Hyde Park residents dealing with repeated flooding will get their first formal session with city officials and MSD representatives on Aug. 25 at Hyde Park United Methodist Church.
The Hyde Park Neighborhood Council's rescheduled flood-response meeting runs from 7:30 to 9 p.m. in the Little Theatre at 1345 Grace Ave. A shortened HPNC monthly meeting, led by interim president John Menninger, precedes it from 7 to 7:30 p.m.
The session was originally scheduled for Aug. 11 but was canceled after a severe storm struck that afternoon. The HPNC posted at the time that it would "not be meeting tonight" to "let our neighbors recover from this afternoon's storm."
What's on the agenda
The newly posted agenda names two city assistance programs residents can ask about directly:
- MSD's Sewer Back-Up Prevention Program: an overview of the process and what to expect once enrolled. Residents must report a backup to MSD within 48 hours of discovery to be potentially eligible for reimbursement. Reports can be filed 24/7 at (513) 352-4900 or online at msdgc.org/sbu.
- Department of Opportunity and Residents Services' Flood Assistance Program: eligibility requirements and how to apply. The city also has a flood relief hotline at (513) 323-7995, available 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays.
The second half of the meeting turns to long-term solutions. Elected officials are listed on the agenda to address root causes, mitigation timelines, prioritization of flooding hot spots and how "the severe and repeated flooding impact in Hyde Park" will factor into the city's decisions on Hyde Park Square development.
That last point adds a new dimension to the HPNC's ongoing dispute over a planned development proposal for the south side of Hyde Park Square.
The stakes
The East Side received a record 21.95 inches of rain between June 1 and July 31, the highest two-month total since the National Weather Service began recording at Lunken Airport in 1948, WLWT reported. Flash flooding hit Hyde Park on July 17 and again on July 21, damaging 118 homes and businesses across east-side neighborhoods.
City Council voted unanimously on Aug. 5 to approve $2 million in emergency relief. Federal aid was deemed unlikely because the damage did not meet the federal threshold.
"We've been begging the city to do something about this for years and years, and we need a plan of action," Hyde Park resident Renee Bajorek told Local 12 on July 27, after her basement flooded in both storms.
Councilman Mark Jeffreys filed a motion in late July calling for a 30-day after-action review and a 60-day deeper review of stormwater detention options, including whether new private development in flood-prone areas should be required to build larger underground detention systems, Fox 19 reported.
How to attend
The meeting is free. It is at Hyde Park United Methodist Church, 1345 Grace Ave. Enter through the door with the awning-covered walkway, take the stairs to the second floor and head east down the hallway. The Little Theatre is around the corner on the left. The agenda includes time for audience questions.
