MONTAGUE — The flooding problem on Montague City Road is likely to be fixed in the 2021 construction season, town officials expect.
For a quarter-mile stretch between Walnut Street and Turnpike Road, the stream next to Montague City Road is high enough that it floods into the road whenever there is at least 1.5 inches of rain, Town Planner Walter Ramsey said. This typically happens three to 10 times a year, and the road has to be partially or fully closed. Residents may be unable to take their cars out, and traffic and emergency vehicles have to be diverted.
The remediation project the town is working on would re-establish the profile of the stream channel, add plants to help reduce overflow and add new drainage systems in the road, just in case it ever does overflow, Ramsey said.
“Just to make sure we can accommodate a 100-year storm without flooding that roadway,” he noted.
The project is worth $365,000, and the town plans to apply for funding from the Federal Emergency Management Association (FEMA) to cover three-quarters of the cost, $274,000. On Monday, the Selectboard agreed to pay the $91,000 that the town is responsible for using money from state-provided funds designated for transportation projects, Ramsey said.
This project is one of eight that the state expects to advance to FEMA, Ramsey said. If FEMA accepts it, the work is set for the 2021 construction season.
Reach Max Marcus at mmarcus@recorder.com or 413-772-0261, ext. 261.