March 20, 2023 at 1:54 p.m.
Lake Tomahawk residents share concerns about Lily Street flooding
Town road department to 'take a look at it'
By Trevor Greene-
The topic of roads or road projects wasn't on the agenda but during the public comment portion of the meeting, town resident Brian Manthey, owner of LT Bait & Tackle, said he was wondering if anything could be done about flooding along Lily Street near his business.
"We talked about that last month as a matter of fact," town chairman George DeMet told Manthey. "I talked to the road department supervisor, he's going to take a look at it. The biggest issue is our soil here. We have very heavy clay soil in town, that's why we have a sanitary district. So water sits for a long period of time. Even where we put in French drains."
DeMet mentioned a $1,200 investment for one French drain and said when it rains "it still takes two days for that water to go away."
A lot of the problem, he reiterated, is due to the soil.
DeMet said Scott Baasch, the road department's superintendent, suggested the town could "probably burn the sides of (Arbutus Drive) to take it straight back all the way, and maybe get rid of it that way."
"The thing that I see happening from heavy rains is that it comes from the top of the hill straight down Lily (Street) to the low spot behind my property right in front of the other property," Manthey said. "And there's nowhere for it to go, and it comes off (Highway) 47 off of Arbutus (Drive). And because of the slant of the road, it comes down Arbutus onto Lily and pools behind our property."
At times, during heavy rainfalls, the flooding accumulates to a foot-and-a-half to two feet deep, he said.
DeMet asked Manthey if he has thoughts on any potential solutions.
Manthey suggested "some type" of drainage along Arbutus Drive "and at the bottom of the hill on the other side of Arbutus" to reduce the water flow.
He said the flooding is "definitely causing" erosion problems.
"So that is a concern of mine that if that keeps happening, I'm going to have to replace that concrete (behind LT Bait & Tackle)," Manthey said.
Manthey also mentioned that a nearby resident recently put in a new driveway.
"I would imagine it wouldn't take long for that to erode," he said, again suggesting some type of drainage.
"Like I said, we can put in a French drain, but it will still not go away," DeMet said. "It's gonna take time."
He said a french drain is "basically" a dry well that has been used in other parts of the town "but it still takes time for that water to drain away, because ... the soil."
"We'll have the road department look at it," DeMet said. "That's the best thing I can say to you at this point. This has been going on for years and years and no one's come up with a solution at this point. But we'll keep trying."
Town supervisor Larry Hoffman said he thought mitigating the issue was going to be handled this year but noted he didn't see it as a priority on the town's list of road projects, though it was on the 2022 list.
"And if you redid the whole road, wouldn't you be able to take down and put a drain and somehow tie it into the other drains in town?" he asked DeMet.
DeMet explained the other drains are uphill from Lily Street on State Highway 47, indicating it wouldn't be practical to do what Hoffman suggested.
If the town were to do anything about the Lily Street flooding issue, an engineer would need to be hired to evaluate the situation, he added.
Hoffman then asked DeMet if the project will be added to the list of road projects planned for this year.
"Well, like I said, I talked to (the road department superintendent) and he's looking into it," DeMet replied. "If it's a feasible project and we have the money then yeah, maybe we could."
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