• 9/7/10 Low tide beach width: 325'; Upcoming Tides

  • next Bd Mtg: 10/2/10 at 10AM
    Long & Foster
  • Password Info
  • The CFC portion of the MBA website is undergoing a complete overhaul; click for info. (Older pages can be found here.) As of the end of April, most of the drop-down menu links below do lead to pages with useful information, even if the pages aren't considered "complete". A few drop-down links merely serve as reminders to me of what pages still need to be developed...
    According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the 12-month span between February 2009 and March 2010 saw the second most rainfall in the area's history dating back to 1950.
  • August 2004 Report, setting forth the original concept to address drainage concernts in the community

  • MBA policy is to replace up to 2 driveway culverts per property, and to install 30' of pipe to replace what is usually 21' of pipe. In most cases, we center the new 30' of pipe where the old length used to be. In some cases, we put the pipe off-center to the side where the owner has their trash can enclosure.

    Recognizing that we do NOT want to take all the water along each street and dump it in front of properties at the west end, we convert the open ditch to buried pipe in front of at least the first property along each street. Generally, most of this pipe is essentially level, but the last section of pipe is designed with a slope. This maximizes the amount of water than can be stored in the pipe, and reduces the amount that can flow back into the community from west of us.
    Much of the text and links below have not been updated recently.
    Up-to-date information on individual streets is available by clicking on the Drainage drop-down menu above.
    Blocked culvert along Kent Ave, as photographed on Monday, November 16, 2009. Note that the water on the far side of the driveway is about 2' higher than the near side.

    Water from the drainage ditches along Short, Bayberry and Errett Roads must pass thru this culvert to get to the Assawoman Canal.

    DelDOT cleared this culvert on Wednesday, Nov 18, after which water levels at the west end of MB dropped significantly.
  • August 2005 Photos of the first portion of the reworked drainage system-the Addy Road cleanout
  • May 2003 Property Owners Meeting-Report
  • March 2003 Update
  • Joe Wolf's August 2002 Proposal
  • August 2002 Comm/DelDOT meeting
  • February 2001 Committee Report
  • May 1991 Memo to Property Owners re Drainage

  • Maps/Pictures:
  • 1928 USGS Map
  • 1954 USGS Map
  • 1973 Overhead Photo

  • "Original" Driveway Culvert Info:
  • Short Road
  • Bayberry Road
  • Errett Road
  • Bridge Road
  • Addy Road
  • Evergreen Road

  • Other Elevation Info:
  • Pine Side Roadway elevations
  • Diagram of Original Ditch System
  • Winter 2005/06 update:
    While it's not working PERFECTLY, the Addy Road Demonstration Project appears to be quite successful. As a recap: all culverts under driveways on the north side of the road were replaced with new ones which are ALL located above the point at which water leaves the community. The elevation of the ditch was raised to match the culverts using fill excavated as part of the process of paving beachside Short Road. Additionally, the last 200' or so of ditch were completely buried, with catch basins installed 2 catch basins were installed, and were designed to keep water west of us from backing up into the community. Although the ditch bottom was raised, it is still quite wide. This has the undesirable effect that water moves quite slowly, so leaves and needles do not get swept downstream. We are considering what we can do that might be cost effective to solve this problem, and will keep this issue in mind as we move on to other portions of the community. It is likely that the next portion to be attacked will be the west end of Bridge Road. Bridge Road is unique in that it has a culvert under the pavement that connects the 2 ditches together, so it makes sense to start at the west and and work eastward on both sides of the street as the budget permits. In an ideal situation, this could get done early in the fiscal year (perhaps April or May 2006), but fall 2006 is more likely.

    2003 update: In 2003, work on solving Middlesex Beach's seemingly perpetual Pineside drainage problem increased dramatically. Several factors have led to the Board making this decision. One is that the Road Paving Plan initiated by President Joe Woolman in the mid 1990's is nearing completion (with only the beach side stub of Short Rd remaining). In addition, the Board has changed the budgeting process to better separate Capital Improvement spending from Operating Expenses (and Beach Replenishment). These actions make it easier to identify funds for other Capital Improvement projects throughout the community

    Historical Background: A 1992 survey by the Delaware Department of Soil Conservation, and a 2000 survey done by Artesian Water, provide the data we are currently using. Since the main survey was done over 10 years old, several driveway culverts have been relocated by property owners, several have been added, several have become quite clogged with debris, and some have been crushed. The Board wishes to undertake a demonstration project this coming (2003-04) offseason, and has asked the Public Works Committee for its recommendation.
    It is clear that the data at hand is most reliable for the ditch along the north side of Addy Rd; this also contains the water that leaves Middlesex Beach at the lowest elevation. This ditch contains almost no culverts which have extensive landscaping near the ends, making it relatively easy to adjust the height and pitch of these culverts.
    Most other roads have had far more culverts altered since 1992. In addition, many of the property owners along most other roads have done extensive landscaping of the ends of the culverts, (stone or wood walls; plantings other than natural vegetation) making it more difficult and expensive for these culverts to be adjusted.
    External Drainage Data:
  • Jefferson Creek Tide Data
  • Little Assawoman Tide Data
  • Tide Gauge Info
  • Lewes Storm Surge Info
  • OC Inlet Storm Surge Info
  • US Storm Surge Info
  • Millsboro Pond Flow Data
  • Tax Ditches in Delaware

  • Miscellaneous Links:
  • NDSpro.com
  • NDSpro.com Drainage Catalog
  • Hancor Drainage products

  • Illinois Drainage Law
  • Drainage System Maintenance
  • Community Initiative Clears Drainage System
  • Interesting Legal Document
  • Backhoe Excavation of Drainage Ditches using Hub Stakes
  • St.Andrews, Mantioba Drainage to do list
  • Mont Co, OH Drainage Ditch FAQ
  • Army Corps Permits
  • A nice description of Storm Water probs somewhere in Michigan
  • Do Drainage Ditches behave like Streams?

  • Page and all photography thereon by David A. Wiecking
    This Page: http://www.middlesexbeach.org/cfc/drainage.htm.
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