover 75% of the costs of this $2.5 million project, and the City retained Lehe Planning to implement the project. The project resulted in the acquisition of 18 substantially-damaged homes within an area of repeated flooding. (2008-2011)
City of Mountain Brook, Watkins Brook Flood Hazard Mitigation Project. This $8.8 million structural project for the City of Mountain Brook is now nearing completion to relieve flooding threats to the City’s principal commercial center. Lehe Planning prepared the FEMA grant application that secured a $6.5 million Federal share, completed the feasibility studies, and now manages its implementation. Schoel Engineering is the Project Engineer.
Building a Better Brookside, Comprehensive Disaster Recovery. This disaster recovery process responded to the 2003 flood which devastated this historic mining town of about 1,500 persons. Known as “Brookside’s Katrina,” this flood destroyed 20 percent of the housing stock, all municipal buildings, and the entire commercial property base. To aid its recovery, we planned and implemented a strategy to acquire flood-damaged properties and relocate residents through $2.3 million in FEMA grants. Afterwards, we developed and helped implement plans for rebuilding the Town and recovering from its flood disasters. We helped the town secure over $3.5 million in additional funds through the U.S.D.A. Rural Development Program, ADECA Recreation Funding Program, and local contributions from the Jefferson County Commission to build a new municipal complex with a city hall, community center, public works building, Post Office, and fire station atop a community safe room. We also kicked off the Brookside component of the 45-mile Five Mile Creek Greenway, a county-wide initiative that evolved from flood hazard acquisition projects. (2003-2008)
Birmingham Water Works Board Generator. Lehe Planning secured a $1 million grant for the construction of an emergency power generator for the Putnam Filtration Plant and managed project implementation.
Community Safe Rooms. Lehe Planning, working with Mark Burns Architecture, obtained over $1.5 million in FEMA HMGP funds to construct community safe rooms for the Town of Brookside, Tannehill State Park, and the City of Adamsville.
Multi-Hazard Mitigation Planning. Lehe Planning has extensive experience drafting strategic community plans for hazard mitigation, which include community action programs that identify projects and funding sources. We have completed or are working on plans for Mobile County, Jefferson County, Baldwin County, Marshall County and have assisted 19 counties with their initial hazard mitigation plans.