“It doesn’t take a majority to win, just a tireless minority that will keep starting brush fires in the mind and hearts of their fellow men.”

Samuel Adams

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

City of Peru Flood Action Plan

City of Peru Flood Action Plan

Peru City Officials have announced the immediate action plan for addressing storm related issues:

Start televising and cleaning sewers from the West Ravine sanitary trunk sewer north at:

Rock/Plum (ending south of Shooting Park)

West Street north to north end of Plum (ending north of Shooting Park)

North through Centennial Park ending at Sunset.

Simultaneously begin smoke testing and visual manhole inspections on Marquette from Shooting Park north to I-80 at Menards.

When televising and cleaning is done on the west side of 251 as outlined above we will begin televising/cleaning Marquette Rd., north of Shooting Park to I-80, priority given to smoke testing results.

Repairs will begin simultaneously as located, beginning with sink hole behind 1819 Plum Street.

A map will be kept with problems identified and the City will begin meeting with each resident that filled out a sheet and additional residents if flood related debris is located in front of their homes or as directed by the Superintendent of Public Works.

34 comments:

Anonymous said...

What has the Peru Township contributed to help out during this flood crisis. Those already in need will be hurt the most. Has the Peru Township given anyone assistance and how much? Have they even made themselves known for people to see them during this flood? To help the poor you have to know their are poor which I have my doubts if they do.

Anonymous said...

lets see 2008 to 2013. that is over 4 years. This is the same thing they told us before back in 2008. And I though the sink hole was supposed to be corrected LAST YEAR! WHAT ARE WE PAYING THESE PEOPLE FOR????????

Anonymous said...

What's the problem ? So your basement flooded for 3 hours in the last 6 years. Using Peru pickleball logic, that's a small number compared to the total hours it wasn't flooded. In this case, live with it. You chose to live there. Open your windows and pump it out. Go away for a while. It'll eventually dry. We have a right to discharge our sumps and downspouts in the sewers. We're only flooding on a trial basis. People with more clout than you need to be served.
SOUND FAMILIAR ?

Anonymous said...

8:01 Thanks for making that analogy, it is spot on. That is exactly how the neighbors were treated.

Anonymous said...

10:12 When the Mayor makes the simple minded statement that majority rules, he completely abandons the responsibility that an elected Majority has- to protect the rights of the minority. Otherwise government becomes a popularity contest, where the cool kids get to do whatever they want.

A majority elects LEADERSHIP, fair minded individuals that make decision for the good of the majority without ignoring the voice and rights of the minority. Compromise is the cornerstone of democracy and I would ask for one instance of a compromise solution to any problem discussed on this blog over the past 4 years. Just one single compromise. His supporters shout that it takes a strong leader to rule the kingdom. A leader without the skills to compromise is a fool, and those who follow him only protected by their value to him at the time.

It is the bully mentality, the tribal mentality that our group is bigger than your group. It is the ending stage of democratic governments and the beginning stage of dictatorship.

Anonymous said...

It's bullying, plain and simple. Pickleball ambassador and the rec board bullied to get their way. Harl bullies anybody who thinks differently from him. Hartman said the offered compromise, which the only compromise offered was a sound screen at the cost of $8,000. How much are the taxpayers going to have to pay so 20 or so people can play pickleball? Let they keep playing at the YMCA. Give 28th Street their tennis court back!!

Anonymous said...

If the sound screen works that is a compromise. There is no way around that, and the first time I shave seen that listed here. Sound screens can be very effective.

Anonymous said...

Yes, but the pickleball players didn't want the sound screen because it makes the court too hot. They didn't want to go to Veterans or Baker Lake because its too windy. They want to stay at 28th Street where it's just right for them.

Anonymous said...

They decided it was too expensive, too heavy for the fence, and not breathable. And, I don't think any kind of sound screen located 20 feet from a backyard would stop that nerve racking, irritating noise.

Anonymous said...

2:52 I agree that sound screens can be effective. but to stop the sound that this game makes at a distance of twenty feet, it would have to be a helluava big screen!

Anonymous said...

You would be surprised on how much they would be willing to spend 1:48. Don't forget the ambassador was handed $3,000.00 last year and that did not include the cost of the court.

Anonymous said...

A sound baffle or wall would work. It would cost a lot, but in the suburbs many baffles and screens are built during construction projects to not violate the PCB sound regulations. If the pickleball players said they do not want it, its not exactly a compromise is it?

As far as being too hot for them, I would tell them to stick it. They could probably play naked and the City would look the other way. Come to think of it, I'd look the other way too.

Anonymous said...

8:01 am and 10:12 am
Only you, the 28th street neighbors can take a subject like flooding and turn it into a pickleball issue.
Once again you have proven your limited concern for The City of Peru.
We all look forward to your next City issue that is tied to your one and only concern. A backyard with no activity but a great view of grass. 97% no activity is just not acceptable is it?

Anonymous said...

7:57 Wow are you touchy. The truth sure hurts.

Anonymous said...

7;57 there are only a couple concerts a year at the airport. Let's have them at Baker Lake. That's under three percent of days in the year. Lots of people around Baker Lake care about the big issues and are all for the City of Peru. They would love it! It's a park.

