Today’s water level is 248.92, just shy of the highest the water was in 2017. Up almost 18 inches in May. We are being told we will crest in the next 5-15 days at no more than 249.3. We’ll see. Based on a discussion yesterday with David Fay, an Engineering Advisor at the IJC, the outflow is being increased as the Ottawa recedes. The final portion of the Ottawa river is forecast to crest (again) on Saturday.
Bob DeWolf, Maxine Appleby and I attended the “listening session” with 4 of the new IJC Commissioners. Both Maxine and I spoke about the impacts of the plan on our village in the last 3 years. We also expressed concerns regarding low water. The US commissioners appeared to be listening carefully. Their response when asked about next steps was that they are in learning mode, that they recognize something needs to happen and that it will take time. Pierre Beland, the Canadian Chair, who has previously been a commissioner and has been affiliated with the IJC for 25+ years, had a different take. He clearly believes this is all about the weather. Jane Corwin has an uphill battle but I do think she is the right person for the job.
As a result of the very high water level, the loop has been closed to all but local traffic. This was due to some deteriation observed in the pavement. We have also closed the right of way between the north municipal parking lot and Wickham Blvd. That ground is now at the lake level and is very sloppy and dangerous.
We are receiving nearly 20,000 sandbags into the village today. They are being placed by DOCS workers in areas that we had hoped not to sandbag. This will include some residents who would prefer not to have sandbags. We expect all the work to be completed by the end of the week. If you have areas that you are concerned, please contact the village hall. Your request will be triaged and scheduled from there.
Sandbags for residents who want more are available in the north municipal parking lot on the north end. The supply has been replenished. Sandbags are not effective for erosion control.
You will notice that we installed a bypass pump at the Clover St lift station yesterday. There was a big surge of water and the lift station was struggling to keep up. Rather than take a chance, we installed the pump. It is working well as is the stand pipe installed there. Today the flows are back down to what they were before yesterday. We are still more than 400,000 gallons per day less than 2017.
If you need a pump to keep your yard or crawl space drier, the Village has negotiated a 10% discount at Plassche Lumber in Sodus. They have many on hand and can get more if needed. No water should be pumped on any roads. Either pump the water to the bay, the lake or a storm water grate. All of the storm water system is operational, some via pump instead of gravity.
If you have any questions or suggestions, please do not hesitate to reach out.
Dave McDowell
Dmcdowell@SodusPoint.info
