Which means, we will get flooded again in a similar weather event.
By Mark Warriner
Original Air Date: August 16, 2024
Host: Tropical Storm Debby made a powerful sweep around Sarasota in the Gulf of Mexico two weeks ago, dumping at least 12 inches of rain on Sarasota and Manatee counties. As the storm’s feeder bands moved into the area, the local stormwater infrastructure faced its ultimate test—and the result was catastrophic. Hundreds of homes were flooded along Phillippi Creek and in the Laurel Meadows subdivision near the headwaters of that creek. The public works chief of Sarasota County is now in the hot seat, and WSLR reporter Mark Warriner had a chance to talk to him.
[sound of pumps]
Mark Warriner: That’s the sound of a mobile pump the county had to deploy to drain the Laurel Meadows subdivision. The widespread flooding and significant damage to neighborhoods raise serious questions about the integrity of our stormwater systems. Flooded residents and activist groups are now demanding answers about what went wrong and who is responsible. Did developers and engineers follow the best civil engineering practices? Was their data accurate, or were they relying on outdated flood maps? And most critically, can our current infrastructure handle another 12-to-15-inch deluge, or is our methodology for stormwater management flawed in a rapidly changing climate?
We talked to Spencer Anderson, the Public Works Director of Sarasota County. Main takeaway: The system is not designed to handle rain like that of Debby. We will get flooded again if we get hit by a similar weather event.
Spencer Anderson
Spencer Anderson: So what I can say is that the stormwater infrastructure that is built to today’s standard is constructed and designed in a way that was not prepared for the rainfall we received on that Sunday, Monday event. So you know, you mentioned civil engineer designs, and the county has a standard for stormwater regulation that requires development to design their stormwater system to a 1% chance storm, which means it has 1% of happening every year, and that equates to 10 inches of rain in 24 hours. So the systems that are all built in the county — and that’s a very high standard, by the way — it’s higher than the majority counties and other regulatory entities in the State of Florida, I don’t know that there is a higher standard out there that development has to design to. So if we were to have received that storm, I am fairly confident that the system would have performed as it was designed and regulated in the county. However, we received anywhere between 15 and 17 inches of rain in the areas that had the most impact. So it’s significantly beyond the capacity of the stormwater system that was designed to county regulation. And so if we have the same rainfall, I wouldn’t expect very different results, because the system is simply not designed to handle that amount of rain.
MW: In an official county video distributed last week, Anderson pointed at Canal 114, which cuts through an elevation called Tatum Ridge, as a potential bottleneck that could cause water to be stuck east of the Celery Fields. Eventually, the county deployed a mobile pump to drain the area faster.
Further complicating matter, is the condition and maintenance of our existing infrastructure. Some neighborhoods were still draining six days after the storm. Residents are questioning why the levels of retention facilities weren’t lowered before the storm hit, why water was released only a day after, and whether pumps and drains were functioning properly. In another video distributed last week, Anderson seemed to put some blame on large objects clogging a trench. <Insert Spencer drain.mp3>
MW: Finally, there’s the difference between older infrastructure west, and newer infrastructure east of I-75. Stormwater facilities closer to the Gulf must also contend with storm surges, which is even more dangerous than inland flooding. The age and design of these systems are now under the microscope, as we consider how to protect our communities from future storms.
Among the most vocal critics of current development patterns is SCAN, an anti-growth organization that has long warned about the environmental risks of unchecked suburban sprawl. The local group argues that the paving-over of natural watersheds has disrupted the drainage and percolation of stormwater, a process that human engineering, they say, cannot fully replicate. Developers, engineers, and local government officials have claimed that the stormwater management systems were designed to handle such events, but the scale of the flooding is now leading to calls for a moratorium on further development until these issues are fully addressed.
Alex Coe, who is running for the District 1 seat on the Sarasota County Commission believes the solution is better planning. District 1, covering the northern part of the county, is the area with the worst flooding.
Alex Coe: I do think that we need to take a comprehensive look at what we’re doing in this county, because we’re making a lot of mistakes. And one of the biggest mistakes that we’re making is that we continue to elect people to office from the development sector. And we need to stop doing that, because we end up with a county commission that is focused on development instead of focused on other things. And we see it’s definitely not focused on planning.
MW: We reached out to Teresa Mast, the other contender in the District 1 race, but there was no response. As we continue to assess the aftermath of Tropical Storm Debby, one thing is clear—Sarasota and Manatee counties face tough questions and even tougher decisions ahead.
Mark Warriner in Sarasota, reporting for WSLR News.
WSLR News aims to keep the local community informed with our 1/2 hour local news show, quarterly newspaper and social media feeds. The local news broadcast airs on Wednesdays and Fridays at 6pm.