Broadway Avenue Area Extraneous Flow Reduction Program

Forms:

Application Form (pdf)

Policy and Procedures (pdf)

Building Permits

Master Plumber  

The City of Welland is implementing the Broadway Avenue Area Extraneous Flow Reduction Program to financially assist specific residents up to $3,000.00 for solutions to reduce the risk of basement flooding, including foundation drain disconnection, repair/replacement of leaking sanitary laterals and lot drainage improvements.

Why Me?

The City of Welland, in cooperation with the Regional Municipality of Niagara, initiated the ‘Broadway Avenue Sanitary Sewer Drainage Area Basement Flooding Study’.  The engineering consultant, XCG Consultants Ltd., completed the study and final report in February 2007.

As part of the study, 155 properties were identified at high risk for basement flooding.  Even if you have never experienced a flood to date, hydraulic analysis of your neighbourhood has confirmed that there is too much extra flow getting into the local sanitary sewer system during storm events.

Affected Area – PDF Drawing (732k~pdf)

Key Findings of Study:

The following are the most important factors contributing to basement flooding within the Broadway Ave drainage area:

1. Basement floor elevations in the area are only marginally higher than the level of the local sanitary sewer, and therefore, are highly vulnerable to flooding.
    
2. Sewer capacities are exceeded during heavy storm events due to significant inflow/infiltration into the system. The source of this additional flow is primarily associated with building foundation drains and cracks in sanitary service lateral pipes to the home.
    
3. The area is generally quite flat and relatively low, further complicated by a high ground water level that results in excessive foundation drainage from the individual house connections getting into the sewers.
    

Reducing the Risk

The City of Welland is prepared to financially assist homeowners in implementing effective and affordable solutions that will provide the greatest level of protection against basement flooding. 

Though similar to the City’s existing SWAP Program, this new program will fully fund approved flood protection initiatives for the homeowners of the 155 high risk properties to a greater extent than the previous programs.

The approved solutions consist of the following components:

• A Closed Circuit TV (CCTV) inspection of the sanitary connection drains;
• Repair/replacement of leaking sanitary laterals;
• Disconnection of building foundation drains from the sanitary sewer system;
• Installation of sanitary drain backflow prevention devices;
• Installation of sump pumps and directing sump pump discharge to the ground surface away from the building.
• Lot drainage improvements.

Don’t be the ‘Weak (Wet) Link’

All homes in your neighbourhood need to participate in the foundation drain disconnection program in order to achieve the required level of wet weather flow reduction to assist with proper operation of the local sanitary sewers. 

Getting Started

 The City of Welland needs your help to continue to succeed with the flow reduction program.  We must determine the extent of remedial work required and the level of resident participation, needed. 

City representatives will be visiting with you at your home to discuss any existing flooding issues and review the location of the building drains etc..  They will also request to take photographs of your basement and property.

A company will be retained by the City to undertake camera inspections of the sanitary connection drains to assess the condition of the pipes.

Before any remedial work can be started, the City of Welland will need to know the number of residents willing to participate in the program.

What Next?

As the owner of a home identified at a high risk for basement flooding, we need you to:

• Participate in the City’s new program designed to assist you in reducing the risk of flooding of your basement;
• Cooperate with City representatives as we gather ‘property specific’ information to determine what can be done for your property. 
• If you are the landlord of an affected property, please coordinate with your tenants to facilitate the City’s effort to collect information. 
• Provide your feedback and don’t hesitate to ask questions!  
• Participate in the Public Meeting scheduled for fall 2007 to learn more about how this program can help you.
• Below are some of the important Public Meeting information that was presented during the preparation of the ‘Broadway Avenue Sanitary Sewer Drainage area Basement Flooding Study’.

Public Information Centre #1 – October 5^th, 2006 (691k~pdf)

Public Information Centre #2 – January 11^th, 2007 (305k~pdf)