C-25 Correspondence – Ryan Wolfe
From: Ryan Wiggins [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Tuesday, December 13, 2022 4:57 PM
To: CityClerk <[email protected]>
Subject: Comment on December 13th City Council Meeting Consent Item #25 File 22-1473
-EXTERNAL-
I would like to comment on the implementation of this. According to the map there are a number of pumps and drains that have been identified as part of the work program. I would like to add that this should be an opportunity to identify substandard drains along streets throughout the city and take steps to fix or upgrade them. While relying on reports of flooding is one helpful data point that can be used to identify where improvements need to be made it should not be the only one. Many residents do not understand how or where to report infrastructure issues that occur, and in many cases those who do do not effectively trust that the City will take action.
In certain parts of the city that have been historically low-income and disadvantaged, living with substandard infrastructure and a lack of timely response has become an expected norm over time. As a result, these communities may often fail to report issues such as inadequate storm drainage both as a matter of not having the information to do so and a perception that the City is apathetic to their needs.
While the latter may not be true, it is incumbent on the City to take steps to ensure that needs are met and reports of flooding are not likely to accurately reflect deficiencies and needs.
As an example, in our neighborhood in Wilmoore the storm drains are frequently narrow and clog easily.
Nearly every time it rains the storm drains that circle the block between between Chestnut and Cedar on both 7th and 8th Streets clog and flooding ensues. Even in moderate rains this results in one or more traffic lanes flooding with up to 1 ft of water and water encroaching over the curbs and sidewalks. As a result, curbs and sidewalks are deteriorating, parked cars experience water up to their doors, and travel conditions for people driving, walking, and rolling become more dangerous and uncomfortable. We are new to this neighborhood and have been reporting these issues over the last several months. To its credit the Public Works Department has responded generally in a timely manner to these reports but while flooding occurs it creates the listed problems. In the future as rain precipitation events become more extreme these occurrences will become more extreme and events such as this will become worse and more impactful. When we have conversations with our neighbors about this they frequently shrug and state that the City doesn't care about these neighborhoods. We don't think that is true; however, residents here won't become engaged until the City shows that it cares and it if it relies only on reported flooding incidents this dynamic will continue. We of course want our issues in our neighborhood addressed but we also want th City to take a more comprehensive approach to identify needs. Attached are some pictures and videos of recent issues we've experienced after rains.
Thank you,
Ryan Wolfe