Newsom visits Tulare Lake, pledges help with floods. But one city says it’s not getting what it needs

The Governor’s Office of Emergency Services and other state agencies have been in Fresno, Kings, Kern and Tulare counties for more than a month to help with cleanup from storms that sent high water from rivers and creeks over roads, farms and even neighborhoods.

Over the next few months, more flooding is expected as record snow in the nearby Sierra Nevada melts and swells waterways. Some channels have had so much water that they’ve spilled into the historical bed of Tulare Lake, now home to mostly agricultural fields and a handful of small communities.

“We’re here for the long haul,” Newsom said at a press conference in unincorporated Kings County where a flooded tractor and other submerged farm equipment stood in the background. “We recognize the impact this has had on real people.”

不过,即使l the attention on the region, at least one city is not getting what it says it needs to stay dry.

Corcoran, an agricultural center on what was once the bottom of Tulare Lake in Kings County, doesn’t have the money that local leaders have been pursuing to raise a nearly 15-mile levee for flood protection for its 22,500 residents and a major prison complex.

Earlier this month, the local flood control district, in coordination with the city, tapped its limited reserves to begin the estimated $17 million to $21 million levee upgrade. But City Manager Greg Gatzka said Tuesday the work may have to stop if financial help doesn’t come soon.

“That’s the reality,” Gatzka said. “If we can’t get our funding reimbursed, we can’t keep spending money on this project.”

The Cross Creek Flood Control District has said that floodwaters from Tulare Lake could overtake the city’s levee in late spring or early summer with the snowmelt.

Tulare Lake dried up decades ago when agricultural interests choked off the incoming waterways. However, the lake has been known to return in a handful of extraordinarily wet years, most recently 1997, when irrigation and flood control systems can’t contain the runoff from Sierra rivers. At least 100 square miles of farm country remained underwater this week.

Corcoran, the largest community threatened by the lake, has more than $6 billion of property at risk, according to estimates by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation operates two neighboring prison facilities in the city with about 8,000 total inmates.

Officials with the Cross Creek Flood Control District say that June 1 is their target date for raising the L-shaped levee that partially surrounds the city by about 4 feet. It’s a big job that’s estimated to require 850,000 cubic yards of dirt — more than 50,000 dump trucks’ worth. Work began on the project the first week of April.

Newsom said Tuesday that the state is still evaluating where to channel aid. He said the process has been slow because the region doesn’t have a coordinated flood control plan. A patchwork of agencies and landowners are working — sometimes independently and against one another — to stop the floodwaters.

“We’re assessing the rules of engagement. They’re not well established,” Newsom said. “Different ownership structures. Different expectations. You can’t just raise one portion of the levee without considering the impact in another portion. There are unintended consequences.”

State officials were expected to meet with Corcoran officials late Tuesday to discuss the levee project.

Kings County Supervisor Richard Valle, who represents the Corcoran area, said he was confident the community would get what it needs.

“For the governor to be here today lowers the anxiety level,” Valle said. “People know that the governor is aware. He shows that he cares about being here. And we look forward to working together to get past the challenging times that we have ahead of us.”

Reach Kurtis Alexander: kalexander@sfchronicle.com