- May 17, 2024
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The city of Ormond Beach is one step closer to completing a $16 million stormwater project to address future flooding needs.
The city recently received $5.35 million from the Florida Legislature for the construction of a new stormwater pump station and force main along Fleming Avenue, a project first identified as a need after a 2009 storm that brought 30 inches of rain to Ormond Beach in two-and-a-half days, causing historic flooding in the Central Park area.
"We had a number of houses that flooded," City Public Works Director Shawn Finley said. "We had a number of roads that were underwater for extended periods of time. Anybody who is still around that remembers it, remembers it was not a very good situation.
Since then, the city has interconnected the five Central Park lakes, upgraded the Bennet Lane pump station and enhanced its pumping system to address the issue.
The Fleming Avenue pump station, Finley said, is the "big project," and one that should help the flooding risk to about 500 to 600 homes in the Central Park area.
The pump station will be able to pump 45,000 gallons a minute, he said, the equivalent to three swimming pools, and will help speed up pre-storm preparations and improve water quality.
"It'll allow us to be able to be more responsive if something does shift its way, especially a named storm that really wasn't a tracked hurricane but it was an intense rainstorm, so we're able to counter that a little bit better," Finley said.
Mayor Bill Partington said it's taken a number of years — and coordination between the city, St. Johns River Water Management District and the Department of Environmental Protection — to get the project at its shovel-ready state.
"We're excited to finally be close and whenever you can reduce the flood risk for 500 homes, that's a huge incentive and benefit," Partington said.
The interconnection of the Central Park lakes, completed over 10 years ago, has helped with the flooding risk in the area, while providing a recreational amenity for residents. But pumping the lakes down before a storm is a slow process, the mayor said, and this new pump will help create the capacity needed for a major storm event.
It will also help neighboring communities, Partington added. The city sits in the north end of the Nova Road Canal Drainage District, he said, and coupled with the drainage improvements being performed by the Florida Department of Transportation, the hope is severe flooding can be prevented.
"The fact that we'll be able to pump quite a bit of water out prior to a storm event will keep that water from flooding in our neighborhoods around Central Park but also will keep that water from drifting south and causing a problem in Daytona or Port Orange," Partington said.
The city is still awaiting on a $9.4 million FEMA Hazard Mitigation grant for the project. The city can't start the project until it hears back from FEMA, or else it risks not being reimbursed for the work done.
If FEMA awards the funds, the city's share is estimated to be about $1,229,100, according to the city, the funds of which will come from the stormwater fund.
The FEMA reimbursement, is a huge chunk of the funding.
"That's why this [project], it's been the one that has taken a while to get to — it's needing to get all the pieces, all the ducks in a row," Finley said. "That way, we're able to take advantage of some funding sources that isn't putting an additional burden on residents."
