CINCINNATI — Cincinnati City Council unanimously approved two flood-related measures Wednesday aimed at helping residents recover from last month’s flash flooding and preparing the city for future severe weather events.
Council voted to add another $1 million to the city’s emergency flood relief fund, doubling the total to $2 million for impacted homeowners and businesses. Members also approved a separate motion directing the city administration and the Metropolitan Sewer District to explore expanded green infrastructure projects, watershed-based flood mitigation planning and the creation of a flood resilience task force.
The votes came a day after residents packed a Climate, City Services & Infrastructure committee meeting to describe repeated flooding, damaged homes and mounting frustration over what many called long-standing infrastructure failures.
“We know people are in need,” Vice Mayor Jan-Michele Lemon Kearney said Wednesday before the vote. “Our community is struggling, and we are dedicated to making sure everybody pulls through this.”
WATCH: Cincinnati commits $2 million to flood recovery, explores stormwater runoff solutions
Mayor Aftab Pureval credited city staff for rapidly organizing the relief program after the storms, which triggered widespread flooding across neighborhoods including Hyde Park and Mount Lookout.
“There will be more work ahead of us as we look back on the flooding, our processes and infrastructure, and look ahead to our preparation for future events,” Pureval said.
The emergency ordinance transfers $1 million from the city’s reserve account for weather events and other emergencies into the flood relief effort. Council had previously approved an initial $1 million allocation.
Kearney said residents repeatedly asked the city for three immediate needs after the flooding: more dumpsters, a faster permitting process and financial assistance.
Kearney said the city responded by deploying additional dumpsters and creating a one-day permit approval process for contractors making repairs. The city is also encouraging residents affected by flooding to file claims, regardless of whether the flooding came from sewer backups or overland flooding.
“You don’t have to determine the cause,” Kearney said. “Just call if you had flooding. Call and make sure you file a claim with us because we are going to help you.”
Council members also signaled the city may need to devote additional resources depending on demand for assistance.
“The loss from our residents is tremendous,” Council member Ryan James said. “My expectation is that we may need a more sufficient response.”
Council member Evan Nolan said the city has already received more than 2,000 complaints connected to the storms.
“We appreciate those who have already reached out and shared their stories,” Nolan said. “Some of them that we heard last night are incredibly hard.”
The second measure approved Wednesday focuses on longer-term flood prevention strategies.
The motion directs the administration, working with MSD, to evaluate expanded green infrastructure solutions to reduce stormwater runoff, pursue watershed-based flood mitigation planning and establish a flood resilience task force to identify risks and recommend solutions.
Councilmember Seth Walsh said the city’s aging sewer infrastructure must continue evolving as climate-driven storms become more severe.
“We all recognize that climate change is real, and that the sewer system we created 100 years ago — we’ve been working to upgrade the last 20 years — we continue to have to look at that,” Walsh said.
Council member Meeka Owens said the city cannot rely solely on traditional “gray infrastructure” projects and needs to accelerate solutions aimed at reducing runoff and impervious surfaces.
“We need to go from gray to green infrastructure,” Owens said. “We also know that impervious surface is a part of this challenge.”
James called the recent flooding “a sobering lesson that it’s time to invest in our infrastructure.”
The votes follow emotional testimony Tuesday from residents who said repeated flooding is threatening the long-term stability of some Cincinnati neighborhoods.
Hyde Park resident Jacob Bailey told council members his family’s garage had flooded three times in just weeks after moving into the neighborhood.
“It’s very easy when people see on the news that ‘Oh this area flooded,’ and you see some cars underwater, it’s really easy to miss the ongoing human toll of that,” Bailey said Tuesday.
City officials previously said 40 properties were affected by the July 17 failure of the Duck Creek flood gate system. MSD has received more than 1,800 reports related to the storms, with hundreds qualifying for cleanup assistance through the sewer backup program.
While residents praised emergency crews and immediate cleanup efforts, many warned against treating the flooding as an isolated incident.
“The longer we wait to fix it, it’s only going to get more expensive, and the problem’s only going to get bigger,” Bailey said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
