WINFIELD, W.Va. -- Putnam County commissioners chose a St. Albans engineering firm on Tuesday to begin alleviating the Hometown flooding problem.

If commissioners can reach a cost agreement with Qk4, headquartered in Louisville, Ky., the company will perform the work to temporarily fix perennially flooded Hometown.

Hometown is wedged between the Kanawha River and Little Guano Creek. Railroad tracks raised several feet above ground level run through the town, placing most of the houses in a flood-prone bowl. The ditches along the tracks are filled with years of silt runoff.

Commissioners heard proposals from four firms vying for the project during their meeting. County Manager Brian Donat said Qk4 was the No. 1 pick and E.L. Robinson Engineering, of Charleston, ranked second on their list. Donat said during the interviews engineering firms aren't allowed to discuss cost and must wait to negotiate a price after revealing their choice.

Mike Newton, with Qk4, said after the meeting that there is a "severe need" to solve the community's flooding problem.

"Hometown's is the worst flooding in all of Putnam County, as far as I know," Newton said. He said Qk4 is working on a similar project in Eleanor and formerly worked with the Putnam Public Service District studying Hometown.

Last year, commissioners approved a $12,000 cost-sharing agreement with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to help figure out what was causing the problem.

The engineers determined the easiest temporary solution would be to simply clear the town's ditches and drains. The corps study outlined a longer-term option, which is to redirect a channel near the northern edge of town to carry rainwater along W.Va. 62 and into Little Guano Creek. That option could cost the county nearly $500,000, according to the Corps study.

Commissioners have grappled for years with how to fix the problem, and have tried to encourage residents to incorporate, form a homeowners' association or be annexed into a nearby town.

Newton said part of Qk4's efforts would be to seek grants to secure funding for the project.

Commissioners also hired Beth Baldwin to fill the vacancy in the county's WVU Extension Office. With Baldwin, there is now a full complement of three extension agents.

Baldwin, 25, of Given, graduated with a bachelor's degree in science and animal nutrition from West Virginia University. She is a 13-year member of the 4-H organization.

Reach Kate White at kate.wh...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-1723.