BSAC to recommend final design engineer for stormwater project

The Bigfork Stormwater Advisory Committee could be recommending a final design engineer to Flathead County as early as this week, moving the stormwater project one step closer to its construction phase.

And while it's moving forward, some residents are already letting their concerns be heard on possible treatment options.

The first phase of this leg of the project will focus on Grand Drive with a projected completion date for design plans in June. Some work has already been done on Grand Drive including projects at the Bigfork schools over the past two years.

Three firms submitted statements of qualification for the project. BSAC's technical committee was reviewing them and hoped to pass on a recommendation to the committee by Wednesday.

The committee is hoping to get moving quickly on final design engineering due to time limits on funding, said chair Sue Hanson. The committee received an additional $35,000 this month from the Department of Environmental Quality with the stipulation it be used by June 30.

"It still has to go through the process," Hanson said.

At this point, the county is just choosing an engineer for the project, but has not made a decision on the type of treatment system that will be used on Grand Drive as one of the first installments of the project. An assessment done by 48 North Civil Engineering Services provided five treatment alternatives for stormwater on Grand Drive.

"Until the engineering is done, we will not know," Hanson said of choosing the best system for Grand.

The key considerations in that decision will include cost and how the system can be maintained over time, she said.

But for residents on the low point of Grand, one system in particular raises red flags – an underground infiltration facility on the north side of Lake Avenue.

Specifically, this includes property owned by Del Manicke and his family, property owned by Margrit Matter at the Swan River Inn, property of Bayside Park and Marine Center L.L.C., which Bill Myers works with, and other adjacent property owners. What the property owners want from the committee is a hard look at the impacts.

"I'm asking for their cooperation so that this study and analysis will include any flooding going on both above and below the surface and how that impacts properties at the lowest point in the basin," Myers said.

Manicke, who owns property on the north side of Lake Avenue, said his biggest concerns with the project would be with an infiltration system. The current proposal in the report is to put this in the parking lot next to the Grand Hotel, which is actually Lake Avenue, if this alternative is selected.

"Based on what I know about septic systems, it would hardly qualify as (a space for) a home septic system," Manicke said.

Manicke said while he does support the idea of managing stormwater, he would like to see other alternatives used and is highly concerned about the infiltration system and possible flooding that it could cause to nearby properties as it makes its way through the ground.

He said he is particularly concerned about the clay sediment found in one of the test holes, which would not allow water to permeate the ground down to the bay.

"It would be devastating financially to try to manage," Manicke said to the committee.

Matter, owner of the Swan River Inn, is not just concerned about flooding with that system – she's concerned that her whole building might collapse if the water ran between and put pressure on the structure's old stonewall and concrete foundation.

She also expressed concerns about the parking in the downtown area that would be lost with the proposed placement of the system.

"There's a tremendous shortage of parking," she said. "If that's taken away, people will drive right through. Something has to be done. I realize the Lake has to be the number one priority, but a priority also has to be earning a living in Bigfork."

For these property owners, a cartridge facility, or a pre-packaged commercial facility, seems a better option.

"I and adjacent property owners think the cartridge system makes much more sense both to protect our properties from flooding and for ease of access for maintenance to the system over time," Myers said.

Myers points to a meeting in 2006 attended by county representatives, including Flathead County Commissioner Joe Brenneman, and Julie Spencer, manager of the Bigfork Water & Sewer District, at which it was discussed that a catch basin system, another name for the cartridge system, should be installed on Lake Avenue, but in the area directly above the public dock as opposed to across the street in the parking lot to the north.

Myers has additional concerns that information and documentation he provided regarding recent flooding on his property were not included in 48 North's assessment report.

These include a thawed collection area on the bay side of his property's wall first seen in January 2009, flooding on the property this past summer and a seep seen this fall on part of the property approximately across from Saddlehorn.

These could be caused by a number of sources including a possible leak in a nearby sewer line, the new water main recently installed or potentially the new stormwater system at the Bigfork schools, Myers told the committee last week.

"It is well known and documented that for over 12 years I have brought the issue of stormwater culvert pollution flowing into Bigfork Bay to the attention of the county commissioners, Bigfork Water & Sewer District, Flathead Basin Commission, the Flathead County Road & Bridge Department and others," Myers said. "I do support correcting the problem, but not at the expense and possible flooding of adjacent property owners."

Brett Walcheck, president of 48 North, said the information that was provided by Myers was not within the scope of this report, but would be considered in the next stage of engineering.

"It was no disregard of Myers," Walcheck said. "It's not a case of being ignored. It's about when it's appropriate to deal with it."

But without this information included in the preliminary report, if another engineering firm is chosen for final engineering the issues won't be known.

"I want the committee to include an analysis to address known and documented surface and subsurface issues on my property," Myers said.

Hanson said she is unsure how to go about testing the source of the water and seeps on Myers' property, but Walcheck said that will be part of the next stage of engineering for whoever is awarded the contract. Walcheck's firm is one of the three that has submitted a statement of qualifications to do the final design.

"There are parameters that can be followed from testing that are recommended to be implemented in advanced stages of engineering," Walcheck said. "Anybody in the surrounding area is going to be evaluated to see the cumulative affects of any alternative and the current systems."

Hanson said it is hoped that any flooding issues for residents on Grand Drive that were not addressed with the installation of the stormwater system at the school will be solved with construction of this portion of the project.

"Flooding was what brought this issue to the forefront to begin with," Hanson said. "Of course that's our issue. Bill wants someone to fix the problems. We are working on the stormwater side as much as we can. We're doing the best we can."

As to a possible sewer or water main leak, Spencer says she has had multiple agencies look at the issue but has found no evidence of it. This included a camera test of the line.

"We investigated it as thoroughly as we can and are quite sure there is no sewer leak," Spencer said. "It's a heavy wall. It's not leaking."

She does say that it is possible that stormwater is following along a new path on the outside of the water line.

Spencer suggests a fourth possible source for water collecting on Myers' property could be natural springs that have been disturbed in construction.

"Anywhere you have a water body there tends to be springs," Spencer said.

Myers said it could be possible, but he's concerned about the discoloration in the soil that some engineers have seen in test pits in the thawed area near the bay.

BSAC was scheduled to meet next on Wednesday, if it had a recommendation on an engineering firm from the technical committee.

After BSAC sends on its recommendation to the county, it will be up to the Flathead County Commissioners to make the final decision and keep the project moving.