By Kerri Williams

WESTPORT – A discussion on drainage issues was the highlight of Monday’s Planning & Zoning Commission meeting, one in which several members were absent. The topic is one that is often a center of applications before the commission, with neighbors concerned about water runoff onto their properties and increasing rainfall due to climate change.

Town Engineer Ted Gill joined in for the talk that was moderated by Vice Chair Michael Cammeyer in Chairman Paul Lebowitz’s absence. Also absent on Monday were Patrizia Zucaro and Craig Schiavone. Those who participated were alternate Nicole Laskin, Breanne Injeski, John Bolton and Michael Calise, in addition to Cammeyer.

Commissioners and two members of the public spoke about the possibility of making projects townwide able to withstand a 100-year storm, rather than the current 25-year standard. Cammeyer ended the meeting saying that many of the topics discussed would be explored more in a subcommittee of the commission. 

A 25-year storm is a severe weather event, usually measured in 24-hour rainfall, that has a 4 percent chance of happening in any given year, compared to a 1 percent chance for a 100-year storm. It does not mean that the storm happens once every 25 years; rather, that it is likely to occur in that period. But two 25-year storms could occur in back-to-back years.

Gill spoke in length about the current drainage standards for Westport projects, which he described as some of the strictest in the state. One example is that a builder proposing a project on a property does not get any “credit” for existing coverage, with the drainage calculations done as if the property was an open meadow.

Gill added that if an applicant proposes an impervious driveway or patio, the builder must prove to the town engineering department that the design works as planned.

The town’s standards can be cost prohibitive for homeowners looking to do a project like moving or changing a driveway, according to Gill. When the town describes the required drainage, the homeowner could get a quote in the range of $10,000 for drainage. “We basically shut down the project,” he said.

Gill added that it is difficult using any existing model to predict how rainfall might increase due to climate change. He added that the most significant rainfall in the town’s history in 24 hours remains a storm in 1955 when 10 inches fell. 

“None of the recent ones have come close to that,” he said. “Just because it’s old data doesn’t mean it’s not any good.”

But two members of the public said they think that the P&Z should be doing more regarding drainage, citing concerns that if a gigantic storm occurred in Westport, the town could be inundated with flooding.

Valerie Seiling Jacobs, who has spoken out at P&Z meetings about drainage in her Compo Parkway neighborhood, proposed several things that she would like to see the commission address. While Seiling said none of the things would solve the problem, they would “nibble around the edges to improve things.”

In addition to requiring drainage for the 100-year-storm, Jacobs said that the commission should discourage clear cutting of trees on properties and possibly require planting of trees for those removed. She also suggested that the town require berms and swales when needed and explore other creative solutions to drainage issues. Those storm drains already in place should be required to be cleaned out, she added.

Jacobs also pointed out that the commission gets its share of “oops” applications where a resident is asking for permission for a project that has already been completed. Sometimes those changes involve drainage on the property.  Those applicants should face consequences for breaking the rules, she said. “You have to put some teeth in this,” she said.

The commission is scheduled to meet next on March 16.

Kerri Williams

^{_{Kerri Williams is an award-winning writer and journalist. She has worked as a reporter at the Norwalk Hour, as Living editor at the Darien News-Review, and managing editor for the Norwalk Citizen-News. For Westport Journal, she is a reporter as well as a gardening columnist, writing “Cultivating with Kerri.” She recently published her first children’s book – “Mabel’s Big Move,” based on her daughter with special needs.}}