Harbor Light News

Residents voice concerns over floodplain map, mitigation plan

Harbor Springs



While this photo was taken in Wequetonsing, which is outside the proposed FEMA floodpain risk map, it exemplifies how a quick thaw can lead to flooded streets. Benchmark engineer’s Joe O’Neill noted during the meeting on Monday night that this year’s conditions-- frozen ground, tremendous snowpack-- mirror the conditions that were in place when two historic floods (1921 and 1950) happened in Harbor Springs (Harbor Light photo by Mark Flemming)

While this photo was taken in Wequetonsing, which is outside the proposed FEMA floodpain risk map, it exemplifies how a quick thaw can lead to flooded streets. Benchmark engineer’s Joe O’Neill noted during the meeting on Monday night that this year’s conditions– frozen ground, tremendous snowpack– mirror the conditions that were in place when two historic floods (1921 and 1950) happened in Harbor Springs (Harbor Light photo by Mark Flemming)

Harbor Springs City Council Chambers was standing room only on Monday, March 18, as residents poured in to hear a review of the city’s proposal for mitigating FEMA’s floodplain map expansion.

While not an official public hearing, a question and answer session was held for the crowd. Just-retired city manager, Tom Richards, returned to the Council table for the presentation to provide historical context for the potential project, and to remind Council of the decision they were being asked to vote upon– if they were willing to empower city staff to let bids for the mitigation work.

Richards explained that FEMA predicts the areas that may be damaged by a historic flooding incident through flood risk mapping. The current map in Harbor Springs, he said, is “kind of like a ribbon” and doesn’t “get wide in many places.”

That map, however, is 37 years old, and FEMA is now using updated technology and better tools for anticipating flood zones, and as a result, the new floodplain map has “a much larger area predicted to be at risk.”

Richards added that historically, there have been discussions at the

City Council table about mitigating flood risk– even when using the limited zone the old map provided– in the 1990s, as well as in 2000, 2004, and 2009.

He pointed to photos of the last two historic floods, in the 1920s and again in the 1950s, that depict rivers rushing down M-119.

“At the Shay Drain (which emerges near M-119 at the rock monument near the top of the east hill), water would be expected to be moving at nearly 500 cubic feet per second. That’s enough to fill an average residential swimming pool in three seconds,” Richards said. “Our city’s storm sewer was designed for average rainfall, not historic floods. FEMA’s proposed new map tells us the areas that may be damaged if we had a flood. It creates a new urgency.”

There are two sections of the map in Harbor Springs that could include expanded floodplains; the “South Section” is the largest and would impact the most properties, and the “North Section” includes an area near the Harbor Springs Public School District’s bus garage, Irish Boat Shop storage, and some city-owned property (all behind Fairview Square).

Part of the hour-plus presentation was given by Joe O’Neill, of Benchmark Engineering (the city’s engineering firm). He talked about the flood of 1921 and 1950, and said he has heard stories of logs floating all the way from Stutsmanville through town. He also said the last two historic floods in Harbor Springs happened“at almost the exact same time as right now, with almost the exact conditions we have today.”

He pointed to the frozen hard and tremendous snowpack, and said a “freak storm with six or seven inches of rain” could create the very type of flooding that has occurred here in the past.

“We are talking about a river. A stream that would get progressively wider and run for three or four days,” O’Neill said. He explained the gradual release of water would cause the floodplain to get bigger and bigger.

“The task we were given was to come up with a design that would route the water from the north side of M-119 to Lake Michigan,’ he said.

City Council has been hearing updates on potential mitigation for the South Section of the floodplain for many months now. Although no firm numbers have been presented yet, general estimates have indicated this will likely be a $996,000 project.

The city has been working with MDOT (Michigan Department of Transportation) to get a new culvert approved along the “Shay Drain area” that flows across M-119 coming into downtown to the harbor at Zoll Street beach. The design that is currently being reviewed for approval includes an 8×10-foot culvert box under M-119, a paved open spillway with“low walls” directing flood water west to Zoll Street, and the lowering of Zoll Street to carry the water to the waterfront (Zoll would essentially act as a giant pipe to move the water to the beach and into the harbor).

On Monday night, O’Neill noted the culvert, which will go under M-119, will likely be able to double as a pedestrian walkway.

“The goal is to get 100-percent of the houses out of the floodplain map,” he said. O’Neill also noted the city can use the work being done on Zoll Street as an opportunity to rectify parking issues at Zoll Street Beach (the “dog beach”), by creating parallel parking spots on the east side and angled spots on the west side of the street.

Also in attendance at the meeting was Susan Conradson, with the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality. Conradson works closely with FEMA on floodplain work in a 22-county service area.

“I want to commend your community for being proactive, and seeing the future problems this mapping could cost residents, as well as the potential flood risks. I cover 22 counties, and you are the only community doing this,” she said.

Conradson went on to note that she spent much of the summer in Houghton, Michigan, following a historic flood that caused a great deal of damage to the downtown area.

