Utica Receives $75k for Flood Mitigation

UTICA –Mayor Robert M. Palmieri is pleased to announce that the City of Utica has received a $75,000 grant to help with flood mitigation planning in North Utica. The grant comes from the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation as part of the New York State Consolidated Funding Application process.

Parts of North Utica are prone to flooding for various regions related to its streams, the Mohawk River and the Erie Canal. With this grant, The City of Utica will conduct a Comprehensive Stream Corridor Assessment, which includes a flood risk assessment for Mohawk River tributaries in north Utica including Reall’s creek and at least six unnamed streams in the areas of:

• Riverside Center
• Deerfield Drive East/Elmdale Avenue
• Roseclair Avenue/Mapledale Avenue
• Deland Drive/Dorsey Lane
• Deerwood Road/Georgetown Avenue
• Robin Road/Homestead Drive.

All the unnamed streams have areas with accumulated sediment and re-occurring debris/obstruction issues upstream stemming from bank erosion. In addition, bank stabilization may be required at several locations.

The grant is a latest in a series of efforts to mitigate flooding in North Utica:

• The City established its first-ever reserve fund dedicated to flood mitigation.
• The City has worked with Riverside Center to clean pipes and improve conditions.
• Last year, the City of Utica and the Town of Deerfield signed a shared services agreement to help mitigate flooding on their shared border.
• The City has dedicated DPW personnel and equipment, as well as having hired private contractors to help maintain the creek systems more regularly.

Utica Mayor Robert M. Palmier said: “The best way to handle flooding is to be proactive and to dedicate resources to preventing it before it starts. The City of Utica has worked hard to ensure that the work that needs to be done is identified and taken care of. I would like to thank the DEC and New York State for joining us in taking the crucial planning steps to help protect our residents.”

North Utica Councilman Joe Betrus said: “This is great news for the people in North Utica, The City has done great work with our flooding issues since the 2019 storm. This money will help maintain the work that we have done and help solve even more of the issues that pose challenges going forward.