Just realized my town's street flooding plan was made 20 years ago

I live in a little neighborhood off Maple Avenue in Springfield, and after every heavy rain, the corner by the old gas station turns into a proper lake. Last month, I waded through ankle-deep water to check the storm drain, and found it was completely blocked with leaves and a broken hubcap. So I spent my Saturday clearing it out with a rake and a pair of gloves, and it took maybe 2 hours. Turns out the town's drainage plan hasn't been updated since 2004, and they just expect residents to handle minor blockages themselves. Has anyone else dug into their own local flooding issues and found the plans are way outdated?

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jakewhite2mo ago

You know that 2004 plan was probably written for a different climate entirely, not the rain bombs we get now. I live just off Maple too actually, and I cleared that same hubcap drain three years ago. The problem is people expect the town to fix everything but they dont want to pay the extra taxes for a whole new drainage study. If you let residents handle the small stuff it keeps the budget down for bigger projects like actual road repaving. Those leaves and hubcaps didnt just appear overnight someone let them pile up for months before you got to it.

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sage_moore372mo ago

Check your local government website for a stormwater management contact number to report clogged drains directly.

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