Hanceville to seek FEMA grant to deal with Edward St. flooding

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Under a proposed plan presented Thursday evening at the Hanceville City Council meeting, Linda Brown’s house at the corner of Edward Street and East Railroad Avenue would be purchased and demolished, and a stormwater detention pond would be constructed on the site, draining through the large storm drain in the foreground. (W.C. Mann for The Cullman Tribune)

HANCEVILLE, Ala. – The Hanceville City Council on Thursday evening voted to pursue a $247,000 grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to resolve flooding around the intersection of Edward Street and East Railroad Avenue on the city’s northeast side. Under a plan presented to the council, the grant would allow the City to purchase the often-flooded home of Linda Brown, demolish the structure and replace it with a stormwater detention pond that would ease the effects of heavy rains on the area.

Another idea discussed at length involves the placement of an extra drainage culvert underneath the railroad, to supplement the existing culvert which engineers said was too small for the amount of acreage it has to drain. According to Mayor Kenneth Nail, attempts to talk to CSX Railroad about the problem have not been successful, and concerns were raised about the potential effects of additional stormwater drainage on the other side of the tracks. The engineers said more studies on those effects would have to be completed before that option could be considered.

Brown, who was present at the meeting, thanked the council for its vote.

The Hanceville City Council will meet next at 6 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 14 in the Hanceville City Hall auditorium, with work session at 5:30. The public is invited to attend.

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W.C. Mann

craig@cullmantribune.com