HomeMy WebLinkAbout(3)FLOODING PROBLEMS IN CITYCITY OF PORT ARTHUR, TEXAS
PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT
MEMORANDUM:
TO: Steve Fitzgibbons~ City Manager /~-,, _
FROM: Leslie E. McMahen, P.E., Director of Public Works
DATE: November 8, 2002
SUB.1ECT: Flooding in the W. :[9th Street/KCS/W. 17th Street/Kansas Avenue
This report is being offered as a partial report on the areas of concern expressed by
members of the City Council in regard to flooding in the referenced area as a result
of recent heaw rains.
We received numerous calls on October 28th from residents in the area from W. 17u~
Street to W. 19u~ Street and Kansas Avenue to the KCS Railroad right-of-way. We
dispatched personnel to the area and observed street and yard flooding, but we had
no reports of house or garage flooding. The drainage system was checked arcer the
water receded and no blockages were found.
The City's storm sewer system in the area is designed for a 2-year storm of the
magnitude of about 0.6" of rain per hour, whereas we had appro~dmately 6" of rain
from midnight to 4:00 a.m. on the morning of October 28th. Host of this rainfall
occurred within a two-hour peded, and was well beyond the City's system to handle
and well beyond Drainage District No. 7's ability to remove it by pumping.
We have done some preliminary field work and gathered existing plans for street
work in the area to see what is happening in the area of concern and what
opportunities we have to do Iow-cost solutions to the flooding problem. The ditch
along the KCS Railroad flows from near W. 17th northward to W. 19m which could be
a minor problem, and we will look at ways to possibly redirect the flow. Also, the
intersection of .loe Louis at W. 19u~ is the lowest intersection in the area although
the natural ground elevation in the area is relatively consistent. W. 19th and
Louis street pavements each fall toward the intersection, thus directing the overland
and street flow of water to this Iow point. Since it is a Iow point, it will be one of the
last intersections in the area to drain.
1
November g, 2002
There are three separate storm sewer systems that serve the area, each flowing
southward to the large boxes on West Thomas Boulevard, but the smaller size lines
on the upper ends of the systems are the ones serving the area. The City's Master
Drainage Plan shows one proposed storm sewer system on Maclan Anderson from
W. 18~h to West Thomas Boulevard, being pipes sized from 24" to 36". The lower
section of the proposed line would probably be increased to a 42" minimum.
We will attempt to provide a more substantial report at the next Council meeting
that will address some of the options that have been considered with a development
of their pros and cons.
CITY OF PORT ARTHUR, TEXAS
PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT
MEMORANDUM:
TO: Steve Fitzgibbons, City Manager
FROM: Leslie E. McMahen, P.E., Director of Public Works
DATE: November 6, 2002
SUBJECT: Reported Flooding at Beaumont Avenue and :t7t~ Street
The intersection of Beaumont Avenue and 17u~ Street is a point at which the curb
and gutter section of Beaumont Avenue intersects the open ditch section of 17m
Street, with 17th being noticeably higher than Beaumont. Beaumont is an open
ditch street from 17th northward to Zwolle.Ditch, as do other avenues in the area.
The area around the intersection sits in the middle of a large flat area at about 2
feet above sea level. There is also a storm sewer on 17th with catch basins at ~e
corners of the intersection, into which the .17~ and Beaumont roadside ditches drain,
as does the curb and gutter section of Beaumont. The storm sewer on 17th flows
toward Stilwell Boulevard and then to DD7's Central Pump Station which has a
removal capacity equivalent to a 10-year storm event.
We have receNed numerous reports of street and yard flooding from only one
resident at that intersection, whose house is on a slab rather than on piers like most
of the other houses in the area. Understandably, the resident would be concerned
about street or yard flooding affecting her house, but the garage slab is high in
relation to the street level and the house slab is high in relation to the natural
ground level.
Tn October 2001 we installed a new culverts across 17th and-18th, enlarged the
driveway culverts between 17th and Zwolle and regrade the roadside ditches to
Zwolle Ditch in an attempt to alleviate any ponding at the intersection an.d to
provide an overflow for Beaumont across 17th. TO our krlowledge, the persistent
ponding problems at this intersection have diminished if not completely disappeared.
The intersection sits at the small-diameter-pipe (18'~ end of the storm sewer on
17~, and because the Beaumont curb arid gutter section is lower than 17t~ and as
Iow as its ditches, Beaumont will be the last to be cleared of accumulated water.
November 9, 2002
During the last big rain event, Zwolle Ditch was flowing over bank-full for an
extended period of time. Once it began to recede, the storm sewer system on 17th
begin to function again and after a while the water on Beaumont receded also. The
roadside ditches and storm sewer system were checked after the rain event and no
blockages were found.
The City's Master Drainage Plan proposes a new storm sewer line on 18~h Street
from Stilwell Boulevard to Fort Worth Avenue (4,100% and ranging in size from 48"
to 24" diameter, A project of this magnitude would cost approximately $600,000
with City crews doing the work over several years, This storm sewer is designed for
a normal 2-year design storm for the City's drainage system, not' on the 100-year+
storm that we had on October 28, 2002,