Homeowners, town officials tackling stream cleanup
NORWICH – Fish have more rights than homeowners do, according to one town supervisor who - like a handful of others - has spent nearly three months working with federal regulators in order to rid waterways of flood-related debris.
This summer’s record breaking flood only added to the amount of gravel, dirt, trees and sometimes garbage that was already choking the county’s rivers and streams - even before last year’s flood. “The stream situation in Chenango County is a major problem that has been and will continue to be for a long, long time,” David C. Law, R-Norwich, told members of the Chenango County Planning Board last week. “We need to get our congressmen and senators to support the need to clean them out.”
The Town of Norwich estimated $2.5 million in flood damages this year, most of it to put its streams back together. Homeowners and private businesses had their own expenses as well.
Hank Scudder, of 254 state Highway 320, said he had spent nearly $9,000 fixing damages caused by the June 26 flood to his home and a camp. He said Thompsen Creek located behind his home has eroded away his yard for years. “It’s the DOT’s (state transportation department’s) problem, the DEC’s (state environmental conservation’s) ... Seems that it’s everybody’s else problem and nobody has any money to do anything about it. It’s a serious expense and hardship to people.”
Before making emergency repairs, Law said he contacted the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Department of Environmental Conservation, the Army Corps of Engineers and New York State Soil and Water Conservation. He then had to clear his repair plans with several different teams within each regulatory agency. “It’s like fish have more rights than homeowners do. It just takes so much bureaucracy to get through, to get in there and do your job. It gets to the point where one organization is passing the buck to another,” he said.
Most of the homeowners in front of Thompsen Creek from Hawley’s Corners to the North Norwich town line were flooded and lost property to the creek. With help from local Soil & Water authorities, the Norwich highway department was able to quickly remove 65 logs from the creek that were threatening to worsen the situation.
Removing a large island of gravel and repairing the creek’s banks, however, is taking much longer. “We’ve completed all the paperwork with state and federal now and submitted a bid estimate of $161,000 for the work to FEMA. We’re just waiting. Towns don’t have that kind of money up front,” Law said.
Flooding from the Chenango River behind the North Shopping Plaza in the town is threatening businesses there. A spokesperson for the CV Stratton Center for Therapies estimated a $20,000 loss in equipment and $75,000 in lost business. About 70 inches of water forced the physical therapy arm of Chenango Memorial Hospital to close for 15 days.
“I’m not saying by any means that we are moving out, but we are looking at options,” CMH Public Relations Manager Gary Root said. “It’s been two years in a row now. If the flooding continues, and it’s not profitable for us to be there, obviously we can’t continue to stay.”
A citizens group in Plymouth hopes to help homeowners along Canasawacta Creek with flood-related damages by starting a newsletter and having a fundraiser with representatives from the DOT, DEC and Soil and Water. The representatives had already issued permits to redesign the creek prior to June.
“If we have another flood, two homes are going to go into the creek,” said Sandy Pierce, the group’s organizer.
“There’s been quite a lot of flooding along Canasawacta Creek, and the problem areas that were there just became worse and created more problems,” Town of Plymouth Supervisor Jerry L. Kreiner said.
Kreiner said the town can be used by private citizens as a pass through agency for grants, but it is up to them to obtain their own permits from federal and state authorities.
The overflowing and debris filled-Canasawacta completely washed away Foster Park’s buildings and soccer fields. Kreiner said he hoped to meet with FEMA officials this month to discuss plans for rebuilding and financing.
This summer’s record breaking flood only added to the amount of gravel, dirt, trees and sometimes garbage that was already choking the county’s rivers and streams - even before last year’s flood. “The stream situation in Chenango County is a major problem that has been and will continue to be for a long, long time,” David C. Law, R-Norwich, told members of the Chenango County Planning Board last week. “We need to get our congressmen and senators to support the need to clean them out.”
The Town of Norwich estimated $2.5 million in flood damages this year, most of it to put its streams back together. Homeowners and private businesses had their own expenses as well.
Hank Scudder, of 254 state Highway 320, said he had spent nearly $9,000 fixing damages caused by the June 26 flood to his home and a camp. He said Thompsen Creek located behind his home has eroded away his yard for years. “It’s the DOT’s (state transportation department’s) problem, the DEC’s (state environmental conservation’s) ... Seems that it’s everybody’s else problem and nobody has any money to do anything about it. It’s a serious expense and hardship to people.”
Before making emergency repairs, Law said he contacted the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Department of Environmental Conservation, the Army Corps of Engineers and New York State Soil and Water Conservation. He then had to clear his repair plans with several different teams within each regulatory agency. “It’s like fish have more rights than homeowners do. It just takes so much bureaucracy to get through, to get in there and do your job. It gets to the point where one organization is passing the buck to another,” he said.
Most of the homeowners in front of Thompsen Creek from Hawley’s Corners to the North Norwich town line were flooded and lost property to the creek. With help from local Soil & Water authorities, the Norwich highway department was able to quickly remove 65 logs from the creek that were threatening to worsen the situation.
Removing a large island of gravel and repairing the creek’s banks, however, is taking much longer. “We’ve completed all the paperwork with state and federal now and submitted a bid estimate of $161,000 for the work to FEMA. We’re just waiting. Towns don’t have that kind of money up front,” Law said.
Flooding from the Chenango River behind the North Shopping Plaza in the town is threatening businesses there. A spokesperson for the CV Stratton Center for Therapies estimated a $20,000 loss in equipment and $75,000 in lost business. About 70 inches of water forced the physical therapy arm of Chenango Memorial Hospital to close for 15 days.
“I’m not saying by any means that we are moving out, but we are looking at options,” CMH Public Relations Manager Gary Root said. “It’s been two years in a row now. If the flooding continues, and it’s not profitable for us to be there, obviously we can’t continue to stay.”
A citizens group in Plymouth hopes to help homeowners along Canasawacta Creek with flood-related damages by starting a newsletter and having a fundraiser with representatives from the DOT, DEC and Soil and Water. The representatives had already issued permits to redesign the creek prior to June.
“If we have another flood, two homes are going to go into the creek,” said Sandy Pierce, the group’s organizer.
“There’s been quite a lot of flooding along Canasawacta Creek, and the problem areas that were there just became worse and created more problems,” Town of Plymouth Supervisor Jerry L. Kreiner said.
Kreiner said the town can be used by private citizens as a pass through agency for grants, but it is up to them to obtain their own permits from federal and state authorities.
The overflowing and debris filled-Canasawacta completely washed away Foster Park’s buildings and soccer fields. Kreiner said he hoped to meet with FEMA officials this month to discuss plans for rebuilding and financing.
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