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Resident raises long‑standing sewer, stormwater and toxic‑waste concerns at council meeting
Summary
Steve Topaz told the council St. Helens lacks long‑term as‑built records and raised a series of older infrastructure and environmental concerns, including projects that doubled in cost, flooding, and alleged industrial dumping into sewer lines.
Resident Steve Topaz used the visitor comment period to outline a series of historic and ongoing infrastructure concerns he said affect St. Helens, including missing as‑built plans, stormwater and sewer separation problems, cost overruns on drainage work and alleged industrial dumping.
Topaz said the city is legally required to keep as‑built building plans for one year and said his 41‑year‑old building lacked historical records the way older cities maintain them. He described the city’s separated sewer history and asserted that stormwater systems were not installed as required, leading to repeated street flooding in places.
Topaz also cited project cost overruns and potential contamination. He said a drainage‑pipe enlargement from Godfrey Park to the river was budgeted at $2,000,000 and rose to about $4,000,000 after unanticipated rock removal. He described a leaking reservoir repair historically estimated at $100,000 that "became a $10,000,000 replacement part," and he asserted there had been industrial toxic waste dumped into a sewer line that affected waterfront properties. Much of Topaz’s account was framed as a resident’s history of observed problems rather than a council presentation of verified findings.
Council staff did not respond with detailed technical corrections during the public comment period; the council moved on to the next agenda item after Topaz’s remarks. Topaz concluded by urging the council to address cleanup and record‑keeping problems.
