Decades of investment in levees, storage reservoirs and drainage systems have brought the threat of flooding under apparent control. Yet on occasion events like the flood of 1986 have put nature’s power in perspective and stimulated new flurries of flood protection activity. The Central Valley Flood Protection Plan was prepared in 2011 as a way to provide for a coordinated set of infrastructure improvements and management operations across the many layers of government agencies with responsibilities for flood protection in the Central Valley—including federal agencies (Corps of Engineers, Bureau of Land Management), the CA Department of Water Resources and local agencies like the American River Flood Control District.

The American River came close to overtopping its levees in 1986, Subsequently, a public joint-powers authority, the Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency (SAFCA), was established in 1989 as the coordinating entity for better local flood control. SAFCA's governing board is dominated by Sacramento County and the City of Sacramento, though it has representatives from the American River Flood Control District. It has authority to collect taxes that are used to protect property from flood damage. One such assessment, the Consolidated Capital Assessment District No. 2 that finances SAFCA's flood risk management program, applies to portions of Arden Arcade.