Viewpoint North HOA asks Prescott Valley to take over maintenance of flood control channel

Prescott Valley, Ariz. — Residents of Viewpoint North on Sept. 25 asked the Town Council to take formal responsibility for full maintenance of a flood control channel that runs north–south through their neighborhood.

Alice Kinzel, speaking for residents and property owners in the Viewpoint North HOA, told the council the HOA currently bears the cost and labor of keeping the channel clear and repairing erosion from storm runoff that moves through culverts and cul-de-sacs into the channel. Kinzel said maintenance responsibility is asymmetric: property owners on the west side of the channel have been responsible for repeated maintenance while east-side owners discharge runoff into the channel without a maintenance agreement.

Kinzel described access and safety problems for private property owners who must trespass or use ladders to reach the channel and said ad-hoc private repairs can impede the channel’s flood function. She said the channel benefits the broader community and requested that Prescott Valley include the channel in the town’s flood-control system and assume full maintenance responsibility. Kinzel noted a staff meeting to review the channel is already scheduled.

Town staff acknowledged receipt of the complaint and confirmed an upcoming meeting to investigate. The mayor thanked residents for using the public-comment process to bring the matter to staff’s attention. No formal council action or motion to accept maintenance responsibility was made that evening; staff will review the issue at the scheduled meeting.

Why it matters: Who is legally and operationally responsible for flood-control infrastructure affects public safety, recurring maintenance costs and liability. Residents described repeated debris and erosion and a lack of uniform maintenance that they say increases local hazard and expense.

Next steps: Staff will review ownership, plats, and engineering records at the scheduled meeting and report back to the HOA and council.