Clark County receives grant to help stop flooding on Bethel Twp. roadway

Credit: DaytonDailyNews

A longtime headache for residents in Bethel Twp. might soon have a solution.

The Clark County Emergency Management Agency recently received an $11,000 grant from the federal government to perform a technical study on possible measures to eliminate repeated flooding issues on Tillie Lane.

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The Board of Clark County Commissioners approved the funding during a recent regular meeting.

“We’re anxious to assist the homeowners in finding a solution to the flooding problems in the area,” Clark County EMA director Lisa D’Allessandris said in a statement.

Resident Ralph Weaver said his property gets flooded almost every time a heavy storm rolls in.

“You can’t sleep at night. It’s nerve-racking,” he said. “When there’s a heavy rainfall we get flooded from both directions from the east and the west.”

The flooding on Tillie Lane has been an ongoing issue for many years and affects up to 19 homes in the floodplain along the roadway, according to a press release by the commission.

In 2008, the Clark County EMA and Bethel Twp. received a grant to demolish a home on the corner of Ohio 40 and Tillie Lane that had repeatedly flooded in the first-floor living area. Flooding again caused damage to the first floor of at least one other home earlier this year, prompting the need for a technical study of the entire area.

“We have standing water everywhere,” Weaver said. “Last April, our homes got flooded. My home got flooded with four inches in it.”

He said big changes need to take place to prevent the flooding.

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“With the drainage ditches, it’s inadequate,” Weaver said. “They’re too low, the pipes are too small. There’s standing water in the ditches. Before any rain gets in here, half the pipes are already full.”

A public meeting will take place later this year to discuss the parameters of the study with the engineering firm, the community and other stakeholders, the press release states.

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