Balcombe Road Sidewalk Major Improvement
Flooding Eliminated
In late February, Orange County construction crews performed a major overhaul to the Balcombe road sidewalk along the wooded area near Braxted road. Because of the natural slope of the conservation area, all the rainwater entering the woods, from the lake side off Braxted all the way to Balcombe road, drains out to a single spillway connected to the rainwater management system, which takes excess water runoff into the lake.
This area along Balcombe road has been prone to significant flooding from water draining out of the woods, crossing over the sidewalk, flooding the grass, and reaching the street. Sadly, only a small portion of that excess water was making its way into the drainage intake and leaving the whole area underwater for days and sometimes weeks. Only the cypress trees loved all that excess standing water.
When we experienced a significant amount of rainfall, which is often in the rainy season, it was impossible to pass through this area either on the sidewalk, the grass, or even the road due to the massive puddle of standing water that could be as much as 4 to 5 inches deep. So far, this engineering marvel has performed perfectly by keeping the sidewalk and grass dry and passable.
Construction Photos
The project started with removing the existing sidewalk and digging a trench from the edge of the woods to the opening of the stormwater drain. A 12-inch-high wall was then formed along the woods to hold back any high-level water and channel it into the trench. All that heavy equipment broke our irrigation lines in several places but al least Orange County installed new sod to cover the entire affected area and the irrigation lines were repaired quickly by our landscaper.
The sidewalk was raised above the trench so that water will pass below and make its way into the drain and eventually the lake. SC6 now has its very own bridge over troubling water, thanks to Orange County! Our requests have finally been answered.
We even have a safety handrail to prevent anyone from falling off the elevated sidewalk.
Thanks for being a member of the Southchase 6 community!
I❤️ SC6
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