Crews from Insight Pipe of Harmony, Pa., begin working on a partially collapsed drain on Turnberry Court in Boardman on Monday. The project, which includes curing a portion of the drain, should be finished today. Several other stormwater projects also are underway in Boardman.....Staff photo / Ashley Fox

BOARDMAN — Infrastructure projects are underway this week in Boardman to improve stormwater management.

On Monday, crews were on Turnberry Court to fix a collapsed drain, which was discovered nearly two years ago, Jason Loree, township administrator and ABC Water and Stormwater District board member, said.

The work, which is being completed between two houses, was done through the ABC district.

The ABC Water and Stormwater District includes Austintown, Boardman and Canfield townships, and is funded by taxpayers in those areas.

Cost for the project is about $70,000, Loree said. Insight Pipe of Harmony, Pa., is performing the work after CT Consultants conducted studies, including engineers crawling through the partially collapsed drain system, Loree said.

“Someone actually crawled through it and marked where the downspouts are connected,” Loree said. The damage was discovered during inventory work.

For the Turnberry project, only a section of the failed drain was worked on, rather than digging up an entire pipe and disrupting residents, Loree said.

“This is a cheaper alternative,” he said, which involves filling a bladder and curing the resin, a newer process.

The pipe now will last for another 70 to 80 years, Loree said. “That way, we’re not digging up everyone’s entire yard” and inconveniencing everyone, Loree said.

Equally happy and relieved, homeowner Eric Grabman said the work will help ensure the foundations of his house along with a neighbor’s will stay intact.

“This is great to get this fixed,” Grabman said.

“We were getting sinkholes as big as a bathtub opening up,” Grabman said. He’s lived in the neighborhood since 1993.

While he hasn’t had flooding issues inside his home, Grabman said that on five occasions, he has been able to take his canoe out in the flooded neighborhood.

The 18-inch pipe hasn’t been able to handle water during significant rainfall, Grabman said. As a result, water backed into his yard and several others, eventually flowing onto the street.

Now, Grabman can rest assured that the houses, as well as the properties, should not suffer damage in the coming years.

He said he also hopes the work will also fix the annoying sounds the stormwater creates during heavy rain between Grabman’s home and his neighbor’s.

“It would rumble,” Grabman said.

Other ongoing projects include Midwood Circle and Glenridge Drive, both in the Applewood Acres area, and a large drainage project spanning from Robin Hood Drive to Red Grouse Court to Loch Heath Lane, all in the Heathers neighborhood.

The Heathers project has a price tag of about $1 million, with collapsed drainage pipe being completely redone. A cement box culvert is being installed. That project will take a couple of months.

This year, catch basins will be inventoried in targeted areas, Loree said. Those places include the Cranberry Run and Applewood Acres neighborhoods.

Someone will visit every catch basin, determining if it needs work and if it needs complete replacement, Loree said.

afox@vindy.com