Ann Arbor officials planning to fix stormwater problems in West Park by summer
Ann Arbor officials are inviting residents to a public meeting on Monday night to hear an update on the West Park stormwater project, including what the city is doing to address the failure of the park's newly installed stormwater system.
Nearby residents have said for months they aren't happy about the situation and they suspect flooding in their neighborhood in the past year may be linked to the problems in the park.
But city officials deny there's any link.
Monday's meeting takes place from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Slauson Middle School Media Center, 1019 W. Washington St.
At the meeting, Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County officials are expected to give a review and explanation of the project that was done in 2010, summarize the results of an investigation into the system failures, discuss the next steps to complete the project, and address any questions or concerns, said Jennifer Lawson, the city's water quality manager.
Lawson said it will be the first of two public meetings. The second will be on Feb. 13 to discuss the details of the engineering design for the repair of the system in 2012.
The wooden sign for the West Park Band Shell rests atop a pile of other materials on the ground near an entrance to the park off Seventh Street in this photo from August.
Ryan J. Stanton | AnnArbor.com
"At this time, we are working with our consultant (Orchard Hiltz & McCliment) to look at solutions for remedying the issues that are out there," Lawson said.
"We have a lot of different issues," she said. "We have the structure failure and we are working with the manufacturer and the company that produces those swirl units (AquaShield Inc. and L.F. Manufacturing), and they're looking at coming in May or June to repair those."
The city and the Washtenaw County Water Resources Commissioner's Office undertook the stormwater improvement project in 2010 in tandem with renovations in West Park.
But during construction, inadequacies were found with the design of the system and the structural components, and one of the swirl concentrator units collapsed.
The original plans were designed by Beckett & Raeder Inc. and included the installation of eight swirl concentrator units to remove suspended solids from stormwater prior to reintroducing it into the system on the north and south branches of Allen Creek near the park's west side.
In October 2010, after the stormwater work had been completed, one of the swirl concentrators on the north branch collapsed, creating a sinkhole near the northwest corner of the park. An investigation revealed other swirl concentrators were in various stages of failure.
The city now has completed an investigation into the problems and is developing a plan to correct them in 2012, Lawson said.
The city doesn't have construction plans, nor final details of what will be done at West Park, but it has hired a consultant to complete designs.
In response to the problems, weir walls that served to divert flow into the swirl concentrators were removed due to concerns about their potential effect on upstream flooding. Lawson said the city is looking to replace the weir walls this year and is working with OHM on the designs.
"We're hoping that project will be completed by mid-summer," she said.
Daniel Marano, who lives on Maple Ridge just west of the park, appeared before the Ann Arbor City Council in August and expressed concerns about what he described as "a severe flooding problem" he believed was linked to failure of the park's stormwater system.
He said in an interview last month that many residents in the neighborhood remain upset, but they've been told by city officials that the flooding they experienced last August was the result of roughly 2 inches of rainfall that came within an hour.
"There's going to be a big showdown here because all of us want clean water and a park that works, but it seems there's just poor planning," Marano said of the project. "You can't put in a system like this without expecting it to have consequences upstream."
Lawson said investigations have shown the upstream flooding that the Maple Ridge residents are concerned about is not connected in any way to the problems in West Park.
"There is no link," she said. "We've actually spoken with those residents. Those residents live in a floodway, which is essentially where the river used to flow, and we had some incredibly intense storms last August where we were getting almost a half-inch in 15 minutes."
Lawson said the city's stormwater system wasn't designed to handle that level of intensity, and even with the repairs coming to the West Park system, that doesn't change the fact that the houses on Maple Ridge are in an area that's naturally prone to flooding.
In response to the flooding issues residents experienced, Mayor John Hieftje said in August he couldn't help but question whether climate change was at work.
"What used to be a 50-year storm is occurring every five years now it seems," he said. "We just have more intense rain events than we had historically. It all comes down at once."
Ryan J. Stanton covers government and politics for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at ryanstanton@annarbor.com or 734-623-2529. You also can follow him on Twitter or subscribe to AnnArbor.com's email newsletters.
Comments
Vince Caruso
Sun, Jan 8, 2012 : 5:51 p.m.
