Engineers have determined that the cost to repair both Riverside Drive and Old Sayers Road after extensive flood damage could be six times more expensive than the Federal Emergency Management Agency calculated last year.

FEMA estimated the road repairs around $300,000, but after engineer-recommended improvements the repairs are estimated around $2 million.

Furthermore, in a report given to commissioners by Halff Associates, engineers deemed the portion of Riverside Drive at Akaloa Drive a "threat to public safety" and recommended a stretch of roadway be closed to traffic until it’s repaired.

"With the current condition of the roadway (that) remains open to the public, it is Halff’s professional opinion that this section of the roadway is a danger to public safety and should be closed to traffic," the report said.

Riverside Drive and Old Sayers Road, both of which border the Colorado River, suffered extensive erosion during heavy rains and flooding in May.

Officials included both streets on a list of projects for FEMA reimbursement to get them back to their condition before the disaster.

However, after inspecting the sites engineers from Halff Associates recommended more extensive work to prevent future damage, including adding a retaining wall and guardrail along Old Sayers Road and a reinforced box culvert at Riverside Drive, along with constructing temporary roads for vehicle traffic during repairs.

If approved, the added improvements would increase the cost for both projects to nearly $1.8 million – about $1.5 million more than FEMA anticipated. Halff anticipates repairs to Old Sayers Road north of Bastrop to cost about $856,000 and Riverside Drive in Tahitian Village around $938,000.

In light of the recommendation, officials from the Bastrop County Office of Emergency Management approached commissioners this week to see if they could submit the projects for a hazard mitigation grant to cover the full cost.

The county would still be on the hook for 25 percent of the total cost — or about $450,000. And commissioners were hesitant to push forward the high-price projects.

"This seems absolutely ridiculous," Precinct 2 Commissioner Clara Beckett said at a meeting last week. "A million dollars. I’d rather move the road over rather than building a retaining wall."

Commissioner Bubba Snowden, who presides over Precinct 4 where Old Sayers Road is located, agreed that moving the roads would be the best way forward.

"I think that’s the smart thing to do," he said.

After some discussion, commissioners decided to postpone the go-ahead to apply for the mitigation grants until they could gather more information about what work would become the county’s obligation if the projects were approved.

Emergency Management Coordinator Mike Fisher said the clock is ticking on submitting the projects. Hazard mitigation grant applications for Memorial Day 2016 flood damage will be due in February, he said.

"February isn’t that far away," Fisher reminded commissioners.

Meanwhile, he said he couldn’t argue with engineers who said the road isn’t safe to drive.

"It’s a real dilemma," he said. "We just don’t know what to do. In order to close it, we’re going to have to find an alternate route. There are people that use it. It’s the only way to get to their homes."

Commissioner Willie Piña — who until Dec. 31 represented Precinct 1, which includes Riverside Drive — suggested closing the deteriorated stretch of road and repaving the west end of the street so residents have access to their homes from Lamaloa Lane to Waikakaaua Drive.

"I’m not an engineer, but it’s not safe," he said. "Next heavy rain, it’ll fall apart again."

Piña said it will be up to his successor, Mel Hamner, to make decisions now for Precinct 1. Hamner was sworn in Sunday.