Opinion: Construction should be on safe land

Dear Editor

I am writing about the proposed Brick Pond Apartment Complex on East Main Street in Owego.

I have several concerns about this. My family has lived in the area for over three generations. Nothing has been built there before now. I don’t question why. From the history I’ve been told, that property was part of the Davis Farm many years ago. Even then Mr. Davis could not plow in the springtime to plant because of the ground water; my stepfather remembers cows grazing in the field across from their home.

Every spring since I’ve been a child, I remember that field flooding in the spring. It is now home to wild life, deer, fox, rabbit, geese and more that come down from the hills and out of the pond to call it a secondary home. They feel safe there. 

The land has also been flooded time after time, not just in the most significant of storms such as Lee and Irene, but in heavy down pours in the spring and in the heaviest of winters as the snow melts.

During the Flood of 2011 I worked with the Red Cross volunteering. Through communications with loved ones trapped on those streets, we were told they had nothing. No supplies, water, food. My mother slept in the dog kennel on the hill as the water from the pond flushed toxins and fish into their homes. 

We tried to provide help to them but were turned away at every entry. We couldn’t get up over the hills and couldn’t get through town. There again was no way in.  My brother, fortunately, was able to hike in from Berkshire, over the back hills in waist high water from Davis down E. Main to bringing our family bottled water. Again, something we couldn’t do.

The proposal is calling for trenches to be put in so that the water will have somewhere to go. The fact of the matter is they are not sufficient. The construction company also believes that by raising the structures this will solve all of the problems. It unfortunately will not.

The more pressure you add the worse it will be when the rain does fall. In case of an emergency, it will be more difficult to get the citizens evacuated and taken to safety. I don’t oppose people having homes, however you must do it on SAFE LAND. This is not the place. It never will be. They are only putting more people at risk and that would be extremely sad to see.

Thank you,

JoAnne L. Thornton

Owego, N.Y.