Meeting slated to discuss East End flooding
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Saying the flooding on Washington Boulevard is part of a much larger problem, Pittsburgh City Councilman Bill Peduto has scheduled a community meeting Sept. 6 to discuss chronic flooding in the East End.
Mr. Peduto said he has invited Mayor Luke Ravenstahl to attend the meeting, which will be 6 p.m. at Winchester Thurston School in Shadyside. He also invited officials of Allegheny County, the state and the Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority.
"This will be a chance for the community to speak directly to the PWSA and a chance for the authority to talk about a plan of action," Mr. Peduto said in a statement.
On Friday, heavy rainfall triggered a flash flood that claimed four lives on Washington Boulevard. The downpour also wreaked havoc in other East End neighborhoods.
"Over the past few years, residents in Shadyside, Squirrel Hill, East Liberty, and Point Breeze have suffered significant flooding in their homes after every large storm," Mr. Peduto said in a statement. "We have worked with residents, the PWSA and community groups for several years to identify the problems and seek solutions, but the floods continue to occur with some regularity. The failures along Washington Boulevard are a part of the larger East End watershed problems and must be corrected as a whole."
St. Bede School in Point Breeze sustained $26,000 worth of damage from a July flood. Workers put the last coat of wax on the restored floors Friday, when the school was flooded again.
Rev. Edward M. Bryce, St. Bede pastor, said he didn't yet have an estimate of Friday's damage. He said he didn't know what has caused the flooding, but noted that other property owners nearby have had similar problems.
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First Published August 25, 2011 12:00 am
