Buffalo Township couple seeks resolution to stormwater problems

Kimberly and Paul Gentile of Buffalo Township believe there is a simple solution to a problem that has plagued them for years.

Two sets of storm drains along Woodbury Drive in the Woodbury Estates plan release water runoff through pipes onto their their backyard along Woodhaven Drive.

The couple said when there is a heavy rain, their property gets flooded. It has cost them nearly $11,000 in repairs, including costs incurred from clearing debris from the pipe, excavations and multiple landscaping repairs.

Paul Gentile said they created an embankment along their in-ground pool to prevent mud from accumulating around it.

The Gentiles’ proposed solution is to have the storm drains linked to the stormwater drainage system under the roadway, where they could be emptied into a retention pond.

“All we want is the stormwater drains to be connected to each other and be utilized as they should,” Kimberly Gentile said.

The response from township supervisors Wednesday evening was that it is a private-property issue, and they can’t help.

“We want to help you if we could,” supervisors Chairman Ron Zampogna said. “If we can, we will.”

Kimberly Gentile said it is a familiar refrain they have heard for years despite a letter from the state Department of Environmental Protection suggesting municipal leaders do something about the problem.

“The stormwater problems associated with the property are being referred to Buffalo Township for resolution,” a June 2014 letter from then-DEP environmental group Manager Ron Lybrook stated in part. “Suits may be filed by any aggrieved person in equity against a violator of the Stormwater Management Act to abate a public nuisance.”

The Gentiles said the water problem actually began years before DEP got involved, and they have no plans on pursuing legal action against the township.

Zampogna said Buffalo officials attempted to address the letter when it was sent seven years ago. He said they never received a return call from Lybrook.

The township owns the plan’s streets and rights of way.

“DEP cannot come in and force the township to fix our issue,” Kimberly Gentile said. “They’re strongly recommending you do, and you’re saying it’s our problem and not yours.”

Supervisors gave the same response to stormwater issues raised by resident BJ Tipton. He said storm drains along Chesterfield Drive empty onto his property.

He proposed extending the pipe about 100 feet-or-so to a nearby ditch. Tipton attempted several times at Wednesday’s meeting to compromise with township officials, even offering to pay for the drainage pipes and construction work in exchange for the township providing dirt.

“As far as the township is concerned, it can’t do anything,” township Solicitor Brian Farrington said. “That does not necessarily mean you don’t have any option to try to fix that on a private basis.”

There might be a resolution to the Gentiles’ problem in the form of a municipal storm sewer system separation project, also known as MS4.

The township’s proposed pollution reduction plan, which was designed to address stormwater problems townshipwide, was submitted to DEP in August 2019 for review.

The plan’s documents indicate a proposed sediment trap and an “energy dispatch” retention pond in the Woodbury Estates plan. Township officials could not say if it was specifically to address the Gentiles’ problem.

However, T.J. Stephens of Bankson Engineers, said the township has yet to receive any comments or approval from DEP.

“The projects that are outlined in that plan would be completed within a five-year window after the plan gets approved,” he said. “The township has not yet started taking any action with respect to the MS4 projects outlined in the pollution reduction plan because the plan is still under review by DEP at this point.”

Stephens said there is no timeline from the state to act on the plan.

Zampogna referred the Gentiles to township engineer Ken Howard for further discussion about their problem.