MANVILLE: Councilman takes case for flood help to governor, freeholders

By Mary Ellen Zangara, Special Writer
   Borough Councilman Richard Onderko pleaded the borough’s case for help with flood control to Gov. Chris Christie at his standing-room town hall meeting in Bridgewater on Jan. 24.
   Mr. Onderko said the governor called on him for a comment, and he used the opportunity to thank him again for his visit to Manville after Hurricane Irene, he said.
   The councilman said he specifically asked to keep 3.5 percent of the 7 percent sales tax generated in Manville to be used within the town solely for the purposes of funding the ongoing flood study with the Army Corps of Engineers.
   ”We need $5 million to complete the $7 million study before any flood risk mitigation work can begin,” he said. “It is a three-year study going on 13 years. If our federal elected officials cannot provide the funds, we need to complete the study and look out for the safety and well-being of the residents who live here. We need to take action on our own with Gov. Christie’s help.”
   Mr. Onderko also requested sales tax information from the state through a public documents request.
   ”Manville is a great place to live, and it saddens me greatly to see my hometown being destroyed by two rivers now out of control,” he said. “We really need this source of funds. It will be a small sacrifice on our state’s part, but a huge benefit to borough of Manville and surrounding towns.”
   Mr. Onderko also attended the Somerset County Freeholder meeting that night and read a similar statement, he said.
   Mr. Onderko told of his personal experience as a child living in Manville during Doria and the major flooding.
   ”In 1971, I was terrorized in my parents’ home as a 10-year-old boy by the rapid flooding of the Raritan River,” he said. “My parents were working out of town and couldn’t get back into town as the flood waters rose. Manville becomes an island. My older brother and I tried to save what we could from our recently finished basement, but not knowing how high the water was going to crest, you can only imagine we were scared and panicked by the thought of a foundation collapse without our parents’ home.
   ”In over 40 years since, very little progress has been make to solve the area’s flooding problem, which today is now out of control in portions of Manville, Hillsborough and Millstone.”
   ”I truly believe we can no longer wait for our federal government to help us solve this problem by providing adequate funding,” the Republican councilman said. “Senator Menendez and Senator Lautenberg didn’t even visit Manville after Hurricane Irene last year. With the amount of debt our nation and state is in, I’m sad to say I doubt this study will be completed anytime soon. That’s where this governing body comes in.
   ”In my opinion, this is a local problem brought on by years of overdevelopment. It will require a different approach. This governing body recently bonded for a $50 million solar project and used millions of dollars of open space funds for athletic synthetic turf fields. All nice to have, but little has been done to confront flooding outside of Main Street Bound Brook.
   ”Even with 16 million spent on the new Van Veghten bridge, it was raised only 2 feet and still cuts off Manville residents during time of flooding from getting to Somerset Medical Center, which is a very serious emergency situation to be confronted with.”
   Somerset County is working on a sustainability visioning statement, he noted.
   ”In my opinion, sustainability and quality of life go hand in hand with a flood action plan,” he said. “I am hoping this board will put together and work with the new flood commission with a sense of urgency. We cannot wait another 40 years.”
   ”He urged the freeholders to think “outside the box” to help acquire the funding to move the flood study to completion as soon as possible. It benefits the entire county, not just Manville, he said.
   ”However, the 900 homeowners in Manville at flood risk would like to know if a solution is even possible in their lifetimes or are buyouts and knockdowns the only solution?” he said. “And with half our business district on our Main Street now affected, it’s hard to attract new businesses to a flood zone.”
   Councilman Onderko said he was “committed to this cause for the rest of my life.”