HARRISBURG—Southeastern Pennsylvania residents repeatedly suffering property damage from flooding may be assisted by state legislation, Rep. Ellen M. Bard (R-153) said today.

    The Abington lawmaker has authored a two-bill package that would address the continual flooding problems incurred by some of the residents in her district and other parts of the region.

    "The first bill authorizes local residents to vote on whether or not to dedicate tax revenue to financing flood mitigation buy-outs and other open space acquisitions," Bard said. "The companion bill provides for a statewide referendum to authorize bond financing for $150 million to purchase flood-prone properties and open space properties throughout the state.

    "So many of the residents of my district have been victimized by flooding in recent years that we must try to help them now. This severe flooding has hit southeastern Pennsylvania particularly hard, and other areas of the state have seen devastating storms as well. In 1996, we in the Southeast were told that we experienced a 1000-year storm, but now we’ve experienced similar flooding two more times during the past five years."

    Hundreds of homes in Bard’s district, which comprises Abington Township and Rockledge Borough, were flooded in 1996 when the Sandy Run Creek, which is normally a trickle, became a raging torrent that tragically killed two elderly people living near its banks. Many of the homes in the area were condemned. Upon reviewing the damage, the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) determined that it would be cost-effective in the long run to buy the properties and preserve the land for open space. Abington Township purchased 13 homes accordingly.

    Bard noted that much was done between 1996 and Tropical Storm Allison to attempt to alleviate flood hazards, such as the installation of pipes to channel more run-off water and the construction of more detention basins. "The problem, however, is that these efforts can’t address the larger storms," Bard said. "The water just runs off faster and overflows the detention basins. There simply is no place left for the water to go.

    "What was successful was the open space acquisition where there had been 13 homes. The area absorbed water without property damage. The bottom line is that for properties that are repeatedly flooded, a buy-out for open space purposes is the best, if not the only, solution."