PARMA, Ohio — The city of Parma is aggressively working to reduce flooding once and for all in one particular area. For years—folks living along Pleasant Valley Road across from Cuyahoga Community College have been dealing with extreme damage due to heavy rain events.
The city and the Northeast Ohio Sewer District have a solution. It involves buying up and knocking down some homes in that area. It's all being done to restore the space to a natural floodplain.
Helen Younglas loves getting her steps in.
So, she walks the stretch of Pleasant Valley near York Road in Parma daily.
But she says the scenery, or rather who lives here, is changing.
"I find it kind of interesting with them coming and going," Helen Younglas said.
In conjunction with NEORSD, Parma continues to push forward with plans to purchase and knock down homes that sit on the natural floodplain.
But not everyone has been on board. Many homeowners did not want to go on camera and stressed they had no intentions of leaving.
"They were offered to move, and they said they've lived here since childhood, and they're not gonna move," Younglas said.
Baldwin Creek butts right up to the properties—creating the perfect storm for problems as the flood waters spill over and rush into the homes and basements.
Our camera captured several vacant properties with padlocks on the front door.
At one particular property, asbestos removal was already occurring ahead of demolition.
So far, they have obtained more than a dozen properties and are hopeful for more soon.
"So folks that want to voluntarily be acquired by the sewer district under our regional stormwater management program can do so basically move themselves out of harm's way, as we implement this four-phase project to bring overall relief to the area," said Matt Scharver, director of Watershed Programs with NEORSD
Scharver says reducing flooding in the area and creating a safe environment is the No. 1 priority.
Offering to purchase the homes, he says, is critical for residents as the properties are challenging to insure and nearly impossible to sell.
"We've got one property owner, that I've met with several times. And I think she's on her third water heater, lost her laundry facilities. The backyard pool has collapsed due to these issues," Scharver said.
"They had the flooding three or four years ago. I mean this whole street was just littered with trash," Younglas said.
A $1.6 million grant from the Ohio EMA covers the cost of purchasing and demolishing eight homes.
It's a small piece of the much larger puzzle, including a four-phase project totaling more than $15 million to reduce flooding once and for all.
While not everyone is willing to move, Younglas says she would consider it.
"I think it's for the best because I wouldn't want to live here knowing in the back of my mind I could lose everything," Younglas said.
Scharver says they hope to purchase more homes, opening the option for residents on Pleasant Valley between York Road and Ann Arbor Drive.
