Committee Report - Flood - 12-2-20 — File 210999

Flood Forum Special Committee Page 1 of 3 Printed 12/10/2020 December 2, 2020 REPORT OF THE FLOOD FORUM SPECIAL COMMITTEE Attendee Name Title Status Arrived Katjana Ballantyne Chair Present Mark Niedergang Vice Chair Present Kristen Strezo City Councilor at Large Present Others present:, Rich Raiche - IAM, Jessica Fosbrook - Engineering, Haleemah Qureshi - Engineering, Khushbu Webber - Director of Governmental Affairs, Lauren Racaniello - Legislative Liaison, Kim Wells - Asst. Clerk of Committees, Peter Forcellese - Legislative Clerk. The meeting took place virtually via GoToWebinar and was called to order at 6:01 PM by Chair Ballantyne and adjourned at 7:11 PM on a roll call vote of 3 in favor (Councilors Strezo, Niedergang and Ballantyne), none against and none absent. Approval of the May 19, 2015 Minutes The minutes were accepted on a roll call vote of 3 in favor (Councilors Strezo, Niedergang and Ballantyne), none against and none absent. RESULT: ACCEPTED 200031: That the City Engineer evaluate the flooding and sewer conditions at the Ames Business Park on Properzi Way and Park Street, and provide the findings of flooding in the area. Mr. Raiche, Ms. Fossbrook and Ms. Qureshi gave a presentation on flood mitigation planning. A number of neighborhood meetings have been held to get resident input on how to address rain-storm events. A separate email account, (flooding@somervillema.gov), has been established to collect information/data from the public and a dedicated website, www.somervillema.gov/floodready, has been set up to provide info to the public. Councilor Ballantyne explained why and for what purpose this committee was established and spoke about the creation of IAM and its mission to maintain the city's infrastructure. She recognized the scope and difficulty of the task before IAM and said that she is pleased with how the department is looking at the flooding problems in the city. The city has been flying blind for many years regarding the condition of its sewer pipes and is rectifying that situation now. Mr. Raiche spoke about the planning/analysis of capital projects. There are over 300 miles of sewer pipe, so inspection of them will take several years. This is a city-

Flood Forum Special Committee Page 2 of 3 Printed 12/10/2020 wide flood mitigation project which has been broken into several smaller, manageable sections. Ms. Qureshi reviewed the different field investigations, model updates and calibrations, root cause analysis and concept developments. Projects currently in progress and potential mitigation solutions were also briefly reviewed. Mr. Raiche elaborated on the specific areas listed on this agenda, providing information on some of the causes of the flooding problems and what will be required to remedy them. Detailed information may be found on the attached presentation. Councilor Niedergang suggested that the Communications Department take steps to inform residents about the dedicated email account and website. He also asked if the concept of storage tanks will become a reality in the city. Mr. Raiche reported that the timeline for the Nunziato Field tank will be pushed back further, however, there are some other projects that will be easier to move forward. RESULT: WORK COMPLETED. [UNANIMOUS] AYES: Ballantyne, Niedergang, Strezo 200105: That the Commissioner of Public Works, the Director of Capital Projects and the City Engineer meet with the Mix-It Studios Co-op at 32 Clifton Street to discuss flooding from adjacent city storm drains on September 30, 2015. See item 200031 The immediate problem was due to a pipe collapse under the Bike Path/Community Path, an Eversource system failure. The problem was corrected, however there are other surrounding issues which IAM is working to develop a larger mitigation plan. RESULT: WORK COMPLETED. [UNANIMOUS] AYES: Ballantyne, Niedergang, Strezo 200278: That the City Engineer provide information on the recent water and sewer problem in the Joseph Street and Adrian Street area and whether the problem is permanently resolved. See item 200031 RESULT: WORK COMPLETED. [UNANIMOUS] AYES: Ballantyne, Niedergang, Strezo 200279: That the City Engineer contact the owners of the Ames Complex to identify and resolve flooding issues related to that property. See item 200031 RESULT: WORK COMPLETED. [UNANIMOUS] AYES: Ballantyne, Niedergang, Strezo 200491: Commissioner of Public Works responding to various Board Orders submitted

Flood Forum Special Committee Page 3 of 3 Printed 12/10/2020 10/8/15. RESULT: PLACED ON FILE. [UNANIMOUS] AYES: Ballantyne, Niedergang, Strezo 200558: DPW Commissioner responding to various Board Orders submitted 11/24/15. RESULT: PLACED ON FILE. [UNANIMOUS] AYES: Ballantyne, Niedergang, Strezo 209174: That the City Engineer provide information on the flooding problems in the Dane Street/Duck Village area and whether the problem has been permanently resolved. See item 200031 RESULT: WORK COMPLETED. [UNANIMOUS] AYES: Ballantyne, Niedergang, Strezo 209206: That the Director of Engineering keep the Ward 3 and Ward 4 City Councilors apprised of progress on constructing a "Weir Wall" to help alleviate flooding on Richdale Avenue. See item 200031 RESULT: WORK COMPLETED. [UNANIMOUS] AYES: Ballantyne, Niedergang, Strezo 210969: That the Director of Infrastructure and Asset Management or the Director of Engineering inform the Ward 5 City Councilor about any plans to mitigate flooding on Vernon Street near Lowell Street and on Alpine Street near Lowell Street. See item 200031 RESULT: WORK COMPLETED. [UNANIMOUS] AYES: Ballantyne, Niedergang, Strezo Handouts: • CC Flood Committee Meeting 2020Dec02 (with 200031, 200105, 200278, 200279, 209174, 209206, 210969)