Michael Adams has called Calgary’s southwest community of Discovery Ridge home for the past 17 years. He lived through the 2013 floods and the memories of the rapidly-rising water are still vivid, especially as rain continues to fall in the city.
“All the houses’ sump pumps have been running for nearly two weeks,” says Adams. “And there’s now water building up behind the houses.
“We’re going to have flooding issues yet again when this shouldn’t be a flood.”
A dry pond behind the row of houses along Discovery Ridge Boulevard southwest is the main cause for concern. It was built as part of the construction on the West Calgary Ring Road to manage water runoff from the provincial highway.
According to the province, the pond is designed to handle a one-in-500-year flood and includes an emergency outflow, which drains into a culvert owned by the City of Calgary with water ultimately flowing back into the Elbow River.
But residents say there’s a flaw in the design.
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“The pond’s been full for a month and now we’ve got more rain,” says Adams. “I’m scared this dam is going to break and take out these houses, and possibly all the ones in Discovery Ridge.”
The province says high water levels in the Elbow River are causing the backlog of water, adding there needs to be better drainage in the city’s culvert.
Meanwhile, the City of Calgary says it’s the pond that’s at issue, with water levels so high in a space meant for emergency runoff only, it’s impacting city infrastructure.
The back-and-forth is creating confusion for Adams, whose main focus is trying to protect his home.
“I called the city,” explains Adams. “The city said call the province, and the province said it’s not part of a highway problem and hung up on me.”
In a statement to Global News, Coun. Sonya Sharp, who is responsible for the area, says she’s aware of the pond which falls under provincial jurisdiction, and that water levels have risen to the point they are impacting city infrastructure.
The statement goes on to say, “Protecting residents and property is the City’s top priority, regardless of jurisdiction. I will continue to monitor the response closely and advocate for a coordinated long-term solution between the City and Province.”
City of Calgary crews were on site Tuesday working to drain the culvert.
The province says the Transportation and Economic Corridors will continue to support the city in the ongoing concern but adds, “It is important to note that the Lower Junction Pond appears to be operating as designed… (and) improvements or adjustments to the City of Calgary’s culvert (such as a backup prevention valve) may be needed to reduce the risk of future backflow events.”
But for Adams, he worries the longer the back-and-forth goes on between the two levels of government, more damage could be done to his home, decreasing his property value.
As the rain continues to fall, Adams says there is only so much his sump pump can do to save his basement.
“You have a circular motion of drain, pump, drain, pump, but you haven’t moved the water anywhere, and the water level is still rising.
“It’s like pumping a sinking ship.”
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