Maitland hopes road work will stop U.S. 17-92 flooding
Martha Bryant-Hall assumed the immense traffic backup on U.S. Highway 17-92 that prolonged her trip home from church on a recent Sunday was because of a bad crash ahead.
But when she later saw images of deep floodwater beneath the Rev. Kenneth C. Crossman railroad bridge, she was shocked to learn two motorists had been trapped after the area was swamped with at least 2 inches of water in a 20-minute period. Such flooding has affected traffic at the Winter Park-Maitland line four times in the past month, officials said.
“I’ve been in Maitland and Winter Park since I was 16 years of age, and I’ve never seen anything like that,” said Bryant-Hall, 75.
Officials hope such flash flooding will be a thing of the past as work continues on a project that will allow water to flow freely into Lake Gem. This week crews began placing 66-inch and 72-inch pipes along Monroe Avenue — just off U.S.
17-92 — as part of the work, but it should take a few weeks until the project is complete, City Manager Sharon Anselmo said.
The project would also treat the runoff from the road, neighborhoods, nearby Park Avenue and car dealerships before it goes into the 8-acre lake.
Most recently, the inside lane of U.S. 17-92 was closed May 6 because os standing water “out of an abundance of caution,” Anselmo said. This and other closures led to lengthy delays in a part of town that sees an average of 41,000 vehicles per day, according to Florida Department of Transportation data.
The National Weather Service in Melbourne is forecasting the possibility of storms Sunday — and with the rainy season fast approaching — Maitland officials hope the flooding no longer will be an issue.
The Lake Gem project has been in the works for nearly a decade, and city officials finally decided to move on it after receiving a grant from the state Department of Environmental Protection. City records show it’s budgeted for $1.2 million, with the city’s contribution capped at $803,000.
Previously, an open drainage ditch collected the water, which then flowed into the lake untreated.
“Lake Gem is the No. 2 out of our top seven polluted lakes,” Anselmo said. “It’s a very large basin … the majority of it flows from elsewhere, [but] ultimately it all ends up in a Maitland lake.”
Progress this week could quicken the pace of water draining from the road.
“[But] it depends how much progress they can make,” Anselmo said.
Work is being done by a contractor and is being paid for by the city and the Sydgan Corporation, the developer of the 73-acre Ravaudage project at Lee Road and 17-92.
FDOT spokesman Steve Olson said the developer hadn’t submitted plans or proper permits to the state.
“FDOT is taking action … and demanding the developer obtain and submit them,” he said in a statement. “The department is … demanding to examine plans and calculations for the permanent configuration of the drainage system to ensure the system will be able to handle water from U.S. 17-92 and the surrounding area.”
At a City Council meeting last month following the first two floods, officials said the first incident was because the pumps installed weren’t powerful enough to clear the road of water.
By the time U.S. 17-92 flooded a second time, officials had installed two new larger pumps, but one failed to turn on, so the road flooded again.
Now, three pumps are installed, so with the added pipes, drainage should improve, officials said.
“It should be better [this weekend],” Anselmo said.
rygillespie@orlandosentinel.com; 407-420-5002; Twitter: @byryangillespie; Facebook: @byryangillespie