We have been asking for a watershed study for the Allen's Creek for years and this is another example of spending funds without knowledge of the problem. With hundreds or thousand + homes and business at risk you would think this is a "no brainer". Watershed planning with facts not intuition. The storm that caused the failure in West Park was not very large rain by any standards. Just the flows in the watershed are very high even in moderate rain events. A study would cost a very small fraction of the funds that have been wasted on projects in this watershed, this being the latest. One example is the original homeless shelter plans ($1M) that had to be scraped because they "on accident" put the shelter in the floodway and the DEQ would not allow it, long since illegal to have residential in the floodway. Our current majority don't want to know the real danger facing the westside because they fear a study would show how bad things will be in a major rain storm, storms that are happening all around SW MI now with climate change. We need to move on projects up stream of this valley area - like the use of porous pavement on streets (EPA now states this is highly effective on streets to stop flooding, reduce heat island effects and detoxify pollution) , rain gardens/bioswales and other infiltration efforts along the streets, and community involvement on homes to included similar efforts, as is happening in other communities with excessive flood hazard and pollution flows into near water bodies. Stopping the runoff at the source is now recognized as the most cost effective method to deal with these issues. The city is under pressure by the EPA to step up it's efforts. Recent past studies of basic flow volumes in the stormwater pipes have been held back by the city and not released. This withholding of taxpayer funded studies is unacceptable and should stop. This current practice of forcing the public to FOIA these city funded studies is in violation of sta
MyOpinion
Sun, Jan 8, 2012 : 6:29 p.m.
Excellent suggestion. I think the study will cost more than you think, but the money will be well-spent. All future proposed projects can/will be based on metrics rather than guts. This will make the true cost of a project apparent, rather than having to "fix" the project after the fact. And, in fact, most civil engineers/landscape architects will have different proposals based on the scope of the problem.
justiceforeach
Sun, Jan 8, 2012 : 3:36 p.m.
Following along the lines of reader/writer MyOpinion who questions the wisdom of blaming the contractor / bidder: McCormick said ... "In addition, we have also concluded that the weirs in the diversion manholes were ... installed too high ... " Here, it should be noted that Sheet C 8.2 Detail 1 of the Contract Documents shows the height of of the weir wall is to match the Height of the Crown of the Pipe to the (swirl concentrator) treatment units. If you take a forensic camera and look at the former height of the weir wall - (those dam barriers to the flow of water now removed after seeing the mayhem the dams created) you can see that the contractor did as Sheet C 8.2 Detail 1 instructed. This detail in the contract documents greatly weakens the case in trying to blame the contractor on that point. We see what can easily be interpreted as an attempt at dishonest representation to wrongly displace blame. (On this point please google - A Failure of Nerve - Leadership in the Age of the Quick Fix " and "Its not my fault - A Word on Blame Displacement") It also brings up the point that deceitful spin and half-truths should have no place in City Hall and in government - from Ms. McCormick or anyone else up and down the chain.
MyOpinion
Sun, Jan 8, 2012 : 12:34 a.m.
Methinks the problem is that the RFP for this project did not adequately describe the scope of the problem. I suspect if the city folks had stood and watched the flooding in the area (Chapin and West Park) and popping manholes as described by @SimonDarcourt, the bidders for the project would have proposed solutions that would have fixed the problem and improved the park. So is it the bidder's fault that everything has failed? Not really. They proposed a solution for the problem that the city described, although they should have known better. They should have pushed back but then the city would have gone to the next bidder. And, if Hieftje thinks this is all due to global warming, the city better start replacing its current storm water pipes with the diameters they use in Houston. That city knows how to handle the August rain we had. They do struggle with the heavy 10" rain that falls in 6 hours.
justiceforeach
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 11:36 p.m.
"investigations have shown the upstream flooding that the Maple Ridge residents are concerned about is not connected in any way to the problems in West Park." Ryan, could you please ask Ms. Lawson to provide a link to the study, page number, paragraph and line number that unconditionally states that there is no link between what the neighbors have experienced and the work done in West Park? Thanks
justcurious
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 10:27 p.m.
"There is no link," she said. "We've actually spoken with those residents. Those residents live in a floodway, which is essentially where the river used to flow, and we had some incredibly intense storms last August where we were getting almost a half-inch in 15 minutes." And what river would that be? The Huron River, or the Mississippi? Give me a break. That used to be a nice park once. I knew someone that was anxiously awaiting the renovation finish so that she could get married there. I wonder if they did?
Wolf's Bane
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 9:50 p.m.
Also, the gallows looking bright orange "trees" by the seating area are ugly and serve no purpose other than to string people from them. Preferably, council.
Wolf's Bane
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 9:47 p.m.
I hate to agree with others, but my goodness does Ann Arbor have an issue with basic infrastructure; everything from storm water mitigation to the approval of the world's ugliest high rises, one issue after another! Heads should roll or at least give me a rebate on my tax money.
justiceforeach
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 9:04 p.m.
