Memphis and Shelby County
Office of Sustainability and Resilience
Millington, TN
Big Creek
Big Creek Millington activity provides flood protection for nearby neighborhoods and the U.S. Naval Support Command Center in Millington through creation of a new floodplain which will also provide local recreational benefits.
Floodway and Overbank:
The resilient approach for this area includes the establishment of a large floodway between the existing levee on the north and the elevated Highway to the South to provide an area for flood waters to bypass the community. While creating the new floodplain will require removal of trees to improve water conveyance, a tree canopy plan will be implemented to offset tree removal by four-to-one.
Wetland and Recreation Area:
The Big Creek floodway will provide more room for a swelling stream during extreme storm events resulting in resilient, environmentally compatible solutions in the same space as recreational amenities for residents to use when the area is not flooded. The activity will create sustainable wildlife areas with native vegetation, wetlands, and other natural features. The area will also provide broader community benefits through connectivity of greenway trails, walking paths, ball fields, and other recreational amenities in a 1255 acre area.
Environmental Review
Below are links to a complete copy of the Big Creek Environmental Assessment.
Big Creek Environmental Assessment – CDBG Worksheet
Big Creek Environmental Assessment
Big Creek Environmental Assessment – Appendices Part 1
Big Creek Environmental Assessment – Appendices Part 2
Big Creek Environmental Assessment – Appendices Part 3
Big Creek Environmental Assessment – Attachments
Big Creek Combined Public Notice
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Public Notice of Environmental Review
Below are links to the notices that Shelby County published stating it had conducted an evaluation as required by Executive Order 11988 to determine the potential effect that its activity in wetlands and the floodplain will have on the human environment for the Big Creek Project under the HUD National Disaster Resiliency Grant.
Letter to FEMA – 1st 8-Step Ad