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City engineer recommends targeted cleanup and coordination to ease Sunshine Drive flooding
Summary
City contract engineer Christina Lubert told the Ashland City Council that drainage to 403 Sunshine Drive is constrained by overgrown downstream channel and a lack of public drainage easements; she advised homeowner cleanup, cooperation with the school district to clear an overgrown receiving channel and noted a full engineered fix would require multiple stakeholders and substantial funding.
The city’s contract engineer advised the Ashland City Council to pursue immediate, low-cost steps and longer-term coordination to address persistent flooding at 403 Sunshine Drive.
Christina Lubert, owner and principal engineer of Lubert Engineering, told the council she reviewed the site in late October and found the parcel drains roughly 21 acres that include nearby commercial properties. She said the new storage facility in the drainage area detained runoff to pre-development rates, but the receiving channel at the west end of Sunshine Drive is clogged with sediment and overgrown vegetation, preventing the inlet from fully draining.
“Generally speaking, if there is not a public drainage easement, it is not the public’s responsibility to manage the drainage,” Lubert said, and she recommended the homeowner at 403 Sunshine “clear the yard waste debris from the fence to allow more free flow of water off of the property and prevent ponding behind their house.” She also suggested the homeowner coordinate with the adjacent property owner at 309 Sunshine to remove debris around a private yard inlet.
Board members and staff said the city will work with the school district to clear the downstream channel that receives flow from Sunshine Drive. City staff cautioned that reshaping the protected waterway itself would likely require federal permitting from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, but clearing vegetation and sediment is possible under routine maintenance agreements. The public works director said the city has scheduled work with the school district to remove vegetation and improve flow.
Residents who gave public comment described recurring flooding and maintenance problems. A Springtime Drive resident said flooding has occurred “every time” it rains and claimed past winter snow removal has worsened the low spot at the end of the street. Another resident said the spillway near Caspian Circle is overgrown and silted, and that differing engineering opinions and years of limited maintenance have left the neighborhood vulnerable to erosion and reduced pipe capacity.
City staff and council discussed next steps, including conducting a preliminary engineering report—staff estimated that study could cost roughly $20,000 to $30,000—and pursuing easement acquisitions if the board wishes to incorporate private inlets into the public system during a future street overlay. Lubert noted that tying a private yard inlet into the underground storm sewer would require an easement and is more likely when Sunshine is resurfaced.
The council did not adopt a construction plan at the meeting; members directed staff to continue coordination with the school district, schedule channel cleanup, and consider a scoped engineering study to define long-term solutions.
