Laura Holbrook up for hiring as new Wyoming Valley Levee System overseer

A vote to promote Laura Holbrook as the new Wyoming Valley Levee System overseer is scheduled for Tuesday’s Luzerne County Flood Protection Authority meeting agenda.

Holbrook has worked at the authority for nearly a decade and was promoted from flood mitigation specialist to deputy executive director in February 2024.

Holbrook is a certified floodplain manager.

If approved as the new authority executive director, Holbrook would receive $92,500 annually in the position, the agenda said.

An executive director is needed because Christopher Belleman retired on Jan. 9 after 12 years in the position.

Belleman received approximately $100,000 annually in the position, and the position was publicly advertised with a minimum compensation of $80,000.

A motion is also on Tuesday’s authority agenda to approve a consulting agreement with Belleman, who is an engineer.

Authority executive director duties include oversight of the 16-mile flood control system along the Susquehanna River, which protects about 14,200 properties in parts of Exeter, Wyoming, West Wyoming, Forty Fort, Luzerne, Pringle, Edwardsville, Plymouth, Swoyersville, Kingston, Hanover Township, and Wilkes-Barre.

This complex system includes drainage structures, relief wells, pump stations, and an electrical distribution system with multiple substations, transformers, and miles of underground and aerial transmission lines, authority representatives have said.

Belleman had stressed that he deliberately built procedures and expertise into the staff so that flood protection would never be compromised if the director position became vacant.

That includes developing the “Wyoming Valley Flood Response Plan,” which outlines the coordinated response that must be provided by both the independent authority and county government when the Susquehanna rises to flood stage.

Tuesday’s meeting starts at 1 p.m. in the authority building at 1989 Wyoming Ave. in Forty Fort.

Erosion repair

An engineering design contract to remediate an erosion problem is also on the agenda.

Erosion is creeping toward part of the levee wall in Wilkes-Barre near the intersection of Riverside Drive and Academy Street, adjacent to the Black Diamond railroad bridge.

Belleman has said the section was stable for decades, but started to slough in recent months. On slopes, slough is soil, rock, and debris that has moved downhill, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The engineering design with Wilkes-Barre area-based Verdantas would be up to $59,700, the agenda said.