SCRANTON, LACKAWANNA COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — A long-awaited proposal to fix stormwater problems in Lackawanna finally came out, but there seem to be more questions than answers after the feasibility plan was made public.
On Wednesday, representatives from HRG Engineering announced results and proposals that could potentially help fix close to a dozen highly affected stormwater areas in Scranton. Yet there’s still some uncertainty as to what happens next.
Scranton residents have submitted paperwork for more than 30 drainage issues in the last year to HRG Engineering.
It’s been a long process, but now, officials say there are possible solutions to fixing those drainage problems in the East Mountain area.
“Any infrastructure project takes a lot of steps that need to happen. Stormwater has been on our mind since the beginning and we are excited to make progress. I have all the confidence in the world in the ability to get these permits through quickly,” said Scranton Mayor Paige Cognetti.
Among the nine locations to see improvement are Cherry Street, Wintermantle Avenue and East Elm Street, Mountain Lake Creek, Beech Street, and East Mountain Road.
“I really want to see us jump on this immediately. I just want to make sure that there’s a scope and sequence and a timeline so we can get these projects rolling,” said Scranton Resident and Scranton City Council President Bill King.
One proposal includes new swales, channels to manage water runoff, and new headwalls at the bottom of East Elm Street, as well as new headwalls to Derby Street.
HRG looks to start small and begin the projects soon, but so far there is no start date or location.
“We will bracket these projects to get the smaller stuff done first and the bigger pieces will take a little bit longer. but we are on a timeline given the funding is through the American Funding Plan,” Mayor Cognetti explained.
The American Funding Plan totals $68.7 million, the East Mountain Project is part of more than $17 million in planned stormwater infrastructure improvements included in Scranton’s original ARPA budget, which was passed in May 2022.
“Making sure we keep the residents apprised is really really important. There’s a lot of different hoops to jump through but we are well on our way,” said Mayor Cognetti.
Mayor Cognetti said the study proposals are to be completed by 2026.
