Flooding issues persist in village

For more than a decade flooding has been a “big problem” in the Village of Lawrence, according to Mayor Martin Oliner, who said a high water table, the level below which the ground is completely saturated with water, and the construction of larger homes has contributed to the problem.

Oliner said flooding has been a major issue on Muriel Avenue, Meadow Lane and Margaret Avenue, among others. “The problem relates to the lack of dry wells,” he said. “Another large part is that we’re building bigger houses so there is less space for the water to go. We have a high water table and no place to put storm water.”

In an effort to battle the problem, Oliner said the village is dealing with it on a street-by-street basis. “We’ve talked to engineering firms to see if anyone can come up with a possible remedy but we always seem to fall short,” he said. “When you build, you’re not getting rid of water, you’re shifting the water to your neighbor when you don’t have adequate coverage of your own.”

After a rainstorm, residents whose basements flood, pump the storm water into the sewer system that in turn backs up as well. “We have to clean out basements so they don’t back up,” he said. “We’re doing more maintenance then ever before.”

A Meadow Lane resident, who declined to be identified, has lived in Lawrence for more than 20 years and said her home floods during rainstorms. Since November, she is in the process of waterproofing her home. “Hopefully waterproofing my basement will solve the problem,” she said. “I’m waterproofing inside and outside to protect my home and in hopes of preventing losses such as the computers and furniture I lost a couple years back from flooding.”