Bridgeville, PA: at their December monthly meeting, Borough Council authorized the submission of a funding request to PEMA and FEMA seeking 75% of the costs to construct Phase 1A of the McLaughlin Run Flood Control Project. This application request is for $4,203,285.75 and if awarded the Borough’s match would be $1,401,095.25.
Phase 1A is projected to cost $5,604,381 and includes the construction of a levee along Carol Avenue that would start at the limits of the Chartiers Creek Back Channel and run up to the culvert behind Dari Delite on Bower Hill Road. The project also would replace the double Commercial Street culverts with a single span bridge / culvert, make improvements to the storm sewers and install a pumping system along Carol Avenue. This project has been designed to eliminate flooding associated with future 100-year storm events and minimize flooding associated with the 500-year storm event to the extent practical for properties included in the limits of Phase 1, which is west of McLaughlin Run and north of Bower Hill Road. The Borough anticipates a decision on this funding request by mid-2022.
The McLaughlin Run Flood Control Project is a four-phase project that is estimated to cost $21,482,219 and would protect properties along McLaughlin Run within Bridgeville Borough with a construction technique like what is included in Phase 1A. This plan has been developed by the Borough Engineer, vetted and recommended by the Bridgeville Planning Commission and adopted by Bridgeville Borough Council in August.
Recent other measures to mitigate flooding in Bridgeville authorized by Borough Council includes gravel and sediment removal from the waterways, installation and operation of the trash rack at McLaughlin Run Park to catch problematic debris, the lowering of the McLaughlin Run ballfield to slow the water coming into town and create some storage capacity, repairs to flood walls on Maple Street, construction of an access ramp to maintain the bridges at the end of Jane Way, five phases of installing sanitary sewer backflow preventers at properties within the flood zones, and buyouts of seven flood prone properties on Baldwin and Margaret Streets. The seven homes are being purchased and demolished as part of an awarded $1,201,701 FEMA grant project. Properties are slated to be purchased by the Borough in early 2022 and demolished by the spring. The lots then will remain as open greenspace, mitigating future flood damage losses.
Click here for the PROJECT Plans