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Thread: Town grapples with Drainage Issues

  1. #1
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    Town grapples with Drainage Issues

    The Lancaster Sun featured an article on the drainage issues Petersbrook Circle neighbors are experiencing in their backyards, making their backyards unusable.

    According to the Lancaster Sun:

    “They are among a group of residents in that area who have faced drainage issues after the Parklane Apartments were built, disrupting the natural watercourse of the area, one resident said at a board meeting last September. Since ground cover has been removed between the Herzog home and the apartments, they have noticed drainage issues becoming more pronounced.”

    For years, Lancaster residents have reported poor drainage on their properties, so much so that this past January, the board began considering hiring a hydrologist, a professional who would be able to determine the root cause of drainage issues, as well as to alleviate the problem on one street without creating one somewhere else.

    “Certainly, it’s a level of concern. We want to make sure we’re doing right by the town residents,” Supervisor Ruffino said. “And that’s one of the reasons why we’re possibly doing a town-wide drainage study, to see how does it come back, and what’s causing it?

    In the near future, the town plans to address the Petersbrook Circle drainage concerns with new piping and catch basins.



    In July of 2006, I posted the following on Speakup: https://www.speakupwny.com/article_2792.shtml

    “We’ll be here to watch you and protect you,” said Supervisor Giza. Is the town now (14 years later) involved in correcting the drainage issue at taxpayer expense because the developer / Parklane Apartments / town failed to protect the residents from the beginning of the Parklane Apartment project?

    The town should have hired a ‘hydrologist’ decades ago when the town was being aggressively developed and where much of the development was occurring in functional and valuable wetlands and considered at the time ‘inconsequential’ wetlands. Wetlands with hydric soils not conducive to building. Where development was taking place with bogus wetland delineations, segmentation, and where hydrology reports submitted by developers went unchallenged by unqualified town engineers and code enforcement officers.

    Highway Superintendent Dan Amatura is quoted as attributing lack of proper drainage to residents’ sheds, pool pumps, and landscaping in drainage easements. Sheds, fences, pools, decks, etc. all added without permits, it should be added.

    Supervisor Ruffino has served as a town council member since 2002, approved many of the same projects that resulted in the destruction of valuable and functional wetlands that control flooding and drainage issues and is now looking for a reason and solution for flooding and drainage issues in town?

    I have been writing for 20 years that developers ruled in this town; their best interests served over that of the residents. I moved into a wetland development area knowingly because I was assured that a proper drainage system with collection ponds was constructed to alleviate water issues. It didn’t happen! My backyard floods and is also not usable most of the year - every year and getting worse every year as wetlands grow.

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    I've contacted Dan about the excessive drainage into Slate bottom creek that has affected my property.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scc4wicM6c8

    That creek is normally a trickle, but in the video is' 150' wide and 5 feet deep.

  3. #3
    Tony Fracasso - Admin
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    Visuals always help to make a point.

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    Quote Originally Posted by WNYresident View Post
    Visuals always help to make a point.
    Indeed, and through Lancaster’s development years hundreds of visuals were provided of the wanton destruction or filling in of wetlands and creek tributaries, bogus wetland segmentation processes, stormwater / sewer violations, Slate Bottom creek diversion at Brunck Road to accommodate for developing one lot, etc. All approved by past town boards favoring the interests of the developer over that of the community – and all with the BS retort that the developer could sue the town if the project was not approved.

    The development of both Winsor Ridge and Windsor Ridge South were prime examples of past development clusterf***s.

    All that and then with countless rezones and rezones of rezones to accommodate developer best interests.

    Highway Superintendent Amatura and Code Enforcement Officer Fischione are paying for the sins of the fathers (past administrations).

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    Member gorja's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by yaksplat View Post
    I've contacted Dan about the excessive drainage into Slate bottom creek that has affected my property.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scc4wicM6c8

    That creek is normally a trickle, but in the video is' 150' wide and 5 feet deep.
    Yak, could the beavers be at it again?

    https://buffalonews.com/2009/06/22/r...per-to-remove/

    Georgia L Schlager

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    How many times have we heard the same song and dance out of Town Hall - I'd say at least 20 years ! Subdivision after subdivision - wetlands filled and ignored - bogus wetland delineations and majic reductions. At one point you could fill wetland in Lancaster and the developer could donate wetland some where else.

