AZ Legislature Makes Phoenix Flooding Much Worse (Mesa: 2014, homes)

[Potential_Landlord]

They defer infrastructure maintenance so they can boast a "balanced budget" in Arizona. Obviously this cost Phoenix a great deal of flooding and damage. As they say a lie will catch up with you at some point. So much for the so called "business friendly" AZ legislature damaging our Phoenix businesses and residents.

From the article: "Witness Lake Papago, previously known as Interstate 10/Papago Freeway. There’s one example of how the legislative kick-the-can with capital improvement dollars hit Phoenix area businesses in the pocketbook...
For a number of years now, the Legislature has stolen the normally dedicated Highway User Revenue Funds to pretend it balanced the state budget. The reality is the state budget was balanced from city revenue coffers."

The kicked can hits the wall - Phoenix Business Journal

[stevek64]

I think this can be said for the most part about any city throughout the country, many in much worse shape infrastructure wise. Read reports on the condition of water lines, sewers, drainage systems, roads, bridges, etc., especially in older cities. I think this is pretty much the way our society operates on just about all levels, right down to the way many individuals manage their lives.....reacting to problems when they become serious, not planning ahead/fixing them before they happen. Doesn't make it right. Just the way it is.

[FloppyRunner]

Better to have spent money we don't have, right?

But seriously... What's your proposed solution?

[FloppyRunner]

I was curious about these pumps, as I never knew there EXISTED "pumping stations" for rainfall; I thought it all relied on gravity drainage. Here is some good info I found, sparse in detail as it may be...

Pumping stations failed at some freeway stations

[Zippyman]

Originally Posted by FloppyRunner

Better to have spent money we don't have, right?

But seriously... What's your proposed solution?

It's not "money we don't have", it's funds allocated for a specific purpose that were *stolen* by legislative fiat - to cover their own poor management of the general fund. State departments that actually maintained a small surplus (like the board of nursing) had it stolen from them & they had to *retroactively* make previously-paid-for nursing licenses expire early to make up the shortfall. Same thing happened with state parks - they had to ask for donations to keep some parks open, not because the parks department was bad with money, but because their "surplus" was stolen.

The solution is to tell the truth when you goofed on the budget & not to pretend to "balance" it and try to duck out of the heat for bad decisions that cause wildly irresponsible consequences.

[enigmadsm]

I'd say our highways are in much better shape than the majority of major metro cities surrounding us. I don't think them pulling some of the budgetary funds for other needs equated to the flooding of the I-10. To me its more about the ways in which builders and decision makers decide to build in known flood zones, on or near washes (such as the I-17 and Happy Valley flood a few weeks ago) and the idea that its smart to build a freeway 20 feet below the surrounding ground level. or lack of proper drainaage systems on roads build years ago (suck as the greenway and I17 underpass that floods almost yearly in monsoons)

But again, i'm not a city planner and construction is not my specialty so i could be completely off base.

[Valley Native]

Originally Posted by Potential_Landlord

For a number of years now, the Legislature has stolen the normally dedicated Highway User Revenue Funds to pretend it balanced the state budget. The reality is the state budget was balanced from city revenue coffers."

The reality is ADOT is once again making excuses as to why I10 turned into a lake, and why the Mesa residents near the 60 freeway were flooded out of their homes. According to ADOT: there isn't enough money. We've been hearing that same rhetoric from ADOT for as long as I can remember. The fact is that laziness was the reason why the drainage systems failed to operate. It doesn't take extra revenue to ensure that the pumping stations are in working order, and that they don't automatically switch off like some of them did.

I'm not a big fan of the Legislature for different reasons, but blaming them for why the draining systems failed to work on the freeways is going a little too far. The blame lies with ADOT. Every time something happens which brings ADOT into the spotlight, they always use the tired out reason that they are lacking in funds ... and they have used that same excuse for nearly everything, including why they are unable to build the additional freeways that we voted for and paid for with extra tax dollars!

[esiebert7625]

Supposedly "Illegal Subdivisions" make it worse as well as they do not provide proper drainage.

Homes flooded in Arizona rain storms located near illegal subdivisions - ABC15 Arizona

[Zippyman]

Originally Posted by Valley Native

The reality is ADOT is once again making excuses as to why I10 turned into a lake, and why the Mesa residents near the 60 freeway were flooded out of their homes. According to ADOT: there isn't enough money. We've been hearing that same rhetoric from ADOT for as long as I can remember. The fact is that laziness was the reason why the drainage systems failed to operate. It doesn't take extra revenue to ensure that the pumping stations are in working order, and that they don't automatically switch off like some of them did.

I'm not a big fan of the Legislature for different reasons, but blaming them for why the draining systems failed to work on the freeways is going a little too far. The blame lies with ADOT. Every time something happens which brings ADOT into the spotlight, they always use the tired out reason that they are lacking in funds ... and they have used that same excuse for nearly everything, including why they are unable to build the additional freeways that we voted for and paid for with extra tax dollars!

Break out your "google-fu" and look at arizona's state budgets for the past 6-8 years. The *only* line item that ever gets a consistent 10% + "bump", every single year, without fail, hell-or-high-water is prisons. We de-funded schools, heathcare, parks, roads - everything *except* jails, every single year. Most state departments have not only *not* gotten increases, they've had any "rainy day funds", "stuff we're saving for" (infrastructure & repairs!) funds *stolen* from them in an 11pm amendment to the budget bill.

It isn't a "tired out reason" if it's the *truth*.. we *had* money in a pot, collected from user-fees, to pay for something, and it was stolen. Nobody likes taxes - so we fund many of our most important government functions with fees collected from the people using that particular agency. Which is awesome! - you use it, you pay for it!... but when that system is hijacked, you're really ripping the taxpayers off and lying to them.

I'm kinda pissed that I paid for a nursing license good for "xx" months, and getting a letter later that said, "weeell.. we know you *paid* for it, buuut.. we gots no money now, so pay *again".. that affected me directly - and you indirectly, if you know anyone being cared for by a nurse - because the "regulators" of that particular profession didn't have any gas money to go forth & investigate bad nurses, who might be selling your grandma's oxycontins instead of giving them to her. These kinds of cuts would have been political suicide at best-had the effects been made public. But by stealing the funds & telling the agencies to "just deal with it", the legislature got a pass & lots of love for being "responsible".