Cleveland Reporter

City of Berea recently issued the following announcement.

Mayor Cyril Kleem has formed a Northend Committee to study flooding issues in Ward 1 – the northern part of the City.

The 18-member committee will study the history of flooding in the area and discuss various options for mitigating basement flooding.

Members of the committee include City officials, area residents and City Council members. They are:

· Mayor Kleem

· Gail Grizzell, resident

· Dennis Knowles, resident

· Eydie Lott, resident

· Marty Lott, resident

· Mary Kushlak, resident

· Randall Gettys, resident

· Tony Betts, resident

· Lori Overbaugh, resident

· Rich Skoczen, former City employee with knowledge of sewer system; member of the Inflow & Infiltration Committee in 2012

· Jim Maxwell, President of City Council

· Gene Zacharyasz, Council-at-Large

· Leon Dozier, Council Ward 1

· Lisa Weaver, Council Ward 3

· Rick Skoczen, Council Ward 5

· Tony Armagno, Public Works Director & City   Engineer

· Ryan Theberge, Assistant City Engineer & Service Department Supervisor

· Matt Madzy, Development & Planning Director

· Guy Turner, Assistant to the Mayor & Community Affairs Administrator, resident of the North End.

Residents who are members of the committee either volunteered or were selected by the Mayor to serve. Some have experienced flooding. Others were selected because they live in other portions of the neighborhood and may be impacted by a planned townhouse development. Others were selected because of their experience with flooding and development.

“My goal is to gain a diverse perspective on both sewers and development,” Mayor Kleem said.

Some residents have expressed concerns that a proposed townhouse development on the former Williams Ford property in the North End could adversely affect flooding.

 Mayor Kleem has asked members of the committee to become familiar with a power point presentation that outlines the types of sewers and explains inflow and infiltration. Inflow is surface water that leaks into the sanitary sewer because of improper connections. Infiltration is groundwater that seeps into cracks in underground pipes. The power point also explains what has been done by the City to mitigate these problems. Copies of the power point were sent to committee members. It will be discussed at the committee’s first meeting.

 The Mayor has submitted a four-point plan.

· The sanitary sewers now in place have the capacity for the proposed townhouse development. The problem remains inflow and infiltration. The developer must manage this.

· Possible storm water connections for the development. There could be a connection to Front Street, to a new connection on North Rocky River Drive or other alternatives.

· There might be a flooding solution not tied to the townhouses – perhaps a sanitary line connected to the regional line.

· Create a Tax Increment Financing (TIF) district, with funds paid by the development. It could generate $250,000 in revenue with 45 percent of that going to the City to be used for roads and sewers.

The Committee will be asked to study these four points.

Meetings will be open to the public and some of the committee’s work may be conducted via email, the Mayor said. 

“It is my goal to have several meetings over the next few months,” Mayor Kleem said.

“I hope that by working together and sharing ideas we can come to a workable solution.”

 PUBLIC MEETING NOTICE: WEDNESDAY, FEB. 2Original source can be found here.