Heavy rain fell across the Black Forest area Aug. 4, causing some flooding and drainage problems, especially in the area of Casey Lane near Shoup Road, said Andre Brackin, engineer and deputy director for El Paso County. He said the flooding washed out a portion of Casey Lane, resulting in its closure.Brackin said the 84-inch diameter pipe below Casey Lane serves one of the Kettle Creek tributaries; and, with the excessive amount of water and debris running through it, the pipe basically collapsed.ìPrimarily it (flooding) is the heavy rain, but itís been made worse by the loss of the natural cover in the forest area,î Brackin said. ìThe runoff there is sped up because you donít have the natural cover to slow it down. Loose gravel and sand gets taken downstream and creates problems.îThe Casey Lane culvert has to be replaced, which could cost up to $400,000, he said. In an email to The New Falcon Herald, Brackin wrote, ìWe did get the 7 foot by 7 foot reinforced concrete box sections donated from our contractor, R.E. Monks Construction.ìWe have contractors that are really stepping up to help, which is very fortunate for the county,î he said.Construction on the washed-out area began Aug. 8, and Brackin was not certain at the time of the end date.He said the plan is to use the countyís maintenance staff to monitor the other culverts and roadways, and to be prepared to clean them out when necessary. ìThe maintenance crews are out there pretty much around the clock fixing small problems as they pop up,î he said. ìOur goal is to keep the roads open for safety and emergency response. Thatís our No. 1 goal, so they can be used in emergencies.îCertain areas of the Black Forest are not maintained by the county because they are privately owned roadways, Brackin said. ìThe roads in Black Forest have been there for probably 100 years, and all the property along the roads is private property,î he said. ìBlack Forest is a natural environment where lots of roads have gone in mostly because of private property owners building roadways to their homes.ìWeíre trying to help them (private roadway owners) by having my inspectors assess the problems, the conditions and the damage and put together a plan for how we would go about fixing it so they at least have the knowledge of how to start or where to start. We just donít have the county funds to fix things for them.îBrackin said heís concerned the private roads are not being maintained. ìIt just takes one storm, and it is destroyed.î
