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Kuhle, Karen Letter re: DrainagMichael VanMilligan City Manager City Hall Dubuque, IA 52001 Karen M. Kuhle 2662 Central Ave. Dubuque, Iowa 52001-3339 August 23, 2002 Dear Mr. VanMilligan: I am writing regarding the recent 8+ inch rain storm of August 21st. We have lived in the 2600 block of Central Avenue since 1973. In all those years, we have only had extreme water in our basement three times, 1993, 1999 and again in June of 2002, (3 times more than we would like to have experienced). After each flooding, the City cleaned out the 32nd Street retention basin and the B-branch sewer line. We understand that this is done "routinely" ever three years, and that it was done once again "after" the June flooding. The City's remedy to the flooding is to buy a bunch of people's homes to put in a waterway. I do not thinkthat is really necessary. We had more rain on the 21~ of August than we did in June, and we only had a little puddle of water in our basement this time. My mother-in-law, who lives on 26th and Washington, expressed the same to me. She had major water on the same dates that we did in '93, 99 and in June of this year, but had none this time. What does this show us? It seems to us that if the City would keep the 32nd Street basin cleaned every year, as well as the B-branch sewer line, instead of waiting until after major flooding of homes, we would not have the problems we have been experiencing since 1993. I have a feeling that the City only cleans the retention basin and sewer line only every three years so that home owners do experience the flooding so that the City can push through the waterway. I am no engineer, but it doesn't seem to me that we need an outside consultant to see that keeping the basin and sewer line clean seems to remedy the problem of basements flooding. I would think the cost to taxpayers would be much less to keep the basin and sewer line clean than it would be to build the waterway'. I can understand the need to make the 32nd retention basin larger to hold more water due to increased construction on the hill, (which seems to be the cause of the flooding, since we first experienced our basement flooding in 1993 -- twenty years after moving into our house, with major home construction on the hill off of 32nd St. in the past ten years) and, it seems to me that if it is made larger and kept clean, that the problems of water in basements on the north end would be solved, and at a far less cost than building a waterway. I would think the City would at least look at that option before spending so much money on a waterway that most people don't want. Very truly yours, _____________ Karen M. Kuhle cc: Mayor Terry Duggan City Mm~ger's Office City Hah 50 West 13th Street D~buque, Iowa 520014864 (563) 5894110 office (563) 589-4149 fax ctymgr~cityofdubuque.org August 30, 2002 Ms. Karen Kuhle 2262 Central Avenue Dubuque, IA 52001-3339 Dear Ms. Kuhle: Thank you for your letter dated August 23, 2002, regarding stormwater issues in your area and the rainfall on August 21 and previous storm incidents. While there is no doubt that cleaning the Bee Branch storm sewer improves the drainage of the north end, numerous other factors determine the level of property damage due to large rainstorms. The following points of interest may be beneficial in the understanding of recent storms and the City's current direction. Rainfall Distribution It would be erroneous to believe that 8 inches of rainfall fell on the entire City in August 2002. It is true that reported rainfall depths reached up to 8 inches in various pads of Dubuque County. The National Weather Service reported 8 inches at the Dubuque Regional Airport, which is approximately 8.0 miles south of Comiskey Park. Recorded rainfall depths in the Bee Branch basin (the watershed basin where you live), ranged between 4.2 and 4.6 inches. In comparison, the approximate rainfall depths recorded in the Bee Branch basin for past storms were 6 inches in July of 1993, 5 inches in May of 1999, and 6 inches in June of 2002. Rainfall intensity It takes time for rain to soak into the ground or collect in storm sewers. As a result, flood damage is more likely when heavy rain falls over a shod period. In May of 1999, the City received 6 inches of rain in 6 hours. Fortunately, the 4.2 to 4.6 inches the City received in August fell over an 18 to 20 hour pedod. Service People Integrity Responsibility Innovation Teamwork Soil Moisture and Ground Cover Runoff, by definition, is the portion of rainwater that vegetation does not intercept and the ground does not soak up. Dubuque had not had any significant rainfall in the two weeks before the August rainstorm; the dry ground was able to soak up a significant portion of the rain. Unfortunately, the heavy rain in June was preceded by rain just days before. W. 32® Street Detention Basin Maintenance White it is true the City has removed debds near the basin's outlet gate on numerous occasions, silt has not been removed from the 32nd Street Basin since the summer of 1999. However, it is the intent of the Engineering Division to hire a contractor within the next two weeks to remove the small amount of silt that has accumulated. Increased Upstream Detention A study of the Bee Branch basin determined two locations where detention can help reduce downstream flooding in the Bee Branch basin. Doubling the storage capacity of the existing W. 32nd Street detention basin and the construction of a new detention basin located just west of Carter Road and south of Arbor Oaks will reduce the flow to the Bee Branch storm sewer from the W. 32nd Street sub- basin by eighty percent (80%). The City has purchased property for the Carter Road detention basin and hopes to begin construction next year. Re-Study of Bee Branch Drainaqe Basin The City Council has directed City staff to employ a second consultant to study the drainage of the Bee Branch basin. The first study not only recommended all the additional detention mention previously be constructed, but a channel five (5) times the existing size of the Bee Branch would have to be built to protect your area from the 100 year rainfall occurrence. The consultant, to be selected in early October, will review the past study findings and find alternative solutions our community can agree with that will keep stormwater out of basements. To that end, the consultant hired for the re-study must establish channels of communication that promote input from the approximately 1,150 at-risk property owners. A Citizen Advisory Committee, a survey (questionnaire) of the 1,150 property owners, and public meetings with neighborhood groups will be a few of the activities aimed at getting as many citizens involved as possible. While we can agree that maintaining existing stormwater drainage facilities like the Bee Branch storm sewer and the W. 32nd Street detention basin is important, the City believes more needs to be done to prevent the flooding of basements in your neighborhood. Sincerely,_______________________ Michael C. Van Miligen, City Manager.