Thank you for your story on West Park, Ryan. You should have received today a copy of a lawsuit regarding West Park naming the City of Ann Arbor as defendant. The lawsuit demands response / action from the City of Ann Arbor within 21 or 28 days depending on how the complaint was served. In the file at the County Courthouse (Civil Case File 2011-1257), there is an indication that the complaint had been served to the City (Notice of Service from City Attorney S. Postema) The lawsuit paperwork is certified by County Clerk Lawrence Kestenbaum and dated November 14th 2011. This would suggest that the response / action from the City is past due. The lawsuit says that if there is no response or action taken on the part of the City, a judgement may be entered against the defendant (the City) for the relief demanded in the complaint (monetary relief with all costs and fees wrongfully incurred in the formulation and prosecution of this action) Ryan, could you please kindly try to find out from the City why, as of 1/3/2012 there was no response or record of action appearing in the Case File 2011-1257 on the part of the City of Ann Arbor? The City's response (and perhaps to a lesser degree - the lack of a response) will help provide a view into things that have been obscured by the litigious circumstances surrounding West Park ... almost a year-and-a-half, now, after problems were first brought to the attention of the City and the County. Thank you Ryan. Hopefully the City is only too happy to provide their side of the story.
Arboriginal
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 8:12 p.m.
How about some BIG PICTURE thinking? How about the seasonal creeks that were buried in the Maryfield ravines and the area that is now called Miller Park? The water that ends up in West Park comes from somewhere. That water is flowing Jim!
xmo
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 5:42 p.m.
Climate Change at work? Is this a joke? What an embarrassment for the city to have this guy as mayor!
Brad
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 5:04 p.m.
"investigations have shown the upstream flooding that the Maple Ridge residents are concerned about is not connected in any way to the problems in West Park." And ... don't tell me ... those investigations were no doubt performed by the same people who approved that multiply-faulty design in the first place.
Richard
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 4:02 p.m.
Will someone please explain to me how Hieftje got elected? I keep hearing ridiculous things flying out of his mouth.
bunnyabbot
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 3:37 p.m.
from article: "In response to the flooding issues residents experienced, Mayor John Hieftje said in August he couldn't help but question whether climate change was at work. "What used to be a 50-year storm is occurring every five years now it seems," he said. "We just have more intense rain events than we had historically. It all comes down at once." ok Mayor Henny Penny, watch out because the sky is falling! I am sure that it must be climate change and has nothing at all to do with the aging infrastructure which cannot meet the demand on the system. A system at the time when it was built in many neighborhoods was built under the level in should have been. The City knew in the 60's there were going to be problems in the near future. All who have flooding in their basements and RAW SEWAGE in their basements or floating down their street can attest to this whenever it rains hard. Instead you hit us with millages for sidewalk squares and public art funds. Our pipes are failing us. A green belt may be fancy but unless we have our water system fixed it will just be a dry land ring around what was once Ann Arbor.
Brad
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 3:21 p.m.
Maybe council should enact an ordinance whereby the water is required to drain as it is "approaching" the swirl concentrators. Their previous attempts at legislation-by-wishful-thinking have been on-so-effective.
Richard
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 4:05 p.m.
Your sarcasm sums up how the minds work of Ann Arbor city officials. Sadly, if any of them actually read your comment, they would probably take it seriously and ask the contractors to do exactly what you posted.
Gill
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 2:39 p.m.
I would recommend the neighbors find a grad student in engineering that would do modeling of the system to see what impact occurs upstream, if any. Sounds like a great reserach paper topic. The model could be purely digital, or 2 scale models of the before and after systems.
Carole
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 2:02 p.m.
Call it "sewer art" and it will be taken care of immediately. I hope that the issue is cleared up and the residents do not have to continue to deal with flooding.
SimonDarcourt
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 1:59 p.m.
I'm might be a lone voice here, but.... I live on the eastern edge of West Park and I guess our street was the one that lucked out from the work done - despite spring & late summer of 2011 being some of the wettest on record, my basement & yard were the driest they've been in the 15 years I've lived here. There was a massive improvement after the work was completed. Pretty much every year previously, Chapin would experience flash floods at least once or twice, including the street manhole covers blowing off and the street being fully covered with water several inches deep (usually draining with a couple of hours). More than once over the years I've stood on my porch and looked into West Park, and seen nothing but water (and the odd geyser, 3 or 4 foot high, from a storm drain). During one 500 year flood a few years ago, I was thigh deep in water in my back yard (admittedly, I'm kinda short, but still). Nothing even close to that happened in 2011, despite the heavy rains. Obviously, something has shifted since the work was finished, and given how much the flooding has reduced on the eastern side, I find it hard to believe that it hasn't created the worsened flooding upstream. It's not climate change, which would have had an overall effect - Chapin St would have been renamed "Little Venice" by now. I truly sympathize if other residents are now suffering more extreme flooding from it, and I hope solutions can be found which also preserve the improvements that have come form the project (don't just shove the problem downstream again).
mike gatti
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 1:33 p.m.
