Graham Creek in Arlington Woods flooding due to blocked city-maintained culvert

Overflowing creek worries Nepean residents Torrential rain and a swollen creek has residents in Ottawa's Arlington Woods area concerned about damage to their property.

Residents of Arlington Woods, a neighborhood in Nepean, are blaming the city for not clearing a culvert in Graham Creek, causing it to flood.

According to Clarke Cross, a resident of Arlington Woods, this is the worst flooding the creek has ever experienced in the 15 years he has lived in the area.

“It has been neglected,” said Cross. “There's a culvert at the end here, which the city maintains. And we've warned the city on numerous occasions about the hazards of not properly clearing that culvert.”

The blocked culvert has resulted in uprooted trees and damage to private property.

"We had the officials who are responsible for maintenance stand right where I'm standing right now. And when we asked what the plan was for them to do, they said they'll get to it in the summer," said Cross.

It cost Derek Cheng, another resident, thousands.

“We had to spend about $3,000 to get two trees removed because the water came up, eroded some trees down, caused this tree to fall over, knocked one of the other trees down and it was a danger to our deck,” said Cheng.

Residents are concerned that the city may not be able to drain the creek quickly enough with the forecast of more rain in the next few days. "Which obviously puts our property in a lot of danger," Cheng added.

Elaine Turnbridge, who has lived in the area for 54 years, blames the city for acting too slowly to clear the culvert.

"I would like to have seen some of that cleared. And I would like to see it cleared on a regular basis. Because if they simply clear it and throw it up on the bank, next storm it just rushes back in. This is what we've got," said Turnbridge.

The city has responded to the issue, with Director of Water Services Marilyn Journeaux saying:

“The City has been made aware of a potential drainage issue occurring at Graham Creek behind Parkmount Crescent. Staff attended the area today to conduct an initial investigation of the issue. Remediation plans will be finalized once the cause has been determined and water levels have receded.”

However, residents remain concerned as the creek has already risen by about 10 feet from what it should normally be.

Clarke Cross referred to the area as the "great Graham Creek Dam" created because the city did not maintain its property.

Elaine Turnbridge also expressed disappointment.

“Very discouraging. Especially as we've just had all this construction done to supposedly improve the culvert,” says Turnbridge. “We seem to be worse off.”