Metro Flood Diversion Authority photo

ASN Constructors employees place bridge girders on the crossing at 52nd Avenue S., north of Horace, N.D. It’s one of 19 crossings that will go over the 30-mi. stormwater diversion channel.

With the removal of an earthen plug, the first two of 14 reaches of the stormwater diversion channel will become a functioning internal watershed. That means rainfall and runoff events for close to another 3 mi. of the channel area at its downstream end, which is north of the metro area, will naturally drain into the Red River as intended. In time, the entire 30 mi. will operate in this manner, with 14 river and drain inlets intercepted along the way. That and other construction work can be seen in January's drone construction update, available at youtu.be/bnrJ4Yq_q7Q.

Here are some of the other highlights of the past month:

Crossings: Portions of the 4 mi. of piling needed for the BNSF Hillsboro and County Road 81 crossings were driven at those sites, which are southeast of Argusville, N.D. Near the opposite end of the metro area, girders were installed at the 52nd Avenue West crossing.

Maple River Aqueduct: A handful of contractors have been working on different aspects of this aqueduct, including Parsons Electric, which began installing embedded conduits for the aqueduct flume's low-flow channel heating system. The system will operate in colder months to maintain river flows and fish passage. This heating feature is believed to be the only one of its kind in the world.

In addition, Meyer Contracting has been forming and placing concrete for the structure's wingwalls, and ASN Constructors installed falsework, a temporary structure, to support future concrete placements for the walkway atop the south flume wall.

Stormwater Diversion Channel: In addition to removing the plug that was no longer needed due to the recent opening for the combined crossing for County Roads 4 and 31, ASN Constructors excavated more than 300,000 cu. yds. in Reach 12, which is near Horace, N.D.

For the latest road closures and more construction information, go to FMDiversion.gov.

About Metro Flood

Diversion Authority

The MFDA is a permanent North Dakota political subdivision that is cooperatively implementing the Fargo-Moorhead Area Diversion comprehensive project with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The MFDA works in partnership with the Red River Valley Alliance in a public-private partnership as well as the city of Fargo, city of Moorhead, Cass County, Clay County and the Cass County Joint Water Resource District.

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