If this type of storm happens every five years now, is there an opportunity to use this failed work and modify it to alleviate the flooding that has happened on Maple Ridge? It is almost as if the Mayor is throwing up his hands and saying. yeah, you poor chumps are going to flood now. Maybe not. Maybe nobody asked him the question.
toothless wonder
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 1:16 p.m.
Screw it, I've come up with a plan- Lets rename West Park : Mayor John Hieftje Park (created by Third World Park Developers and StormDrainsR US)
toothless wonder
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 1:02 p.m.
I forgot to mention that and this is a big one... When the Band Shell was redone, a pad was created out in front of it. This pad now reflects sound wholesale up into the Disabled and Elderly Housing directly in front of it. From any south facing balcony at Miller Manor One can hear every sound at full volume without it being diminished in the least. In the case of one Robert G. Lalonde, I feel this noise pollution contributed directly to this cardiac patient's demise. Good going with NOT EVEN BOTHERING TO CHECK over at Miller Manor before installing the sound reflecting ground pad in front of the stage. Preemtively- Would you state for the record that: Prior to the park "improvements" the Band Shell was adjacent to such soggy ground that it couldn't be used??! No? But now with the re routing of water some stuff had to be paved to provide a place for folks to sit, right? Believe me, At Miller Manor we ran our Air-conditioners last summer so as to provide relief from all the noise... What else could we do?? That Shakespeare and concerts and so forth? We are utterly there thanks to NO ONE contemplating how the sound pad would reflect towards those souls who live 300 feet away. We don't count. PPS - Paving the walkways absolutely flat AND flush with the grass was genius! Icy out or wet out anyone? Hopefully when you slip on the ice your butt lands first cause I hate when my head hits first!
cornelius McDougenschniefferburgenstein jr. 3 esq.
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 12:42 p.m.
the swamp they built near bandshell should be enlarged then the city can get revanue from mosquito repellant sales.and some doubted the inteligence of our leaders.ITS BRILLIANT!
toothless wonder
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 12:33 p.m.
Is there a pamphlet with swirl concentrator units shown in CFM, and did those in charge of this project, opt for the next smaller size to economize and also increase volumetric efficiency? Backfired huh? Now the manhole cover areas need to be fenced in for when they blow off, literally... This will be removed of course; but the mayor is a Dem in name only (DINO) So why does he acknowledge global warming? It works to corroborate an all encompassing natural phenomenon. So all are off the hook, its in God's hands! Or Mother Nature's. Ann Arborites need to go take a walk in West Park, in order to examine the two cracks all the way through the concrete placement with the holes in it near the wooden walkway. Less than two years old and cracked in two places all the way through! Does this company build dams by any chance? The pond adjacent to the wooden walkway sure looks swell with its liner exposed bobbing under the surface and the multitude of stakes with little cloth ties on them. BTW- Be careful walking near the Greek-Style column entrance off of Miller down those steps! They were neglected in the whole Rebuild West Park extravaganza, and didn't even receive a power washing or have even a new screw ran into them to tighten them up a bit. They are slimy and even my dog can fall on his butt going too fast down them ( posted No WInter maintenance) They are green from not being maintained EVER. Dare I say: Just another project gone to hell in Ann Arbor: Too many chiefs with their laptops,sitting in the air conditioning, and not enough Indians to go out and LOOK at the actual project located a couple thousand feet from the city offices downtown !!!
Epengar
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 9:47 p.m.
Have you reported any of these problems to the city? I bet not. The stakes and flags in the pond are there to keep geese from landing and eating all the arrowhead plants and other aquatic wildflowers that were planted in the pond. Once the plants have a chance to get established, the stakes will be removed. I imagine that will be sometime this summer.
toothless wonder
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 12:38 p.m.
annarbor.com severely needs an "edit" button added so that submitter's can view their contribution similar to a 'PRINT PREVIEW' and make needed corrections and for spacing too!!
bruno_uno
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 12:29 p.m.
final thought...if the city is redesigning the park improvements, why are residents paying for re-design for a project that obviously is not finished. This was a 1 million plus grant and now we have to pay for a 125,000 study that tells us nothing related to the problem and engineering design costs that should be covered under the existing engineering contract if that project was never designed correctly.
bruno_uno
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 12:25 p.m.
