Tiger Point drainage finalized
BY FRANKLIN HAYES Gulf Breeze News franklin@gulfbreezenews.com

Franklin Hayes/Gulf Breeze News New drain pipes carry water from Ganges Trail, underneath the 14th fairway and divulge their contents into one of several water hazards along the golf course.

County work crews finalized a drainage project on Ganges Trail in late December. After a rare storm event made some roads in Tiger Point impassable Sept. 12, county maintenance crews began work on replacing an antiquated drainage pipe that serves Ganges Trail on Sept. 27.

Longtime Ganges Trail resident Pete Simmons said he wanted to commend the county on their work and was thor- oughly impressed with the improvements they made.

“I’d complained about [flooding here] for about 15 years,” Simmons said. “I just so appreciate what they’ve done. The job is fantastic and I don’t brag on [the county] very much.”

County Public Works Director Avis Whitfield said the replaced pipeline starts close to the intersection of Ganges Trail and Tiger Point Boulevard. The drainage pipe follows Ganges trail for approximately 400 feet before turning south, crossing the 14th fairway of the Tiger Point Golf Course and divulging its contents into a lake.

County officials say the improvements on Ganges Trail would not be a complete solution for the Tiger Point area, but are expecting to address immediate concerns about excess rainwater runoff.

“[On Sept.1 2] we experienced a front moving through our area and the associated winds and high tides created an event very similar to, but on a smaller scale, than storm surge associated with tropical storms and hurricanes,” Whitfield wrote in an email dated Nov. 7. “The storm tides reached a level that over-topped the eastern end of Madura Road... The pumps are more than adequate to remove storm water that is the result of rainfall. However, the pumps cannot possibly remove water from the roadway when high tides over-top the road. It’s simply not practical to expect any pumping or drainage system to function at a capacity that can pump out Santa Rosa Sound.”

Whitfield added that the county is currently working on several projects in the area, including:

A recently completed drainage project that consisted of raising the roadway on the eastern segment of West Madura to prevent water from ponding in the roadway after heavy rains.

A drainage project that is near completion on the southwestern end of Ceylon Drive that consisted of obtaining drainage easements and constructing underdrains and swales to enhance and control removing storm water from the roadway.

A recently completed drainage project the consisted of repairing and cleaning out curb inlet structures on Tiger Point Boulevard at the intersection of Madura Road.

A drainage project that will be soon underway to divert storm water from Pennsylvania Avenue to prevent the storm water from impacting Tiger Point Boulevard and Ceylon Drive

Pursuit of Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) grants that will include Engineering, Permitting, and Construction for major drainage improvements in the Sabertooth Circle, Ganges Trail, and West Madura Road areas. Phase One funding, which is for permitting and engineering, has been approved for those areas.

Whitfield added that county planners are not looking at major projects because it may jeopardize HMGP funding.

Sharon Marsh with the county’s grant department said the county expects to receive approximately $13 million in funding through HMGP to pay for Hurricane Ivan repairs and mitigation projects. Out of that funding, approximately $1 million will be appropriated to address flooding in the Ganges Trail area.