Levee in Philadelphia's Eastwick neighborhood to be discussed in meeting Thursday
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The Eastwick section of Southwest Philadelphia has been hit hard by floods in the past - from Hurricane Floyd back in 1999 to Tropical Storm Isaias in 2020.
The Army Corps of Engineers says a levee along Cobbs Creek will help protect homes in the neighborhood.
Thursday night, the Corps will be at the Academy Park High School in Sharon Hill, Pennsylvania, for an "open house" to discuss the potential levee. The meeting will be held from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Homeowners have had to bail water out of their basements and shelter elsewhere during the worst of the flooding.
The Corps released a 142-page study in August detailing potential plans and other options for a barrier to protect Eastwick from the Cobbs Creek floodwater.
The tentative plan outlined in the study would have the levee run along the left bank of Cobbs Creek from the Clearview Landfill into Eastwick Park and connect to high ground near Cibotti Park. The levee would be about 15 feet above current grade and about a quarter-mile long. It would be about 50 feet away from the nearest building.
The Corps' study weighed the pros and cons of building a taller flood wall instead of a levee but concluded digging down more than two to four feet runs the risk of workers encountering contaminated soil or floodwater from the nearby landfill.
A levee is made of earth while a floodwall would be something sturdier like concrete.
The Corps believes action is necessary to prevent Eastwick from flooding.
"If USACE takes no action, the neighborhood of Eastwick will continue to experience flooding from water overflowing the stream bank upstream of the confluence of Cobbs Creek and Darby Creek, along the southeastern bank of Cobbs Creek, and located between the high elevation points of the Clearview Landfill and S. 78th Street, during periods of heavy rain," the study says.
Eastwick is subject to flooding from a few sources - runoff, tidal flooding and then riverline flooding. The levee would mainly just solve the creek flooding issue and officials with the city's Office of Sustainability noted that a levee is not the only fix needed to protect the neighborhood.
A full recording of the Oct. 4 meeting in Eastwick is available on YouTube.
Public comment can be submitted to the Army Corps of Engineers at PDPA-NAP@usace.army.mil. Comments are also accepted by mail.