an excerpt from the original story and what the citys 125,000 study was to look at: The city has engaged the engineering consulting services of Orchard Hiltz & McCliment to analyze the failure of the swirl concentrator units and to also evaluate the original design and propose any necessary changes in order to make sure that properties upstream are not affected by the changes. Based on OHM's initial analysis, McCormick said it's believed the failure of the swirl concentrator units was caused primarily by a "manufacturing defect." "In addition, we have also concluded that the weirs in the diversion manholes were designed and installed too high, and that insufficient analysis was performed initially to verify the effects of the weirs," she said, adding OHM is expected to make further recommendations for redesigning or replacing the weirs. From this excerpt, the city study I just read showed no analysis related to the focus on the weirs? Are we missing part of the report in the 33 page pdf available?
bruno_uno
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 12:19 p.m.
the study should have looked at design of weirs and installation dates when these weirs were in place in coorelation to the 2 yr storm events and model the scenario of these storm events with the weirs. This would answer if there was a link between the park weir installation and the 2 yr storm event.
bruno_uno
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 12:12 p.m.
Problem: weir walls that served to divert flow into the swirl concentrators were removed due to concerns about their potential effect on upstream flooding. Lawson said the city is looking to replace the weir walls this year and is working with OHM on the designs. Ann Arbor 125,000 solution: Lawson said investigations have shown the upstream flooding that the Maple Ridge residents are concerned about is not connected in any way to the problems in West Park. "There is no link," she said. "We've actually spoken with those residents. Those residents live in a floodway, which is essentially where the river used to flow, and we had some incredibly intense storms last August where we were getting almost a half-inch in 15 minutes." Lawson said the city's stormwater system wasn't designed to handle that level of intensity, and even with the repairs coming to the West Park system, that doesn't change the fact that the houses on Maple Ridge are in an area that's naturally prone to flooding. Conclusion: Ann Arbor wasted 125,000 on a camera study of pipe not the focus of the problem for the residents.
bruno_uno
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 12:06 p.m.
so the 125,000 study by OHM was performed to look at drainage blockage along Maple Ridge. I would think the study would focus on the complaint that the wiers caused backflow into the neighborhood west of the park. This study seems to have been spent on some camera work along a pipe that was not the issue of the residents. The study was supposed to focus on the weir limiting the flow of water downstream and thus acting as a dam upstream which flooded the residents.
pbehjatnia
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 11:59 a.m.
There is no flooding or drain problem with the system in West Park. It is all in your head. I am quite comfortable in the knowledge that this is true. The real culprit is climate change and you all need to just accept this. You also need to accept that everyone suffering now will go out a reelect Hieftje for a sixth term in the coming election cycle. In the meantime get over yourselves and your property damage and be prepared to pony up some more tax dollars for for Hieftje's next dumb project.
a2grateful
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 11:47 a.m.
And herein lies the problem: "In response to flooding issues residents experienced, Mayor Hieftje said he couldn't help but question whether climate change was at work. What used to be a 50-year storm is occurring every five years now it seems. We just have more intense rain events than we had historically. It all comes down at once." It would seem logical that the city would undertake a stormwater project that actually improves quality for residents, with attributes that are designed for current conditions. Otherwise, the project is just an obsolete ivory tower feel-good-inside-city-hall debacle that is concerned only with installing artsy steel trees amidst cool swirly things. For our neighbors' sake, I hope the city gets it right this time around. Taxpayers and voters take note over the planning care of this design, implementation success, and cost of a so-called "improvement" project. Surrounding residents have experienced great hardship in flooding destruction in their homes. Meanwhile, the park is a mess.
Alan Goldsmith
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 11:47 a.m.
Ann Arbor--the city that DOESN'T work (with apologies to Chicago) when it comes to basic infrastructure and City services. But if you want street-crossing strobe lights, we got you covered.
Alan Goldsmith
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 11:43 a.m.
So who exactly IS the Washtenaw County Water Resources Commissioner? Why no comment from that office on this failure? Same thing when the recent horrible incident occurred at County Farm Park. Not a work from the actual Commissioner. And, drum roll please: "In response to the flooding issues residents experienced, Mayor John Hieftje said in August he couldn't help but question whether climate change was at work." Let's hope the Mayor leaves office soon and goes into a field where his talents clearly are--stand up comedy.
Epengar
Sat, Jan 7, 2012 : 9:39 p.m.
Your constant one-note complaining weakens your arguments. You would have more credibility if you didn't appear to be obsessed with the Mayor. The Commissioner, as I'm sure you know, or could certainly have found out by lifting a finger, is Janis Bobrin.