Page 7 - 6-10-16 Friday's Edition

Local
Flooding Continues To Be A Problem In Some Communities
BY LEON B. CREWS Sentinel Staff Writer
The City of Tampa’s aging stormwater system continues to be a problem, and the rain citizens have endured over the past three days is evident of that.
Areas like Dale Mabry and Neptune, South Tampa, Hills- borough and 30th Street, Hills- borough and 32nd Street, and areas of Tampa Heights con- tinue to suffer from flooding even when the accumulation of rain is less than we’ve expe- rienced this week.
Some community leaders were asked how their neigh- borhoods made out during the torrential rains as a part of Tropical Storm Colin. Their responses are positive and negative.
Rainbow Heights Commu- nity Leader, Frankye Jones, said thanks to retention ponds in the area, they didn’t have any problems.
“I did contact my neighbors to make sure they were al- right, and they all said every- thing was fine.
“Although flooding isn’t a big problem in Rainbow Heights, the flooding in areas close to us impacts our ability to leave and enter our neigh-
Flooding like this at Nebraska Avenue and Floribraska has become all too common during torrential rainstorms.
money to fix it anytime soon.” Tampa Heights Leader, Lena Young-Green, said the area off Avon along the pond near Robles continues to be a flood issue, but every-
where else made out alright. “Water drains pretty fast on the surrounding streets, but I know there are other areas of Tampa Heights that still
floods.”
Grant Park Neighborhood
Association President Desmond Key, said the city side of Grant Park doesn’t ex- perience flooding, but the eastern county-side has an ongoing flooding problem.
“In the area of 57th and 58th Streets we continue to have a big flooding problem. The water has no place to go.
“The biggest problem is res- idents in that area sometimes find themselves trapped and can’t get out because of the flooding. Other areas have limited access because of flooding and residents have to travel out-of-their-way to get around the standing water.”
Also, an area of Tampa Heights, specifically the square-block area of Tampa Street, Keyes Avenue, Ola Av- enue and Columbus Drive, floods even during a moderate rain shower.
borhood. The flooding at 34th Street and Osborne Avenue needs to be addressed.”
West Riverfront Associa- tion Vice President, Del- phine Jones, said the traffic light at Cypress and Howard was out, but other than that, everything else was fine.
“We don’t have a flooding
problem in West Tampa. The streets drain pretty quickly, and the runoff is being han- dled smoothly.”
West Tampa Alliance President, Heem Baisden, said although the area where he lives doesn’t experience se- rious flooding, there are other areas that continue to suffer
with standing water along the roadways.
“There are areas of West Tampa that always flood, even if there is only marginal rain- fall.
“It’s all evident by the out- dated drainage system we have, and it doesn’t look like the city will be spending
FRIDAY, JUNE 10, 2016 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 7-A