    Water run off and retention has became issues all over the Town - so they just kept jumping around - build one phase in the south , move to the north ! When the people in phase one forgets for a few years - time to build more.

    They also said numerous times a "Town wide drainage study was being done by the highway department" - where is it ?

    Now they want to hire a hydrologist - these issues were supposed to have been considered and dealt with as each plan went through the permitting , zoning , Town Board approval process ? They claimed they were !

    Totally lame answer by our Supervisor , "“Certainly, it’s a level of concern. We want to make sure we’re doing right by the town residents,” Supervisor Ruffino said. “And that’s one of the reasons why we’re possibly doing a town-wide drainage study, to see how does it come back, and what’s causing it ? - yes - waste more time and dance a while longer !

    The true solution would be a class action lawsuit against the Town for not doing due diligence when approving these subdivisions for their donor developer friends. Same song - same dance - Good luck !
    #Dems play musical chairs + patronage and nepotism = entitlement !

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    Spot on 4248!

    This paragraph is most noteworthy:

    Totally lame answer by our Supervisor, "“Certainly, it’s a level of concern. We want to make sure we’re doing right by the town residents,” Supervisor Ruffino said. “And that’s one of the reasons why we’re possibly doing a town-wide drainage study, to see how does it come back, and what’s causing it? - yes - waste more time and dance a while longer!

    All the reasons for the flooding and drainage issues the town is now encountering from poor development policies and practices have been well documented through the years.

    Except for one administration (1992-96) the town has been under Democratic Party control since 1952. Unfortunately, even under the 4-year span of the Republican Party administration development took place with the same segmentation practices in place, bogus wetland delineations, the wanton destruction and indiscriminate filing in of valuable and functional wetlands took place during a ‘hot spell’ of development.

    Little regard was given to water displacement. Dry (detention) collection ponds were later installed, followed by wet (retention) ponds and later backyard drainage pipes collecting water to catch ponds were installed. Too little too late with the town mantra “it is illegal to shed water onto your neighbor’s property while all the while infractions were taking place. All the while the town had no hydrology expert sitting on any board to challenge submitted developer ‘hydrology studies’.

    Before being elected Supervisor in 2019, Mr. Ruffino was a council member for 17 years and voted approval for like development projects that have resulted in flooding and drainage issues. His declaration ‘to see how does it come back, and what’s causing it’ is disingenuous.

    Highway Superintendent Amatura is well aware of what has caused the flooding and drainage issues plaguing the town, has identified areas of concern through his GIS program and is working to correct the drainage issues resulting from underhanded development practices and property owner easement infractions. Since Matt Fischione became Building Inspector in the past several years, storm-water issues and infractions are being appropriately addressed. His storm-water violation reports are outstanding.

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    Quote Originally Posted by gorja View Post
    Yak, could the beavers be at it again?

    https://buffalonews.com/2009/06/22/r...per-to-remove/
    Nope, no beavers this time. Just many hundreds of thousands of gallons of water

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    Quote Originally Posted by yaksplat View Post
    Nope, no beavers this time. Just many hundreds of thousands of gallons of water
    Well, if the town is thinking of launching a beaver hunt just to be sure, let me know. I haven’t been on a really good beaver hunt since my college days.

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by yaksplat View Post
    Nope, no beavers this time. Just many hundreds of thousands of gallons of water
    Well there goes the easy fix. So what is the highway department going to do? You said you spoke to Mr Amatura.

    Georgia L Schlager

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    Originally posted by Grump:
    Well, if the town is thinking of launching a beaver hunt just to be sure, let me know. I haven’t been on a really good beaver hunt since my college days.


    Sorry Grump, you have to have a stiff rod to hunt the beaver.

    Georgia L Schlager

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    Quote Originally Posted by gorja View Post

    Sorry Grump, you have to have a stiff rod to hunt the beaver.

    HA HA HA HA HA

    thank you gorja for making my day!!!!

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