With the help of an outside consulting firm, Warren County will examine how to alleviate periodic flooding around Mark Trail off Morgantown Road. 

Public Works Director Josh Moore said a small neighborhood where the Natcher Parkway crosses Morgantown Road is often subject to flooding during heavy rainfall. 

The subdivision lies at the bottom of a hill, meaning great quantities of rainwater often drain into the neighborhood, Moore said. 

“So far, we haven’t had any major flooding damages to the interiors of any homes but we’ve come close,” he said, adding that residents get “quite a bit” of water in their yards.

The rainwater that collects in the area can also cover parts of the neighborhood’s roads and disrupt the flow of traffic for residents, Moore said.   

“It’s not frequent that they get where they’re impassable but sometimes one lane will get blocked,” he said.  

Warren County Judge-Executive Mike Buchanon said the area’s karst topography, which is littered with underground drainage systems, caves and sinkholes, has presented drainage issues near Mark Trail. 

“When it rains very hard, they have water flowing, sometimes on the surface, and sometimes coming up from underground,” he said.

The region’s topography has also presented extra difficulties in mitigating flood damage throughout the county, Buchanon said. 

“We’ve pumped water from a flooded area before only to find that, where we’re pumping it to, it’s flowing underground and coming right back up,” he said. 

To see how to deal with this issue, Warren County Fiscal Court approved a quote from Arnold Consulting Engineering Services to survey the area. The firm’s services, which the Division of Stormwater Management will pay for, will cost $11,600, according to a county document. 

Stormwater Director Jack Wright said Arnold Consulting will measure the intensity of rainfall near Mark Trail and the speed at which the stormwater flows into the neighborhood. 

“There’s a considerable amount of backup at some of the drains and that’s the first thing we’ll look at,” he said. 

By knowing how much water the area can expect to see during heavy rainfall, the county will be able to determine how to mitigate the effects of future floodwater, which erodes the soil in the area, Wright said.

Ditches or artificial mounds might be constructed to divert the flow of rainwater, but nothing will be decided upon until Arnold Consulting has finished examining the area, he said.  

Moore said Arnold Consulting’s study will probably conclude before the end of the year. From there, stormwater management would look for ways to mitigate flooding based on the firm’s findings and hold public meetings with the area’s residents to gather public opinion, he said.  

“We wouldn’t even want to start construction until the spring because of the weather,” he said. “This is going to be a marathon and not a sprint.”

— Follow reporter Jackson French on Twitter @Jackson_French or visit bgdailynews.com.