Lessons in urban planning
Jose Ceralde
20 Oct 2009
Re: Bill filed to require minimum ground level height of stores
Kudos goes to Vice Mayor Belen Fernandez, “to engage an urban planner to help draft development strategies for the city, factoring in the effects of the 10/9 flooding in the city. She also raised the timeliness for enactment of a new building code based on the established flood lines in each barangay.” But before requiring building codes to be change for raising flood lines of the city, they need to look at similar cities prone to flooding.
Look at cities like Singapore. Singapore solved its problem not by raising the structures to the flood lines. It merely required every structure to have catch basin underneath their buildings for water collection. Or required a formula of every concrete footage has to equal a water catchment area equivalent. It even has forested area in the city as trees would hold more water.
Here in New Jersey before a new building is put up a catchment area for flash flood is also part of the building permit. In federal land areas like military bases in New Jersey before a new structure is built an old structure has to be torn down.
Next time city officials should go to New Jersey and observe the big catch basin in front of Walmart or Lowes or even the Meadowlands sport complex.
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