MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Members of the Monongalia County Commission continue to reach out to appropriate parties to address a floodplain that has affected residents in the Dellslow area.
Commission President Tom Bloom and Commission President Jeff Arnett addressed members of the Richard community during the commission’s meeting Wednesday, where they stated that they maintain communications with state leaders to address the floodplain along Deckers Creek that has caused flooding to numerous homes and businesses. This comes after several weeks of conversations that have resulted in frustrated representatives from the commission, representatives from the West Virginia Department of Highways, and several members of the Richard and Dellslow communities, with little to no progress taking place.
“The problem is, is that this issue doesn’t fall anywhere under the county commission (jursidiction),” said Bloom. “And I know that we’ve tried to do some things out there to get the people together and the DOH.”
According to both Bloom and Arnett, the conversations between the county and state officials have been ongoing for several weeks. These have included Monongalia County Floodplain Coordinator Harold “Hap” Sperringer, representatives with the DOH, the Morgantown Utility Board, and the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection in order to address an unclaimed stormwater pipe that has been pouring water into low-lying Dellslow and Richard area properties. This has resulted in issues related to jurisdiction over the Earl L. Core Road location of the pipe, which the county commission has no power to address outside of contacting representatives.
“We have beat the drum on this to anyone that would listen,” said Arnett. “At one point we had a representative from MUB, DOH, we had Hap there at a meeting, we’re not giving up on the issue.”
For the residents of Dellslow and Richard, the issues related to the unclaimed stormwater pipe and the attempted remedies have resulted in several petitions calling for some level of either county or state involvement.
According to Richard, property owner Kevin Dailey, close to a dozen residents signed a petition showcased on Wednesday for support of establishing a formal meeting with all residents affected by the flooding as well as the commission and parties county leaders feel are necessary. Many of which experienced a good bit of a water flow that can produce up to 200 gallons per minute that has caused thousands of dollars worth of property damage.
“We need that person here,” said Dailey, calling for a multi-agency, in-person meeting. “You know, basically, I’ve asked that, and these people have signed (a petition calling for) a meeting with the commissioners, the floodplain administrators, representatives of the DOH, and any other agency that you deem worthwhile to attend.”
The petition also included seven suggestions on how to address the flood plain, many of which the commission openly stated needed to be addressed on a state level.
With the situation currently at a stalemate, the commission is adamant about maintaining conversations with both Dellslow and Richard residents as well as officials with the DOH. This is despite a recent issue openly pointed out by Bloom during a previous commission meeting where a Dellslow resident spoke with DOH representatives, claiming to speak on behalf of the county, which caused the county and DOH District 4 representatives to almost abandon any remedies as a whole. With frustrations found on multiple levels, the commission aims to keep lines of communication open so this issue in the eastern part of the county can be put to rest.
“We’re limited in what we can do, but what we can do is to bring, or at least request, the parties that can do something to the table,” said Arnett. “And Hap is doing a good job trying to coordinate the thing and get help where we can.”