By BRIANA HARRIS / Staff Writer

PELHAM – A project to help ease flooding problems in Pelham’s Saddle Run neighborhood is well on its way after the city received a letter from the Federal Emergency Management Agency last week approving the allocation of funds for the effort.

Mayor Gary Waters said the project has been in the works for six years.

“Former Mayor Don Murphy petitioned FEMA for flood funds, so the Don Murphy administration deserves all the credit,” Waters said.

Flooding has been a problem in the Saddle Run neighborhood for decades, Waters said.

The project will cost just over $2 million, and FEMA is set to fund 75 percent of the project, which amounts to $1.54 million. The city is responsible for paying for 25 percent, or $515,375.

Waters said two detention ponds, connected by a low-lying tract of land called a swale, will capture and store rainwater runoff and drain it in a titrated fashion so that it does not overwhelm the drainage system.

Homes in Cedar Cove and Saddle Run neighborhoods received more than three feet of water in some places during Christmas Day flooding in 2015.

One home in Saddle Run and three in Cedar Cove — one crawl space and two basements — reportedly received water.

Shortly after the flood, Patricia Day, a former resident of Saddle Run, spoke before the City Council about the condition of the homes in her previous neighborhood. She said that the streets were filled with trash that was washed in by the water,

“I was in the fire department for 31 years so I’ve been a part of every flood the city’s had in 30 years, and believe me when I say that Saddle Run and other residents are going to be so excited about this,” Waters said.

Waters said the project is still in its early stages. The city won’t know a possible completion date until the project has been placed for bid.