Georgetown cites problems with runoff

Neighborhood blames nearby development.

By DIDI TANG of the Tribune’s staff

Story ran on Thursday, June 28, 2001

Georgetown resident Byron Fulkerson saw 5 feet of water in his basement during spring storms this year.

"I want it to be fixed so I don’t have to worry about it," Fulkerson said last night. So "I don’t have to clean my basement anymore."

But Fulkerson and his neighbors won’t see any remedy soon. Neighbor Joe Cady said residents feel like the subdivision is a "bastard child" of the county.

As concerned as Southern District county commissioner Karen Miller says she is, she told about 30 Georgetown residents during a meeting last night at Smithton Middle School that she has no solution for their problems.

"This is as frustrating to me as to you," Miller said, noting that the county is working on stream-buffer regulations intended to prevent similar problems.

County public works director David Mink told the group it would be reckless to dig flood-control ditches in the subdivision without study. "We may create even more problems."

Many of the residents blame the runoff on the development of Quail Creek subdivision to the north.

"Developers have destroyed natural habitats," said Angela Howard, president of the Georgetown Neighborhood Association. "The whole ecosystem has been trashed."

Howard invited Miller and Mink to the meeting, which lasted 2½ hours. "My biggest concern is the safety of our children in the back yard," she said.

Fulkerson said that before this spring, his house at 4715 Georgetown Drive had seen no flooding in 15 years. It even remained dry during the flooding of 1993. By contrast, at least 10 homes in the neighborhood experienced flooding this year, residents said.

"I know what it is," Fulkerson said, pointing toward the Quail Creek development.

Mink said the problem might be at its worst because the Quail Creek land has been cleared. "It’ll never be restored to undisturbed forestland," he said.

Quail Creek is being developed by Scott Atkins, who could not be reached for comment.

While Georgetown is outside Columbia’s city limits, Quail Creek is in the city. Mink said it probably complies with existing city regulations.

Howard presented a list of residents’ complaints about drainage and road problems dating back to 1991, along with responses from county officials. Residents for years have also worried about drivers speeding through their neighborhood and have asked for sheriff’s patrols and traffic-control devices to slow them down.

"Our concern is that we have no response or negative response," Howard said. "This has been going on for 10 years. I think it’s too long."

Georgetown, which lies west of Scott Boulevard, is nearly surrounded by city land. Residents suspect the county is unwilling to spend money on roads and drainage work because the subdivision might someday be annexed. But they also believe the city is unwilling to take on the subdivision and spend a fortune addressing its problems.

Mink said preliminary estimates suggest it would cost as much as $1.3 million to address just some of the road and drainage problems. "These numbers are pretty staggering," he said. "With further deterioration, the number will go up."

Miller said the possibility of Georgetown being annexed is no excuse for the county to ignore roads in its jurisdiction. "It’s the responsibility of the county to take care of the roads in the county."

She also said officials should consider entire watersheds, regardless of city and county lines, when they make planning and zoning decisions.