The industrial area of Caldwell Drive is no stranger to flooding. Between 2017 and 2021, the area saw three massive floods that seeped into the businesses’ vehicles and buildings along Cilley Creek and Congress Run, ruining tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of products and supplies. Flood waters have even gotten high enough to canoe in parking lots and raise up over loading docks, with the 2020 flood qualifying as a 50- to 100-year rainfall event.
“This is important because this is one of the few industrial areas we have in the Township. We don’t want to lose these important assets to our community to an issue that can be addressed,” said Assistant Township Administrator Kathleen Kennedy.
During heavy rainfall events, the water levels in the portion of Cilley Creek that runs behind the businesses on Caldwell Drive rise over the flood wall, and cause damage.
Springfield Township has already received $850,000 from the Hamilton County Stormwater Grant to study the stormwater issue, create a master plan, and create the engineering and construction drawings for Phase I, which starts with improvements to Cilley Ditch. On August 28, the Township was awarded an additional $600,000 is Economic Impact Program Grants from Hamilton County for the construction costs of Phase I.
FEMA, through the Flood Mitigation Assistance Program, has also awarded Hamilton County and Springfield Township $140,000 for construction design and engineering, bringing the total award so far to $1,590,000 for this project.
The first part of Phase I of this project is slated to begin in early 2026. “We are excited to get started on the construction of this project. Our hope is that by finally addressing the flooding issue, businesses in this area will see relief during major flooding events, and they’ll have the confidence to grow their business here,” Kennedy says.
A request for bids will be published later this year.