Swale Reclamation Project under way
Fort Myers Beach is undergoing a Swale Reclamation Project of its side streets.
A key factor to good storm water management is a properly functioning swale. A swale is a long narrow trench that varies in depth from 6 inches to a few feet and is usually wider than it is deep.
“The drainage system for the town is basically a two-part system. There’s an inground system and a swale system,” said the Town Manager Roger Hernstadt. “We’re going to the streets that don’t have inground pipe systems to rehabilitate the swales so that they can function as a transmission system.”
“The swale is less expensive than an underground pipe system, so we try to use that to the greatest extent possible while gravity and other geographical features allow us to use that method versus when we have to use the inground pipe systems,” said Hernstadt.
Swales are designed to provide water quality treatment that reduces pollution and controls flooding. Swales collect rainwater, filter out pollutants, control flooding, prevent erosion, and provide a natural area for storm runoff.
The streets undergoing swale reclamation include: School Street, Oak Street, Matanzas Court, Jefferson Court, St. Peters Drive, Voorhis Street, Sterling Avenue, Seminole Way, Fifth Street, Avenida Pescadora, Oak Ridge Avenue, Bahia Via, Coconut Drive, Hibiscus Drive, Widgeon Terrace, Indian Bayou Drive, Matanzas Street, Lennell Road, 5731 Estero Blvd., and Lagoon Street.
“I think it’s a good idea to do this. We’re doing this storm water project and I think this is just a necessary part of a bigger picture so that we can protect our island from being seriously flooded,” said Dan Hendrickson, a resident of Fort Myers beach who lives on Widgeon Terrace.
“We live on a barrier island which is actually a sandbar that probably shouldn’t have been built upon in the first place. We put all of this concrete on the island and then residents wonder why we have standing water. It’s not just about swales, there’s so many other things to be done to mitigate the effects of water runoff. I think the town is definitely trying to do that, it’s just a huge issue,” said Hendrickson.
“It has to be done. Every time it pours, my driveway floods and I can’t even leave my house,” said Ronnie Lonoff, a resident of Fort Myers Beach who lives on Indian Bayou. “We have to grin and bear it and know that it’s for the best. In the long run, we’ll all be better off for it.”