Residents ask Manchester officials to help solve storm water problems

Whenever Philippe Siowtu mows his grass in the summertime, it looks as though he has just plowed it. The lawnmower wheels leave deep groves in the ground and often get stuck.

“With so much water in my yard, it’s a very difficult task to have a well- cut, manicured lawn,” Siowtu said. “The ground is always too soggy and it never dries. I have to wait for a very dry day to mow, but sometimes the grass grows faster than it dries.”

Siowtu voiced his frustration to the Manchester Board of Aldermen at their Dec. 7 meeting, detailing a storm water problem he has dealt with for the four years that he has lived on Shallowcreek View.

“People say in spring, rain showers bring May flowers. I can tell you this is true in my front yard,” Siowtu said. “But, I cannot say the same about the back yard. Rain storms turn my back yard into a marsh land that is good for growing rice, but not grass.”

After heavy rains, standing water can spread up to 50 feet across Siowtu’s back yard, he said. The water creeps onto his back patio and has flooded the basement through windows that are right at ground level, he said. 

A neighbor of Siowtu even wrote the city detailing the problem, which goes back 35 years, when the neighborhood originally was developed.

“That lot was never graded correctly,” Siowtu’s neighbor wrote “The house was too deep in the ground. There was always a water problem. Everyone who lived there had problems and it was never fixed.”

After the city annexed the neighborhood in 1997, work was done in the area dealing with other storm water issues, but the problem at Siowtu’s home remained.

Manchester City Administrator and City Engineer Ed Blattner said he devised a possible solution. They suggested an inlet be placed in Siowtu’s backyard, which would connect to an existing storm drain in a neighbor’s yard. All the yards adjacent to the properties would then have to be re-graded so that water would run correctly into the inlet.

Siowtu said he has received overwhelming support from neighbors who are willing to allow whatever work needs to be done to finally correct the problem.

“I might have to have trees taken down and an older playground in my backyard can come down,” said Tim Busche, a neighbor who would be affected if the project were to move forward. “I’m willing to do anything I can to support this project.”

Busche said that similar flooding occurs in his back yard. Because the back yards in that area all slope down into an area of about four yards, those at the bottom of the hill usually face serious standing water issues.

“I would prefer a total solution for the neighborhood,” Siowtu said. “If the city is going to be working around there, tearing out the fences to do re-grading, why not make it a total solution so we don’t create another problem by fixing this problem.”

Blattner said it would be difficult to extend the work beyond that specific area.

Manchester City Attorney Patrick Gunn cautioned the board and city staff to not get involved in what might be a private matter.

“Let me just remind the board of the constitutional prohibition which prohibits the city from spending public money to solve a private problem,” Gunn said. “I’m not reaching a conclusion that this run afoul against that provision, just that it is a consideration that should be given.”

Blattner said after the meeting that he was puzzled about Gunn’s comment.

“I’ve been with the city since 1985 and we’ve done a number of storm water projects that have affected many residents,” Blattner said. “I’m not sure what was meant by that and I haven’t had time to dissect that with him. I don’t know what he was referring to.”

City officials did not take any action on the issue at the meeting and made no mention that they plan to in the future.