- Visit the Photo Place

Who pays to control runoff

Aquia Harbour dealing with runoff from development

By MEGHANN COTTER

Date published: 12/8/2006

By MEGHANN COTTER

By MEGHANN COTTER

Muddy water was already cresting roadside ditches and spilling across Aquia Drive when Tom Kenavan returned home Nov. 16.

He'd been gone for about three hours. But it was just enough time for that evening's rain storm to leave a sloppy mess in his garage and family room.

Low points among the steep slopes of Aquia Harbour have flooded many times in the 25 years he's lived there. But it keeps getting worse as new development spreads throughout North Stafford.

"The whole land was covered with a brown mess flying down to this side of the Harbour," Kenavan, 70, said. "Someone's got to do something now, not 10 years from now. It's going to happen again, all over the place."

The question is, who will foot the bill to control stormwater runoff throughout the 2,400-home community?

Silt buildup in Aquia Creek needs to be dug out to prevent future problems. Bringing in equipment for that process costs $50,000, plus $20 to $30 per cubic yard.

Aquia Harbour's property owners association says developer Bob Kaufman should pay for the work. His company, Augustine Land and Development Inc., is building 268 homes just north of the subdivision. Residents argue that he has insufficient sediment controls, which allow mud to clog drainage ditches and waterways.

"I say the builder should pay every nickel to make our creek exactly like it was when they started," said Harbour homeowner Carl Hensley at a Dec. 2 town hall meeting, which attracted nearly 300 residents.

Many people at that meeting didn't want the money to come out of their pockets. Each resident already pays $1,024 in annual dues.

But Kaufman's attorney, Clark Leming, points out that state and local inspectors have cleared the project, saying it has met and even exceeded drainage requirements.

"From everything we know and what our engineers tell us and the county tells us and the Army Corps of Engineers, is that we are in compliance," he said.

County officials inspect the site about three times a week, said Steve Hubble, Stafford's environmental programs coordinator. His office has completed more than 200 site visits and found 12 problems since the project started in October 2005. All of the violations have been remedied in one or two days, he said.

Read more stories about Stafford
Date published: 12/8/2006