Federal, state and local officials are expected to join in a special groundbreaking ceremony at 11 a.m. Monday to highlight the beginning of the $40 million Santa Maria River Levee Improvement Project, the single-largest project funded to date in Santa Barbara County under the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

“ARRA Funding — Local Jobs for Levee Strength” is the theme for the event. The public is invited. The event will be held adjacent to the levee, off the Broadway Street exit from northbound Highway 101 near Santa Maria. Signs will direct attendees.

Fifth District Supervisor Joseph Centeno and 4th District Supervisor Joni Gray plan to attend, along with Rep. Lois Capps, members of the Santa Maria City Council, representatives of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, community members and other officials.

“This project not only will create local jobs, but it is vital to help ensure the safety of thousands of our county residents, buildings, roads, key infrastructure, ranches and farms,” Centeno said. “We want to thank Congresswoman Capps, the Army Corps of Engineers and the city for working with our county Public Works Department to make this much-needed project a reality.”

County officials tracking the effects of ARRA funding estimate the $40 million improvement project will generate more than 800 jobs and pump more than $120 million into the economy. Of that amount, about 450 jobs will be created or sustained locally, along with a $65 million boost to the local economy.

The Santa Maria River Levee Improvement Project will strengthen about seven miles of the levee from about Blosser Street to the Bradley Canyon Levee east of the city’s (Santa Maria) landfill. The project primarily uses soil cement for most of the work and could take up to 400 days to complete. Some initial site work is expected to begin later this month.

The levee was completed by the corps in 1963, and ownership and maintenance responsibility was given to the Santa Barbara County Flood Control District. The levee is constructed of sand and a rock protective layer. The new work will augment that rock with about 8 feet of soil cement. Soil cement is a form of reinforced earth, and has a texture like sandstone.

The Army Corps of Engineers is the lead federal agency overseeing the project.

— William Boyer is the communications director for Santa Barbara County.