History of the Flood Control District

The District was founded by the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors in 1959 in response to significant flooding events that plagued Maricopa County during its early history. In its first year of operation, the District had three employees. Today, nearly 200 employees provide flood control services and flood hazard education to the approximately 3.9 million residents of the County.

Initially the District focused on building dams (flood retarding structures), basins and channels to prevent flooding. Unprecedented population growth and development in the County since the 1990s, however, shifted the District’s emphasis to: 1) dynamic flood education programs to inform citizens about flood hazards; 2) the identification of specific hazard areas so County residents will make informed decisions about where to build; and 3) the control of development that directly impacts waterways through a mandated drainage administration and floodplain management regulation program.

The District has facilitated the planning, design and construction of more than 100 flood control structures, including 22 dams/flood retarding structures, in critical flood hazard areas of Maricopa County. The District is also responsible for monitoring 300 automatic rain gages, 150 automatic stream gages and 30 automatic weather stations throughout Maricopa and neighboring counties.

Below are some important milestones in Flood Control District history:

Year	Milestone
1959	Maricopa County Board of Supervisors creates the Flood Control District of Maricopa County
1967	Powerline Dam completed
1968	Powerline Floodway and Vineyard Dam completed
1968	National Flood Insurance Program established by the federal government
1969	Rittenhouse Dam completed
1970	Begins participation in the National Flood Insurance Program
1973	U.S. Congress passes the Flood Disaster Protection Act, which expands the National Flood Insurance Program by substantially increasing limits of coverage and the total amount of insurance authorized
1973	Dreamy Draw Dam completed
1974	Maricopa County adopts the first floodplain regulations for the unincorporated areas of the county, including 50-year and 100-year floodplains
1975	Buckeye Dams 1, 2 and 3; Old Cross Cut Canal; and Guadalupe Dam completed
1976	Preliminary Flood Insurance Study Flood Hazard and Floodway Boundary Maps are received from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
1976	Sunset and Sunnycove Dams completed
1979	Spook Hill Flood Retarding Structure completed
1980	Cave Buttes Dam completed
1980	District ALERT System completed to warn the National Weather Service of pending flood conditions in Maricopa County
1981	Saddleback Flood Retarding Structure and Diversion Channel completed
1982	Floodplain management responsibilities are transferred from the Maricopa County Planning & Development Department to the District
1982	Harquahala Dam and Floodway Channel completed
1983	Skunk Creek Channel and Levee completed
1984	Arizona Legislature enacts Floodplain Regulations for Maricopa County
1984	Assumes floodplain management responsibility for Buckeye, Tolleson, Chandler and Gila Bend
1984	Adobe Dam and Signal Butte Floodway Channel completed
1985	Indian Bend Wash, Holly Acres Levee and Bank Stabilization, Salt-Gila Clearing Project and New River Dam completed
1985	First Area Drainage Master Plan conducted
1986-88	Assumes floodplain management responsibility for Carefree, El Mirage, Cave Creek, Surprise and Litchfield Park
1988	Assumes role as drainage regulator for unincorporated Maricopa County
1989	Agua Fria Channelization, Bull Dog Floodway Channel and Apache Junction Dam completed
1989	East Maricopa Floodway completed
1990	Arizona Legislature revises Floodplain Regulation Statute to include a provision authorizing the District to complete Watercourse Master Plans
1990-91	Assumes floodplain management responsibility for Queen Creek and Guadalupe
1991	Joins the National Flood Insurance Program Community Rating System and receives a Class 9 rating, allowing residents in unincorporated Maricopa County to receive a five percent reduction in flood insurance premium rates
1991	District administrative office relocates to the Durango complex at 2801 West Durango Street in Phoenix
1994	Arizona Canal Diversion Channel (ACDC) completed
2002	Improves to a Class 5 rating in the National Flood Insurance Program Community Rating System, allowing residents in unincorporated Maricopa County to receive a larger 25 percent reduction in flood insurance premium rates
2004	Drainage regulation authority transferred from the District to the Maricopa County Planning & Development Department
2007	District officially becomes part of the Maricopa County Public Works Department
2009	50th anniversary of the creation of the District