2015.10.14 Council Agenda Item 08

 On August 13, 2014, a rainstorm damaged public property (roads and roadway systems and some wastewater collection lines) and several private properties throughout town. One damaged area is a private home on Sandy Cove Road, located near Underwood and Glen Road. The property has a steep slope that drops into a drainage area which is also the outlet of a public storm water collection system. The slope failed on the private property and moved closer to the home. The property owner is now concerned about the possibility of additional slope failure that could threaten the structural integrity of the home. At the same time, the Town has recognized some concerns about the effectiveness of its storm water outfall located near the slope failure. There are several possible contributing factors to the slope failure including unstable soils that become saturated by ground water, steepness of the slope, and proximity to the storm water outfall. 

During the past year, the Town Manager has worked with the property owner and a consulting engineer to assess the damage and determine if collaboration is the best option to mitigate it. While the Town is not legally obligated to expend funds that will benefit a private property, there could be an indirect benefit to a joint project that is actually two independent construction projects. In this scenario, the Town will improve the function of the outfall and the property owner will stabilize slopes resulting in a superior coordinated design as well as cost advantages for both parties. 

Consulting engineers representing the Town and the property owner will be present to offer more details about this project and offer some suggestions for design options. The Town Council will be asked if it will support the expenditure of additional engineering services and whether it will consider an order at a future meeting to appropriate funds for construction related to this project. 

The following attachments offer more details about this matter. 

1. Location map that shows the drainage swale and private property at 5 Sandy Cove Road
2. Drainage area for the outfall
3. Conditons presentation from private property owner's consulting engineer, Barney Baker
4. Private property owner consulting engineer design concept for improvements to the slope and outfall.
5. It is possible that additional material will be attached prior to the meeting including design concepts for the public areas of this construction project.