Madison Road flooded catastrophically on July 17 when a 1,000-year storm dumped up to 6.6 inches of rain on Oakley and Hyde Park in roughly one hour. That same stretch of Madison Road is one of seven transit corridors targeted for increased housing density under Cincinnati's Connected Communities zoning plan, passed in June 2024.

Now, as City Council reconvenes for a three-day flood session that began August 3, residents and community leaders are pressing a pointed question: should the city keep greenlighting denser development on streets where the sewer system already can't keep up?

Connected Communities allows housing with up to four units in every neighborhood business district plus a quarter-mile radius, and eliminates density restrictions along major corridors like Madison Road. It also reduces or eliminates parking minimums along those corridors, according to WVXU's reporting on the plan.

The infrastructure gap

The July 17 storm killed one person and injured three. The Cincinnati Fire Department responded to 40 water rescue calls. Oakley logged 33 flood-related incident calls that day, more than any other neighborhood. Hyde Park had 20. A second storm struck July 21, and by July 24 the Metropolitan Sewer District had received more than 1,500 reports of flooding and sewer backups from both events combined, WVXU reported.

The Duck Creek floodgate on Madison Road failed to close automatically during the July 17 storm due to a mechanical malfunction, City Manager Sheryl Long confirmed at a July 23 press conference. The gate, installed in 2008 by the Army Corps of Engineers, protects roughly 40 properties near the Madison Road bridge. Greater Cincinnati Water Works has offered no timeline for repairing it.

Long acknowledged that even a functioning floodgate would not have prevented widespread flooding given the volume of rain. She said at the press conference that the city's best effort "isn't good enough, at least not yet," as Axios Cincinnati reported.

What MSD said before the floods

When Connected Communities was debated in May 2024, MSD Director Diana Christy told WVXU that the system does have capacity for density in many areas, but that each project must be evaluated individually through the permitting process. That assurance came before two storms overwhelmed the East Side in a single week. Whether MSD's position has changed since July is unknown.

Community councils coordinating

Mount Lookout Community Council president Brian Spitler said his neighborhood is coordinating with Hyde Park to present unified concerns to City Council. He told Local 12 that some residents are being told their damage doesn't qualify for relief because it wasn't classified as a sewer backup.

"Our immediate concern is we're hearing of people who are saying, and we have heard this many years in the past, that a lot of times they're being told it's not backup problems so they're not eligible," Spitler said.

Oakley resident Paige Scheidler, who lives on Camberwell Road near Duck Creek, told WLWT on July 26 she had already spent more than $20,000 replacing a hot water heater, HVAC system, garage door, washer, and dryer. She said flooding has been a consistent problem on her street since 2016.

Hyde Park stationery store owner Kristen Folzenlogen told Axios in its July 24 report that the city cannot expect businesses to keep returning to normal without a long-term plan, warning that repeated flooding will drive businesses and residents away.

What's next

A task force led by Vice Mayor Jan-Michele Lemon Kearney, President Pro Tem Victoria Parks, and Councilmember Scotty Johnson has been working to amend Connected Communities, with infrastructure among the focus areas. The current status of those amendments is unclear. Some groups, including the Cincinnati Charter Committee, have called for full repeal.

Councilman Mark Jeffreys filed a motion the week of July 28 calling for a 30-day review of the city's flood response and a feasibility study of smaller stormwater fixes, including retention ponds, permeable pavement, and rain gardens.

City Council is scheduled to vote August 5, on a $1 million homeowner relief fund announced by Vice Mayor Kearney. Mayor Aftab Pureval has separately committed $1 million for businesses. The Oakley Community Council met August 4, giving residents a forum to organize before that vote.