MANVILLE: Borough’s flood history: Missed chances, lost hope

To the editor:
   Here’s some background and history of Manville’s serious flooding problems. I would like to thank Mayor Corradino for recently reaching out to our elected officials so they don’t forget about us in the aftermath of hurricane Sandy.
   Having lived here for more than 50 years, the problem has significantly worsened over time. Why? Most likely because of over development upstream, urban sprawl and lots of impervious surface added to our water shed since the 1980s. Some experts feel the single family home is the biggest contributor to our flooding woes. Others feel the lack of stringent storm water management is the other main cause with all older construction projects built without retention basins. Both when taken together are very bad for flood problems in Manville.
   In 1955 Manville encountered hurricanes Connie and Diane a few days apart in August. Some minor flooding was encountered in some sections of town but, given the rarity of the event of two hurricanes making landfall within the same week, I’m sure not much thought was given about what was yet to come in the decades ahead.
   Now to compound things further, a weir is placed in the Raritan River downstream from where the Millstone River joins up to it in the early 1990s. This weir restricts and raises the water level of the Millstone an estimated two feet up stream. Higher water levels in Manville have an adverse effect on flooding. But some who don’t live in town would still argue otherwise saying the weir had no impact at all. I wonder if they lived in a flood zone in Manville if they would still feel the same way.
   Next, the Green Brook flood control project surrounds Bound Brook with a levee system pushing water on our side of the wall. Higher flood waters will exist as a direct result of this completed project. It’s logical that the displaced water has to go somewhere.
   And finally we now have the new and improved Zarephath flood levee to contend with; a much higher and wider obstruction in a floodway that will most likely push more water into Lost Valley section of town. And then there is always climate change, where we have the potential to receive 10-plus inches of rain in a 24-hour period. That amount of rain with all the factors above puts Manville’s future in clear jeopardy today.
   Still some will argue that none of this matters, Manville would flood anyway and houses should not have been built in a flood plain. They propose knocking all the homes down. One-third of the town would be destroyed. But that would take a significant amount of money for buyouts. Federal money only trickled into Manville after hurricanes Floyd and Irene devastated the town. Houses were built in areas that never flooded before during the 1950s and ‘60s.
   How could anyone at the time have had the vision to see a flooding problem decades later that is now so out of control? In addition, half our Main Street business district goes under water now. Think about the economic loss to our town and the state if this problem is not fixed.
   FEMA suggests that homeowners should elevate their homes. That is an expensive option for homeowners to undertake after suffering financial losses with each recent flood event. It is estimated on average to cost $100,000 to elevate a home. You have to fill in your basement and maybe expand your home to make up for lost storage space. Some residents feel it is better to just walk away after the next big flood and leave the blighted neighborhoods behind.
   There were numerous close calls during the 1970s, ‘80s and ‘90s before the infamous 500-year storm of Hurricane Floyd hit in September of 1999. My parents had bought two homes in town, one on South 5th and another on North 2nd. Both were later determined to be in flood zones. In the 1960s at time of purchase there were no flood maps or requirements for flood insurance but after Hurricane Doria hit in 1971 it put a totally different perspective on living in a flood zone. That it was stressful is probably an understatement.
   My dad knew the town was in trouble and attended the meetings concerning the weir project. He came home and told me they said at the meeting “so what’s another foot or two of water in Manville.” Soon thereafter he put his house up for sale, left town and never looked back, as so many others have done since.
   The sad truth of our situation is we should have been a member in the Green Brook flood control project in the 1990s, along with Bound Brook, and we would be in a much better situation then we find ourselves in today. We are a community that is losing hope living with the threat of repeated flood events that leaves abandoned homes as the only way out for families seeking a better quality of life.
   The Army Corps of Engineers can help solve and mitigate higher flood levels in Manville but it takes federal funding to do so. It’s a shame Manville’s levee system is only on paper at this point in time and we missed all that “shovel ready” stimulus money our government was freely giving away in 2009. Trillions of dollars in additional debt and Manville got nothing.
   I feel we are still the forgotten town in a regional approach to flood mitigation. I pray someone can prove me wrong about being the forgotten town someday soon. Our elected officials at every level know about our problems. They say they want to help. Now is the time for action on their part.
Richard Onderko
Manville