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Resident urges city action after years of backyard flooding from neighbor runoff
Summary
A Connellsville resident told the council her property is the low point for neighborhood runoff, showing photos and asking the city to inspect a failing drain in a paper alley. Public works staff agreed to investigate and possibly clear the drain.
A Connellsville resident who gave her address as 607 Davidson Avenue told council members she is the lowest lot on her block and has long suffered runoff that pools in her backyard and driveway, forming ice in winter and causing the ground behind her house to sink.
"My property ... it goes down from Davidson Avenue," the resident said, asking the solicitor and public works staff to review photos she submitted. She said neighbors' downspouts and water running down Buckeye Street push excess water into an alley drain that she believes is not clearing the flow.
Public works staff acknowledged prior patch work near the driveway and said they will investigate the alley and the storm pipe; a staff member said a camera inspection had been discussed but not completed. "We could ask the sewage authority," a staff member said, noting their camera was previously out of service. Council directed staff to check the drain, clean around it if needed and follow up with the resident.
Council and the solicitor distinguished between civil disputes among neighbors and infrastructure problems the city must address: the solicitor said the city's involvement would be to "look at the city's infrastructure to make sure the city's infrastructure is functioning properly" and to act if an ordinance is being violated. The resident was advised to submit the photos and documentation she referenced so staff can investigate further.
The council did not adopt an immediate remedy; the meeting record shows a commitment to inspect and report back to the resident and to perform any routine cleaning or repairs determined necessary.