“Harbor Springs, topographically, reminds me of Houghton. It also reminds me of Houghton in that (floodrelated) infrastructure is outof date,” she said, pointing to “past mistakes” where drains have been filled, even naming several locations in town where this has occurred.

“I believe there was a flood here in the 1880s as well, we just don’t have photos of it,” she said. “There really is a flooding issue here.”

Conradson said average costs for flood insurance were around $1,200 a year, but stressed that the number varies with the value of a home, and that most houses in downtown Harbor Springs are likely above average in value.

“I think we are talking about something like 150 homes (being added to the floodplain risk map), and paying flood insurance over 28-30 years, the costs start to add up. If a house is paid for, the need for flood insurance can cause issues if you go to sell your property.”

In addition, should flood damage occur, she said flood insurance typically maxes out at around $125,000 for the structure and $125,000 for interior contents, and does not cover basement damage.

“It’s really better to remediate and try to avoid the flooding in the first place,” she stressed.

Individual property owners do have an opportunity to appeal FEMA’s decision to place them in a floodplain risk area, but it requires the property owner to pay for a survey and there is no certainty the result will be to remove the property.

O’Neill added that he and Conradson had a very positive call with the FEMA contractor earlier that day, as they continue to work to ensure the mitigation map and the official FEMA floodplain map coincide.

This has been an area of concern for some residents within the expanded floodplain; the idea that the work will be done without guarantee from FEMA that it will change the final map, given the cost and scope of the project, has left people unsettled.

Still, Richards has long contended that minimizing the actual flood risk is worth it, and that the best chance for reducing the floodplain risk area is to abide by the timeline set forth by FEMA. This means any mitigation projects should be completed by the end of 2019.

City residents had the opportunity to ask questions and express their concerns following the information portion of the meeting.

Patrick O’Brien, a downtown Harbor Springs resident, said there has been “a lot of misunderstanding” about how the floodplain coverage area was developed, adding parts of the map “seem to defy logic.”

Conradson explained how FEMA (from the air) essentially “pinged” the area with laser technology and the used two different flow values, and a hydraulic model developed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, to slice the area into cross sections and determine where– and how fast– water would flow.

O’Neill added that the steeper the grade, the less depth the water would likely be, and that in areas where the water would be slower flowing, the depth would rise.

“It (the floodplain map) is not affecting the football field, or the deer park, or the swamp,” O’Brien pointed out, adding, “it’s not impacting areas where there are no tax payers.”

Conradson explained that was because the flood waters would not “jump the highway.” In essence, she said, M-119 would currently serve like a damn, routing the water straight into town.

“I don’t think there is anything nefarious here,” O’Neill noted. “The engineers did their cross sections, and the numbers came out where they came out. We’re trying to solve the problem.”

Several other residents spoke up with concerns about the process, and with FEMA’s timetable for mitigation. Others expressed concern about damages to the road or city infrastructure.

“There is no perfect solution,” O’Neill said. “We are trying to get the best solution we can for a reasonable price.”

Former Mayor Bill Brown, a Main Street resident, questioned the city’s plans to ensure the “whole drain system” was being paid attention to, and noted concerns about having the current culverts and drains (mainly of why have iron grates) being adequately cleaned to avoid back-ups from debris.

Richards said that is now part of routine Department of PublicWorks maintenance, due to the renewed urgency the FEMA map brought to the city.

Brown stressed the need for a plan for the entire Shay drain system, which he reminded the audience is “a natural system that drains water all the way from Stutsmanville.”

Representatives from both Irish Boat Shop andWalstrom Marine were in attendance at the meeting to express deep concerns of the potential timing of the mitigation project’s construction work. Bid proposals indicate a timeline that would start the Zoll Street work just after July 4 (completed in mid-September), and the M-119 portion, slated to last six weeks, would begin late in the fall. This causes major problems for both marinas, which use both Zoll Street and the M-119 hill to haul boats to storage facilities uptown.

Michael Esposito, president of Irish Boat Shop, asked Council to consider having the work done simultaneously. He said he understands the inconvenience of rerouting traffic into downtown during the summer months, but stressed that for the marinas, the city would be creating a nearly impossible situation when it comes to moving boats.

“There is no solution in this for us, but for everyone else, they just have an inconvenience,” he said. “You don’t want us trying to haul 60-foot boats on hydraulic trailers, making 90-degree turns in the middle of downtown.”

The other major concern that has been expressed throughout this process in how the floodplain mitigation project will be paid for, and by whom. The possibility of a special assessment district does exist, though Richards stressed deciding how the project will be covered can be determined at another time, and that it is currently slated to be paid for through bonds in the 2020 budget (though a pay-back from a special assessment district would be a likely option).

“We will have multiple public hearings before anything happens there,” said Mayor Bugera.

Following more than an hour of conversation, Council essentially ended the conversation by putting forth a motion to allow city staff to let the project for bids. The motion passed unanimously.

Richards did note that a FEMA representative planned to be in Harbor Springs for a community meeting in July.

In addition, Conradson suggested people visit the FEMA website to learn more about floodplain maps, flood insurance and building regulations and more, at www.floodsmart.gov