The northern stretch of West Windsor Township in the Penns Neck area was particularly hard hit by flooding in the aftermath of Hurricane Irene late last summer. Now the township has sent a handful of residents in the flood-prone area a draft version of its request for proposals (RFP) for an engineering study to be done to address the flooding.
Various contributing factors, including the flow of water from Lake Carnegie, Little Bear Brook, and the Millstone River as well as storm sewer conditions on Fieldston Road were all discussed at a special township meeting on November 2.
Now a consultant is sought to examine environmental restrictions such as floodplains, stream buffers and wetlands, the properties and suitability of the native soil in the area, and the varying elevations within the township’s redevelopment area.
The RFP details the Little Bear Brook watershed and its drainage area of nearly 3.3 square miles. The draft states that “drainage within the Little Bear Brook is greatly affected by the flow of the Millstone River during the low frequency, high intensity storm events, and at these times backwater conditions within the Millstone River cause flood waters to travel up Little Bear Brook.” The document then pinpoints this as what caused flooding after Hurricane Irene last August.
The scope of work outlined for a consultant includes meetings to obtain input from “designated” township representatives; public input on hazards, problems, past events, and possible solutions; and subsequent meetings to obtain feedback. The RFP also calls for a survey to be sent to at least 90 percent of property owners located within the Little Bear Brook watershed.
Risk and hazard assessment criteria are also outlined. The consultant will also be expected to present a number of preventative measures, property protection guidelines, natural resource protection methods and capital improvement projects that could mitigate flood hazards.
Finally, the consultant will be asked to develop an “action plan” for the township to prioritize their recommended activities, and present a final report and public information materials such as maps, outreach projects, technical assistance, and training.
Calling on his career experience in hydrology and PhD in chemical and environmental engineering, West Windsor Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh reviewed the RFP himself because he wants it to contain “all of the correct information.”
“We are looking for a consultant to provide this plus additional information that will be needed for the township to be able to make decisions,” he said.
Hsueh believes the final report generated by the engineering study will primarily help the township make environmental and regional objectives clear to any future developers that consider properties in West Windsor.
The township looks to get input from homeowners who live in the part of town most affected by Hurricane Irene last summer, as many feel that the flooding situation on Washington Road near the train station, lower Fisher Place, and Fieldston Road has escalated dramatically in the recent past, prompting letters of concern to Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh’s office last fall.
In response Township Engineer Francis Guzik, Business Administrator Robert Hary, and the mayor held a public meeting on stormwater management less than a week before the 2011 Council election. At the meeting many residents spoke about the impacts of overdevelopment on the drainage in the region, and one attendee — Joan McGee of the Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed Association — spoke encouragingly about the efforts West Windsor residents and the administration have made in comparison with other townships in Central New Jersey that were more hard-hit by flood waters than West Windsor. Mayor Hsueh says in part this would coincide with his reasoning for the study.
“It would be difficult to obtain money from the state and federal government unless the township’s study would be able to come up with more regional perspectives and solutions,” he says.
Hsueh, in accord with the opinion of the Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed Association, forewarns that it is highly unlikely for West Windsor to receive federal funds now that the Army Corps of Engineers is preoccupied with more severe flooding situations in the state such as Manville and areas further north, where Hurricane Irene’s aftermath was more pronounced. But the study will give the township “a contribution it can show to the regional authorities,” which Hsueh said can give West Windsor a chance at federal funds.
Professional expertise was a clear need. As revealed at the November 2 meeting, the township had been relying on flood plain maps dating back to 1984. Irene was an anomaly but the impact of decades of housing overdevelopment throughout the state had not been taken into consideration, resulting in a lack of preparedness in the case of major flood or weather events. Residents have also expressed doubt over the management of water flow, including infrastructure from the Dinky tracks to Princeton and the dams at Lake Carnegie.
Hsueh said the study will enable West Windsor to effectively communicate with the Army Corps of Engineers. The mayor also insists on the importance of an engineering study being reputable enough that it could stand up in court should the need arise.
“It has always been better for the township to have collected additional information when it comes to working with the Department of Environmental Protection,” he said.
Hsueh is pressing for the township to do this engineering study now because time is of the essence. He hopes the involved residents coordinate their questions and input with Guzik immediately so the RFP can be sent out in mid-February, once the mayor returns from his trip to Taiwan. he says he will meet with Guzik and other township professionals to select a consultant or firm.
“Sometimes we must make quality decisions and not press too much over the details,” Hsueh said.
Hsueh estimates that once the consultant is selected the entire engineering study should take three to four months to complete. The rush is driven by Intercap’s upcoming site plan submission for the transit village project. Intercap will not be contributing to the payment for this engineering study. The mayor stated that as part of the settlement deal reached last year, Intercap only needs to be concerned with their 25 acres of property when it comes to potential ecological impacts. Therefore this study may be the last influence on the transit village design from an environmental perspective.
“We are competing with the timing of Intercap’s site plan review this year, but we would be able to provide some regional perspective which Intercap could take into consideration,” the mayor said.
Funding for the study is planned to come out of a $250,000 donation from Toll Brothers made for homes built at the Windsor Haven development ($2500 per home for 100 homes). Windsor Haven would have to approve the expenditure from that donation amount, which the mayor expects to happen since the donation was secured by Hsueh a decade ago to go towards environmental considerations and improvement of the township.
