Posted on November 27, 2018
Kalamazoo city commissioners gave the green light to a plan to help address the chronic flooding issues in the city.
Commissioners approved a $1.08 million plan Monday to dredge the Crosstown ponds and nearby Axtel Creek.
Leaders said it’s the first step of many that are needed to fix the problem.
John Milne, the owner of Smokes on Burdick tobacco shop near Crosstown Parkway, said he’s dealt with chronic flooding for years.
“It doesn’t take long for the water to get to the road. We had a water main break and flooding last February and I lost nine days of business. That was harsh, something has to be done,” Milne said.
On Monday night, commissioners unanimously the project. The $1.08 million contract was awarded to Gro America in Wyoming, Michigan.
The plan calls for the dredging and disposal of 11,140 cubic yards of sediment from the South Crosstown Pond and the twin culverts from the east pond discharge to the confluence channel with the Portage Creek.
“This will allow the Portage and Axtel Creek to flow more normally, so that when we have a regular size, or a heavy minor rain we won’t experience a minor or irrational flooding we’ve had more recently,” said Kalamazoo Deputy City Manager Jeff Chamberlain.
Chamberlain said the Crosstown dredging project is the first step in a long-term effort to combat flooding.
“We are taking a multi-step approach. First is to clean out the ponds, get that flow working better and clean out the culverts,” Chamberlain said.
Two weeks ago, the commissioners approved an agreement with the U.S. Geological Survey to create hydraulic models and flood inundation maps during the next several years.
According to city documents, the maps can be adapted in real-time to track flood hazards and guide future mitigation of the floodplain.
“That will give us good data to help us understand based on data from the rain, where the water is going to go, and allow us to warn people ahead of time,” Chamberlain said.
The advanced warning could help many residents, including Ronald and Ruth Wiser, the Kalamazoo couple known for their extravagant Christmas display. The couple kept some of their decorations inside a Crosstown Parkway storage facility, which were ruined in the February flood.
“It was a mess, everything was tipped over. A lot of it was electronics got damp and got ruined,” said Ruth.
The dredging project is slated to begin in spring 2019.
Source: WWMT.com
