AMHERST — Residents who live on a cul-de-sac in South Amherst and deal with regular flooding on the road, and the deterioration of pavement the standing water causes, are making a new appeal to the Town Council and town officials for a specific plan for resolving the issues.

In a July 27 letter to the council as well as Town Manager Paul Bockelman, Department of Public Works Superintendent Guilford Mooring and State Rep. Mindy Domb, Pomeroy Court residents, with David and Karen Ranen taking the lead, reminded officials that, no work has yet commenced to fix the problem after several years. 

“We are beyond frustrated with the condition of our Court, the lack of transparency on the part of officials concerning this project and the lack of funding earmarked for this project,” the residents stated.

The flooding of Pomeroy Court with every rainfall has been well documented, and that schoolchildren have to occasionally be driven from their homes to a bus stop because they can’t walk the length of the road when there is a pond in the middle. 

In spring 2017, when flooding forced many of the residents to park their vehicles at the Pomeroy Lane end, concerns were brought to the then-Select Board to address. The latest communication notes that the last time the street was regraded and repaved was summer 1991.

Bockelman responded in writing that Town Engineer Jason Skeels and Wetlands Administrator Erin Jacque are determining the best path forward, speaking with outside consultants and having wetlands flagged and other survey work done.

“As you know, town staff, including the town engineer and wetlands administrator, have been working on various solutions to the Pomeroy Court flooding issue for quite some time,” Bockelman wrote. “There is no easy solution, we all agree.”

The challenges include an intermittent stream that, when running high, overwhelms the catch basin, that the road, when built, was in a flood hazard area, and probably shouldn’t have been permitted. In addition, the culvert outfall of the catch basin is underwater in an adjacent wetland, meaning that it cannot drain properly and is often filled with sediment the DPW tries to remove.

Options for long-term fixes are all anticipated to be costly, Bockelman noted, because utilities are underground and the area is sensitive ecologically. Raising the road’s elevation, relocating or daylighting the culvert stream and installing a bridge are among the suggestions being examined.

“Solutions are few. This is not a simple paving job. Any solution will require extensive environmental permitting. Any solution will require a significant investment of funds, most likely town funds,” Bockelman wrote.

The Ranens expressed appreciation for the response, but added that a viable solution is needed soon: “We no longer want the issues restated, we want the repairs to take place with a real timeline.” 

Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.]]>