Ridgewood Working With County To Protect Floodplain Land

RIDGEWOOD, NJ — Village and county officials are working together to restore and conserve Ridgewood's floodplain.

The county acquired Ridgewood flood-prone properties as part of the Bergen County Open Space, Recreation, Floodplain Protection, Farmland & Historic Preservation Trust Fund. The properties will be turned into open space.

The county and village are working with The Land Conservancy of New Jersey and the Rutgers Cooperative Extension Water Resources Program to begin planning exactly how the land will be conserved.

Rutgers staff will assess the site and develop a design plan to protect the land. The plan will be presented and reviewed by local representatives.

When completed, officials will deliver a final plan with a brief summary and the recommended steps needed to move forward with the project.

"This shared service agreement a win-win for Ridgewood’s residents," said Freeholder Chairwoman Germaine Ortiz. "It is providing the municipality with the flood protection they need without costing them a penny."

The village's floodplain is located at and near the Ho-Ho-Kus Brook, Saddle River, and Goffle, Diamond Sprout brooks. These waterways are limited in the amount of water they can hold and carry and tend to flood during serious storms. Tropical Storm Floyd in 1999 and Hurricane Irene in 2011 brought serious flooding to the streets and homes near those bodies of water.

Related: A River Ran Through It: Flooding Cut Village in Half

Email: daniel.hubbard@patch.com