Stormwater upgrade soon
AFTER years of complaints, a planned upgrade to a stormwater line at Taieri Mouth should come as a relief to residents.
A Taieri resident approached the Otago Daily Times recently out of ‘‘sheer utter frustration’’ at trying to deal with the Clutha District Council about the drainage pipe in Palmer Pl.
The man, who did not want to be identified, said the council had done nothing about the drain or the discharge at the site despite ongoing complaints from the community over many years.
‘‘The thing is that it has been ongoing and it seems to be that we’re going around in circles . . . sometimes backwards.’’
The drain did not discharge water properly and often left a huge puddle of water.
The man said the area was often flooded even during periods of low rainfall.
When asked what he would like done, the man said he just wanted the water at the end of the street gone.
Council service delivery group manager Jules Witt confirmed there had been several complaints made to the council about issues relating to the pipe in Palmer Pl, but there was no money budgeted in the council’s longterm plan for an upgrade to the systems at the time of the complaints.
Seven service requests were recorded by the council in relation to Palmer St last year and three in 2015.
Mr Witt was aware there had been ongoing complaints for ‘‘many years’’.
‘‘It has taken a little bit of time,’’ he admitted.
In the past two weeks, Mr Witt and other council contractors and officials had met residents concerned about the pipe and were now working towards a complete stormwater upgrade for Palmer Pl.
That would include a new pumping station, which had been approved at a cost of $145,000 to pump water away from the site. It would cost $6000 a year to run.
The installation of the pumping station would provide more capacity for the catchment to handle heavy rain.
The council also agreed to clean the drain more regularly and adjust the drain to try to divert water away from affected properties.
Part of the problem was that a lot of the properties on the street were very lowlying and close to sea level, Mr Witt said.
He understood the process had been frustrating for the residents of Palmer Pl.
‘‘We’re trying to make sure the process ticks along reasonably quickly with our consultants.’’
The council was applying for a resource consent from the Otago Regional Council to install the pump.
samuel.white@odt.co.nz