Hopkinsville officials outline repairs, buyouts and maintenance plan after repeated flooding

Hopkinsville City Council and stormwater officials outlined a package of repairs, local buyout options and maintenance changes Monday after three heavy rain events this year that overwhelmed parts of the city’s drainage system.

The city’s stormwater manager, Steve Born, and Public Works Director Mike Perry told council members that recent storms exposed aging basins, damaged auxiliary spillways at watershed lakes and created log jams in creeks that must be removed to reduce downstream flooding.

Born said the city has reallocated funds originally intended for a large South Fork flood-control facility to immediate repairs and projects. He gave detailed cost estimates for several near-term items: about $1 million to clear log jams in the river, roughly $500,000 for repairs on each of two dams’ spillways, and a proposed local buyout program budgeted at about $3.1 million. Born said the buyout funding, combined with grant shortfalls, would likely cover about eight to 10 structures on a local basis depending on appraisals; he added the city currently has about 20 property owners on a voluntary buyout list.

Born described the watershed lakes as a key flood-control asset and said an engineering study of four lakes estimated about $800,000 to address state-identified deficiencies; repairs after recent storms raised that repair estimate by roughly $750,000 for auxiliary spillways. He said the state requires a geotechnical stability analysis before it will improve the dams’ regulatory rating; the city has hired a contractor for the study and expects a bill of about $70,000.

Public Works Director Mike Perry emphasized the limits of local infrastructure against extreme precipitation and stressed that some drainage problems are on private property. "We cannot spend fee-generated dollars on private property," Perry said, adding that many creeks and ditches that contribute to flooding are located on private land and may need enforcement or negotiated easements to be maintained. Perry also noted the existing ERU (equivalent residential unit) fee is limited in reach: the city’s current $3-per-ERU charge (adopted in 2006) generates roughly $1.3 million annually and has been used to leverage about $13 million in grant funding over the last 20 years.

During the presentation Born outlined a list of ongoing and planned projects: cleaning Waddell Basin and other neighborhood ditches, elevating Park Avenue, clearing the Glass Avenue basin, completing bids for a Bridal Drive drainage project, removing log jams near Larimore Bridge and other choke points, repairing fences and vegetation issues at the Hoptown Middle School detention basin, and bidding to clean out the North Drive basin (estimated at $25,000–$35,000). He said 11 stormwater basins require regular mowing and maintenance and that 109 lots are mowed as part of routine upkeep.

Born and Perry said the city is evaluating an underground camera system to inspect storm pipes, and they are looking at warning-system upgrades tied to existing rain and stream gauges monitored by the U.S. Geological Survey and the Paducah weather station. Born also said the city will pursue grant matches for engineering and flood mitigation work where possible.

Residents who spoke during public comments urged caution before abolishing the separate stormwater utility. Dan Kemp, identified as a former Hopkinsville mayor and former city council member, praised the utility’s work since its creation in 2005 and warned that moving responsibilities to Public Works—without legal and financial study—could disrupt ongoing programs that depend on stormwater fee revenue. Resident Rita Brown described repeated calls to the utility from her neighborhood and asked for more proactive outreach to homeowners whose basements and family homes flooded.

Council members pressed staff on maintenance practices, who is responsible for creeks on private property, and whether the city has adequate staff and funding to assume stormwater responsibilities if the council were to consider transferring them. Perry said the city lacks the staff to absorb all stormwater tasks immediately and estimated that adding a stormwater manager and several maintenance employees would be required to expand Public Works’ role.

Born and Perry agreed to increased communication with council members and the public: Born said stormwater staff will return quarterly with updates, and he invited council members to meet on site and provide input. Born also said the utility board — Diane Crony Turner, Dave Fernandez, Kelly Wertman and Travis (surname not specified in the transcript) — will continue to meet with staff and that the board together has more than 50 years of flood-management experience.

No ordinance or motion to dissolve or transfer the stormwater utility was taken during the meeting. Council members discussed funding options, engineering assessments, enforcement on private properties, and the possible higher cost of upgrading design standards from a 100-year to a 200- or 500-year event but made no formal vote to change the utility’s structure.

The presentation and subsequent council discussion included multiple clarifications about limits on the city’s authority and funding: stormwater fee revenue cannot be spent on private property works without a specific legal mechanism; some federal grant timelines may extend several years; and state dam-ratings and insurance credits depend on completing certain engineering studies.

Council members urged staff to return with a prioritized, costed plan and said they would consider funding requests once staff can present a clearer price tag for proposed work.