While City Council approval is not required at time of submission for grant purposes, given the significant cost and matching funding associated with the submission Administration is bringing forward this report for City Council’s information and support of the application submission.

Key eligibility requirements which remain the same are:

Emergency Services

With the recent rise in regional water levels, Lake St. Clair, the Detroit River, and Little River have all risen to an alarming level. Consequently, the City of Windsor’s Community Control Group, the Community Emergency Management Coordinator, and their alternates have been in Enhanced Monitoring State – the first of three levels of response above normal operations. If water levels continue to rise to the point of overland flooding, the level of response will be escalated. The City of Windsor and surrounding municipalities in Essex County, most of which have experienced overland flooding and shoreline erosion, have been monitoring the water levels closely since April. Although many measures of mitigation, preparedness, and response have been implemented, the approval of this project to build additional pumping stations and to provide upgrades to specific sewers would enhance the city’s capability to manage heavy volumes of water in order to protect residents.

The berm system in Riverside and East Riverside is designed to protect most residents in the event of overland flooding, but residents on Riverside Dr. E., particularly the north side, remain vulnerable. This could cause parts of the road to be impassible; residents could find themselves unable to access their homes and vehicles, whether from their driveways or from parking garages in apartment building complexes. Additionally, should the city experience significant rainfall, not only could this cause the water levels to rise, but it could also cause surface flooding to occur, specifically in the most vulnerable parts of the city due to land elevation in Riverside, East Riverside, and East Windsor. All of which would increase the need for utility services for power and water restoration and city services such as garbage collection and debris cleanup. The addition of a pumping station and the upgrades to current pumping stations would reduce the effects of moderate to severe flooding on the residents.

From an emergency management perspective, this project enhances the ability of the City to deal with flooding and addresses the main tenets of emergency management theory. The project provides a measure of preparedness, mitigation, and will benefit both response and recovery phases as the additional pumping capacity will aid in reducing the risk of flooding and should flooding occur the capacity to remove water will