North Kentucky News

The City of Bellevue will be authorizing the removal of five storm water BMPs in the city. These are sometimes described as above ground concrete plant or tree wells.

BMP stands for “best management practices.” A storm water BMP is a catch basin system, a structure that is designed to collect or manage a quantify of storm water.

“The purpose of a BMP is laudable,” said Bellevue City Administrator Frank Warnock. “They are supposed to capture storm water and manage it in an environmentally sound manner. The problem is they don’t work.”

The BMPs are partly above the grade of the adjoining sidewalk. “The storm water does not go into these systems,” said Warnock. “The only water they get is from rain. The entranceways to the systems don’t capture storm water. They are too high.”

Warnock explained the complaints include motorists bump their car doors on them; they are trip hazards; they are hard to maintain; they don’t work for their intended purpose; they take up some parking space; they don’t work; and, they are unsightly.

“We have received complaints about the BMPs from some of our citizens,” said Warnock. “We’ve been trying to make an effort to improve our infrastructure in the city and this is part of that.”

There are five BMPs in the city. One is located at Taylor and Center. The others are on Taylor just off Taylor near Prospect Street.

“The city has a renewed focus on managing our trees and sidewalks. Those issues have been ignored too long. We have been removing dying trees, trees that crack sidewalks, and trees with limbs that grow into utility lines,” said Warnock.

“I know it is upsetting to some people when they see a tree removed in Bellevue, but we can keep kicking the can. We have to confront sidewalk and tree issues.”

The city recently authorized the removal of trees in front of the old St. Anthony Catholic Church that has been renovated into five contemporary two-story loft condos on Poplar Street. Why? “Condo owners requested the removal. The adjoining property owner wanted them removed. Private dollars paid to cut the trees down. The roots were lifting and destroying sidewalks. The limbs had grown into the power lines,” said Warnock. “The plan is to eventually replace the trees.”

Eight trees were recently planted on Foote Avenue.

The removal of the BMPs has been discussed with the mayor, councilpersons, the Tree Commission, and the Bellevue Neighborhood Association.

Several of the volunteers who plant flowers and maintain the city’s greenspace expressed that there are not enough volunteers to pull weeds from the BMPs

Sanitation District No. 1’s in-house crew members will be removing the systems in 2023. There will be sidewalks or possibly tree wells where the BMPs are located.

“Our budget does not allow us to repair and replace all of the streets, alleys and sidewalks in the city,” said Warnock. “So we have to be creative with obtaining funding. We’ve done that by obtaining millions of dollars in grants, but processing those grants to an end-goal takes about three years.

“We have enacted a sidewalk replacement policy to incentivize homeowners to repair sidewalks. We accept donations for trees and sidewalks.”

If you would like to contribute funds to plant trees in Bellevue, send your contribution to: City of Bellevue, Tree Commission, 616 Poplar St., Bellevue, KY 41073.

Original source can be found here.