Neighbors having concern about the city allowing a few selfish people to crap all over them is always going to be an issue. Claiming because of that they don't care about Peru is a strange logical stretch, but it's very apparent that Peru does not give a crap about them.

How about this... I only punch you in the face 3 percent of the time? Wrong is just wrong, no matter how you discount it.

Anonymous said...

7:34 The problem seems to be the rec board taking on the same mentality as the mayor. Its our way or the highway.

Anonymous said...

Let's have the fireworks at Baker Lake, that only takes 45 minutes and it is only once a year. Why is it ok for the residents at Baker Lake to have a say so on what goes on at that park but the people 20 feet from a game that was dumped on them do not. Being in the minority sure sucks.

Anonymous said...

Is the long term flood problem in Peru because they have stayed with one and only one consulting engineering firm for eight decades. Baby Boomers of today now drawing Social Security were not born when this firm started being a consultant to Peru. In all this time city officials have allowed this firm to quality check its own work when under question and had has never gone to anyone else for quality assurance.
Peru is now paying in multitudes for shortcuts taken years ago.

A 28th street neighbor said...

7:57 What makes you so sure it was the pickleball neighbors who wrote that comparison? I can assure you it was not. Get your facts and your information straight before you accuse.

Anonymous said...

7:57 The green portion of 28th street park has a baseball backstop but activity of that nature is prohibited in that area. At one time is was used daily by the kids in the surrounding neighborhood. Now that grass portion of the park sits idle and signs prohibited play hang on the backstop. The tennis court that was also used daily has been converted to the infamous pickleball court. Today it sits idle 97% of the time. What a shame and waste of a perfectly good neighborhood park that once was alive with children.

Anonymous said...

Comments about pickleball and fireworks at Baker Lake appear to be very minor to flooded basements. I doubt that the elected leaders of Peru will give pickleball, Lake fireworks much thought.

Anonymous said...

The neighbors by 28th street park have water in their basements.

Anonymous said...

Peru's very fortunate that the only issues in the town are pickleball,fireworks,concerts. Not much relevance to most of the residents. And if you Peru residents look at your electric bill, its still a deal compared to my city.

Anonymous said...

The neighbors by 28th street park had water in their basements five years ago.

Anonymous said...

Marquette Road was flooded two years ago after two inches of rain. So obviously there has been problems with this subdivision for years. That flooding two years ago should have been an indication that there were still issues with the sewers, but because no homes were affected at that time nothing was done. The development to the north has put too much of a strain on the Marquette Road sewer system and it is not going to improve until they fix what is under the road. All the smoke in the world is not going to solve this issue.

Anonymous said...

The only reason that fireworkks and picklelball are still topics is because the city officials have not managed them fairly and properly.
Flooded basements are a catastrophe and no one is debating this. My carpet and pad plus furniture had to be removed so I do know a little of what I am talking about. What I don't know is why, like everything else in Peru nothing is finalized and problems come to a close. This was the 2nd time my home was flooded as was the home on my right and the two on my left plus one across the street that I know of.
Peru has some real problems that the city has a responsibility for. It is time that the city officials learn what governments are created for which is not one full term of fireworks or concerts. I was flooded before they became this administrations problem and I was flooded after.

Anonymous said...

9:59 You're absolutely right. We were smoked tested, camera tested, and vac tested. 5years later - the same problem. Either nothing was found the 1st time or the problem was not corrected. Results need to be reported to those in these repeated flood areas.

Anonymous said...

You want a flood action plan! The best plan would be to get rid of Chamlain.

Anonymous said...

Has anyone come to the conclusion that government can help with the problem of flooding but it is impossible to completely stop?

Anonymous said...

9:39 your conclusion is correct but is the beginning of this argument not the end of it. Both sides start with your premise. However the Harl supporters say this was a horrible flood, so we are excused from our obligations to have fixed a known past problem stemming from poor development and bad engineering.
The counter argument states that this issue has been well known and ignored- and stating that we can move and are better off than other towns is both insulting and worthy of legal action.
Both sides start with your obvious premise that cities can help but flooding cannot be totally prevented. They come to very different conclusions.

Anonymous said...

12:15 Thank you for sharing your viewpoint. Would you consider having committees of interested and knowledgeable individuals such as yourself created to exchange ideas for the betterment of Peru? Would you be interested?

Anonymous said...

Stop building up north and start putting money in new sewer systems so things can drain and people can have a house that they want to come home to! Start from the south and work north to rescue the residents that have problems! Don't start putting in sewer where there isn't anyone involved with problems, FIX THE PROBLEMS!

Anonymous said...

Anon 5:53 Makes sense! Thank You.

Anonymous said...

5:34 thank you for the invite to be on a citizen committee. As soon as the leaders solicit members for a committee to which I would feel I had any knowledge base or experience that might help I would be happy to volunteer. One need not be an expert in any particular field to see patterns of negligence, ignoring rights, patronage and lack of compromise. Typically you only need to be a transplant from larger cities to see it here.
Sometimes it seems like those who have always lived here accept this type of governance as normal.

Now if you are asking if I would like to be involved in a PAC formed solely by citizens who want to affect change, I would say sign me up.