Sussex Regional Flood Diversion Project

Good afternoon,

I am writing regarding my concerns about the Sussex Region Diversion Project.

Firstly we (my husband and I) were not notified that this project was happening.  We only found out on Friday, the 7th of February, 2025, thus due diligence on the part of the Town of Sussex was not followed.  

I live just 3 minutes outside of the Town of Sussex so any diversion of water proposed by this project will affect our property.  We already experience flooding when the ground is saturated and have made all the appropriate steps to mitigate damage to our property.  We are concerned that this proposed project will only exacerbate the challenges we already have with flooding.  

We as property owners have our own septic and well which we are responsible to maintain.  We are concerned about the safety of our potable water if this project goes through.  There is no indication in the proposal of support, testing or compensation for repairs for any damage that may incur due to this proposal.

We are concerned as well of our property values going down as a result of the damage this inflow of water will cause.  The very problem the Town of Sussex is trying to address for the citizens the flooding affects will be passed on to the property owners living quite literally next to them.  Also, will our taxes increase to pay for this project that may ruin those affected financially?

Upon reading the project document there doesn't seem to be a clear plan for sustainability.  The Town of Sussex still permits homes and businesses to build in the floodplain areas, until that stops, flooding will continue. 

There needs to be more consultation and an in depth peer review done by a third party in determining the viability of the present proposed project.  All property owners should have the opportunity to have their concerns heard and answered truthfully.  People who have experienced first hand what garbage and debris, soil erosion and property damage are the result of flooding need to be heard.  The qualitative data is not reflected in this report and the quantitative data has changed which indicates more research needs to be done.

This is an expensive project for the Federal Government to fund, which in turn is going to increase our taxes to pay for all the necessary construction and infrastructure .  A solution needs to be found for Sussex and the surrounding area to deal with current and future flooding.  This proposal in its present iteration has too many leaks in it.  

Please take into consideration our concerns.  We look forward to hearing from you.

Kind regards,

Mary Britten-Belding &

Oscar Belding