January 14, 2002
The following letter is from Jackie, a resident of Willowbend, which is a neighborhood in Overland Park downstream from the Wal-Mart Supercenter site proposed for 159th and Metcalf. She wrote this letter to the Corp of Engineers about the possible effect building a Wal-Mart would have on Willowbend.
She also mentions the price Willowbend had to pay for silting problems exacerbated by a developer's mistake in building Willowbend's ponds. The City released the developer from responsibility. An earlier letter from another Willowbend resident points out the source of the silt that cost Willowbend so much was Overland Park's own widening of Metcalf. Apparently, after the developer, then the City, walked away from the problems, Willowbend was left with the bill.
If you have concerns or addiitional information about any aspect of water quality, wild life, flooding, silting, pollution, preservation of streams and wetlands, etc. downstream of the proposed Wal-Mart site, please send an email to Douglas Berka, Army Corps of Engineers at douglas.r.berka@usace.army.mil. Or send an email to water@nbrhd.net.
The second email will be directed to Mr. Berka, the EPA, Rep. Ray Merrick, the Cities of Overland Park and Leawood, and other government agencies who can provide input to the decision about this property. Besides going to the responsible government agencies, a copy will go to NeighborhoodNet [I do not publish or otherwise distribute such email without the express permission of the writer.]
"[Full Name/Address,
Withheld at request of author]
Overland Park, KS 66223
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Mr. Douglas Berka
Corps of Engineers
This letter is to share my concerns with the proposed WalMart
Supercenter at the northwest corner of 159th and Metcalf. In
particular, my issues are concerning the lack of a water study.
Since 1991, my family has resided in the Willow Bend community, located
just east of this intersection. As you may already know, there are
three small ponds in this community that have experienced several
problems over recent years. Large amounts of silt have settled into
these ponds, causing the water level to rise. I have been told the
builder of the community did not properly build these ponds and had
received a waiver from the City of Overland Park, releasing them of
responsibilities with these problems. Because of this, homeowners have
been left with the burden of cleaning out the dirt in the ponds. This
has cost homeowners over $90,000. The job is not complete for much of
the pond still contains dirt. In addition, due to the initial
construction of the pond, the problems will continue. I believe the
WalMart Supercenter will devastate these ponds and contribute to
potential flooding damage to the homes in the immediate area of the
pond. This will obviously cause immense problems for a community
already burdened by water problems in the ponds.
It would be negligent of the City and the Corp of Engineers to not
perform all appropriate studies. I would not be surprised if results
would show significant risk to surrounding properties in addition to the
Willow Bend pond areas. Before any permits are issued, a complete
analysis of this issue needs to be addressed.
Thank you for your attention to this matter.
Jackie"
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