Belvidere plans to tackle flooding along East Avenue

By Bob Balgemann

REPORTER

The rainstorm of July 23 left a variety of problems in various parts of the city.

Most recent was flooding in the 900 Block of East Avenue, which drew the attention of the committee of the whole at its Aug. 8 meeting.

Alderman Mark Sanderson said he was contacted by a resident in that area who reported being left with knee-deep water in her basement.

“Landscaping in her front and back yard was destroyed,” he said. “She had a big hole in her lot.”

The water sometimes was so deep that “people were going down the street in a canoe.”

He added there were other calls, too, near Warren and Caswell streets and some others on East Avenue.

Sanderson suggested looking at the little used tot lot in that area to help relieve the flooding. It might be possible to use half of the lot as a park and half of it as a storm water retention area.

“It would be good to discuss this in two weeks,” at the next committee of the whole meeting, he said.

“I don’t know about the engineering there. But, it would be nice to keep this [flooding] from happening, or as much, in the future.”

City Clerk Shauna Arco said she would put the item on the Aug. 22 meeting agenda. She added that the East Avenue resident had turned in information to the city’s insurance company.

“I haven’t heard anything yet,” she said.

Also Aug. 8, the committee briefly discussed the parking improvements made along Menomonie Street, behind the public safety building.

Public Works Director Brent Anderson said the work had been completed, with parking signs for patrol cars the last to go in.

“It looks pretty nice,” Alderman Ron Brooks said. “There are no complaints now.”

Well, not too many. Hancock Avenue resident Shirley Mills told the committee she thought the street was too narrow, where the sidewalk crosses. “I think more of the curbing should have been taken off,” she said.

Director Anderson said there were two purposes for that part of the project: to protect the angle parking and to leave a shorter distance for pedestrians to cross the street.

“Offset intersections are not uncommon,” he said. “We have several of them around town. I believe the biggest one is East Avenue and Logan Avenue. Locust and Main is another one.”

Main and Menomonie has become a four-way stop. In the past, Main had stop signs while Menomonie was a through street.

Alderman Brooks, a retired state trooper, said he drove the area that afternoon and had no problem with it.

“There won’t be numerous cars traveling that intersection at one time,” he said. “I think it will work out fine.”

He thanked Mills and her longstanding interest in the project. Should a problem come up, he assured the city would fix it – immediately.

“It’s never too late to correct it,” he said of whatever might come up.

Sanderson said he was happy to see a four-way stop at that intersection.

Anderson said the islands and 25 mph speed limit were put there for a reason.

“It’s tight,” he said. “We do that on purpose somewhat to keep the speeds down. If the street is wide open it tends to increase the speed. With 25 mph it [speeding] should not be an issue.”

Resident Mills said she just wanted to express her opinion about the project.

“If anything bad happens, it’s on you,” she told city officials.

Alderson Clint Morris said he didn’t think he ever had seen a group of residents so involved, so demonstrative, as the Menomonie Street property owners.

“You expressed concern not only about parking but about public safety in that area,” he said. “I do commend you for coming down here.”

Of the improvements, he said, “We’ll see what the future brings. It [ the project] does sound sensible.”