HOWELL – A storm that dropped 7 inches of rain in two hours and caused significant damage on Aug. 13 was a topic of discussion among residents and municipal officials during the Sept. 4 meeting of the Howell Township Council.
That evening, Mayor Theresa Berger, Deputy Mayor Robert Nicastro, Councilman Bob Walsh and Councilwoman Evelyn O’Donnell passed a resolution waiving local construction permit fees for residents who have to make repairs to their homes. Officials said the state has indicated it would also waive certain permit fees.
Resident Bob Salomon, Pine Needle Street, said he wanted to give the council “a snapshot” of what he has been through since Aug. 13 and to ask for help. He said he has tried to address the flooding issue in his neighborhood for years.
“I come to you guys for help, my house was devastated. There is a known issue (with flooding in the neighborhood) … I am just so done with the twists, turns and finger pointing. I come to you, please fix it,” Salomon said.
Salomon said there is between $40,000 and $45,000 worth of damage to his home and said his insurance is only covering $5,000.
“I lost my home, (flooding) is a known issue and I do not think it is my fight. I want you to get involved because there is a lot of finger pointing and I want (the council) to fight my fight, I am the little guy,” he said.
Walsh said there are water issues throughout Howell. He said he saw a 2012 letter from Salomon addressing flooding in his garage.
“If you really look back, again, I think everyone knew about this (flooding) situation. I am not here to finger point, people knew about this problem … and it is documented. I need (the council’s) help,” Salomon said.
Clay Davis, Cherry Lane, thanked Nicastro and Township Manager Brian Geoghegan for their presence in the neighborhood on the day of the storm and for providing “little things” like garbage bins.
When the storm rolled in, Davis said, “I had few sandbags, I started collecting them, started putting them by the door. (The sandbags) served no purpose whatsoever. Before you knew it I had a foot of water in my house, it just missed my outlets. Needless to say we are rebounding.
“When I bought (the home) five years ago, I never heard of such a thing. Nobody had mentioned anything. We had a few rain storms (and) a little water collection out front which is not uncommon in a lot of places, but to see this (on Aug. 13) and then to see it all through my house, I was in a state of shock,” Davis said.
“It was devastating to us, we are all working class individuals. We do not go to work in a suit and tie, collecting thousands and thousands of dollars a week. We are working class individuals in that neighborhood,” he said of the development in the Ramtown section of Howell.
Berger asked Geoghegan to explain the process the township is going through as it seeks to provide assistance to residents.
“It is a process we are going through. Our (Office of Emergency Management) has been in contact with Monmouth County and it works its way up. Between the county and the state, they compile the data of how much damage was sustained,” Geoghegan said.
“Unfortunately, it takes time for (the Federal Emergency Management Agency) to decide what kind of assistance, if any, they are going to offer. So at this point I cannot even give you a time frame as to when that (assistance) will be available,” he said.
Jim Herrman, Howell’s director of community development and acting deputy township manager, provided an update about a bridge on Ramtown-Greenville Road that was damaged in the Aug. 13 storm. The road in the vicinity of the bridge remains closed.
“(County officials) had divers in the water (during the week of Aug. 27) and they determined there is (bridge) scour evident … which is a problem. They are drafting plans (for repairs) and getting contractors to provide prices,” Herrman said.
Scour refers to the erosion of soil surrounding a bridge’s foundation.
Herrman said the bridge could be open in October, which “based on the circumstances is actually very quick.”
