Hannibal business owner concerned after stormwater repairs voted down

HANNIBAL (WGEM) – The intense rain last week led to some major flooding in Hannibal. The impacts were felt and it has people wondering where they go from here when it comes to the stormwater system.

Both Hannibal Board of Public Works officials and city officials who say they are discussing what to do next with the stormwater systems after the latest tax proposal to fund stormwater repairs failed.

Mayor Barry Louderman said when four inches of rain hit, it sends it all down the road. He says they are trying to figure out a new plan to pay for stormwater repairs.

Andrew Swank owns Andy’s All American Heavy Duty Repair says the neglect for stormwater repair impacts his business.

“This is my livelihood, I have three small children at home. This is how I support my family. So every time we get heavy rains like this and it destroys the street it puts a damper on my business,” Swank said.

Swank said it limits them to only work on cars in the shop and yard, but they can’t get any new customers during the flood. He said they can’t do any work on the street that’s close to his place, as only the Hannibal Board of Public Works and the City can do work on that section on that part of the road.

Louderman said the city has received grant money to do stormwater repair on Main Street, going from North Street all the way up to Mark Twain Avenue. He said they plan to start work on that on 30 to 60 days as there are contracts still out for bid and it’ll really help.

However, he said more consistent maintenance is needed on all stormwater systems in Hannibal.

HBPW Coordinator of Customer and Community Relations Erica Mitchell said there is a consensus around Hannibal that stormwater repair is an issue, and the heavy rains last week highlight it.

Mitchell said discussions with the city are ongoing as for now they are trying to come up with a new stormwater repair proposition for Hannibal Residents. She said they do hear concerns from businesses and citizens about stormwater and flooding, especially for last week, but they are limited in what they can do.

“We simply don’t have the funding to actually fix the problem. And so we will secure the situation for safety purposes, whether that be steel plates to make the road passible if that is possible and in some cases we have had to close roads,” Mitchell said.

Mitchell said the city does also help with those types of situations and tries to help with the roads. She said though, if the stormwater is not addressed soon, it could affect major routes of the city. She said right now, they are listening to citizen’s ideas, as well as the city’s ideas of what they would like to see for a new proposition. She said they should have an idea by this year.

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