As a several year natural cycle of slow-moving intense summer rainstorms raises both water levels and headaches in the area, the county’s senior services facility has seen more than its share of related trouble.
As a result, Janice Lantz, executive director of Pendleton Senior and Family Services, brought the matter before the Pendleton County Commission in its regular meeting last week.
Last year, extended periods of rain caused flooding in the facility that caused significant damage. Lantz and her staff submitted a grant application that they won, receiving $50,000 toward repairs.
Then, as Lantz said, “The other day we had water again. We thought we’d found the problem.”
She shared that staff and contractors had discovered that a drain located near the dumpster would back up, as well as a floor drain inside. Additionally, water runs off of the community building parking lot into that of the senior center, which adds to the problems. The drain in the parking lot that should take excess water away safely gets overwhelmed easily.
Pendleton County Commission president, Carl Hevener, asked about the previous slate of repairs, to which Lantz replied that they had checked other potential problems and finally determined that the water had come through the floor drain.
During the heavy rains last week, administrators and staff spent approximately two hours bailing water from the facility to prevent further damage. Lantz pointed out that if the water emergency had taken place at night or if it had lasted too much longer, significant damage would have once again forced a shutdown of the center and also expensive repairs.
She also stated that contractors tried to run cameras on a plumbing snake, sharing “we have no idea what that connects to” and also that during heavy rains there is “a lot of water coming from underneath there.”
Hevener noted another problem, saying, “The drainage ditch behind there has been a problem” for about a half-century.
Rick Gillespie, Pendleton County Emergency Services coordinator, suggested that a smoke test would be necessary to determine the nature of the drain and pipe system described by Lantz. He noted that he had seen water coming from a drain in the Franklin Town Park.
“The more concrete and asphalt you have, the more stormwater problems you have,” noted Hevener.
Lantz, before leaving, explained that the current weather cycle’s threat means that they need answers quickly and that she would go next to the Town of Franklin council meeting next week.
Hevener said, “We’ll try to help in any way we can.”
Commissioners and Gillespie discussed the problem. Later in the meeting after Lantz had to leave, they shared the issue with Richard Dennis, field representative for Governor Patrick Morrissey. Traffic problems had prevented him from attending the meeting at the beginning.
