Town, State Addressing Flooding Problem In Section Of Manchester

MANCHESTER, CT — A plan is in place to make an area of Manchester less prone to flooding.

As part of the state and local effort, a wetlands permit application has been submitted for 784 and 838 Middle Turnpike East and 39 Livingston Way, for removal of "accumulated sediment" in the "intermittent watercourse located" at 784 Middle Turnpike East.

That's a section of land that runs mostly behind the Shady Glen restaurant and an adjacent subdivision. The town of Manchester, in a joint effort with the Connecticut Department of Transportation, is the applicant.

According to the proposal, the property has experienced flooding in the rear parking lot and grass areas over recent years. One cause is a lack of maintenance at a state-owned storm drainage system and the construction of a sanitary sewer main extension from the property extending into Bolton in 2011.

In an effort to avoid "pending litigation," officials said the towns of Manchester and Bolton and the DOT have agreed to perform the work in an area downstream of the storm drainage outlet. That should restore natural flow to the intermittent watercourse and alleviate the flooding, officials said.

The intermittent watercourse located behind 784 Middle Turnpike East and is located within the upper reaches of the Bigelow Brook watershed, according to the project outline. It drains into Bigelow Brook approximately 800 feet west of the project. An existing 36-inch concrete pipe that serves as the outfall to a storm drainage system along Middle Turnpike East runs southerly from the road to the intermittent watercourse, according to the plans.

The scope of the work is twofold.

To be performed by the DOT:

• Limited vegetation clearing in the vicinity of the 36-inch drainage pipe outlet
• Sediment removal within a 50-foot radius of the existing outlet
• Installation of a "riprap scour hole" at the outlet to minimize future erosion
• Restore disturbed lawn areas

The work is being performed under the department's existing maintenance permit with
the sate Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.

To be performed by the town of Manchester:

• Installation of silt fence downstream of the proposed work
• Limited vegetation clearing and sediment removal beyond the 50-foot limit of the DOT work
• Restoration of disturbed lawn areas

The DOT work will take place over the next month or so. Once the work is completed, the town of Manchester will perform the remainder of the work. It is anticipated that the project will be completed by Dec. 1.