Community Center handles first flood

The Valley Stream Community Center, which was redesigned 2½ years ago to better withstand inevitable flooding, got its first test last week.

A storm that dropped about eight inches of rain on the village in a matter of hours in August 2011 caused nearly $400,000 in damage to the building, which sits near the lake at Hendrickson Park. After months of renovations, the building reopened with a flood-proof design. It took nearly two years to find out if the fixes worked, but on April 30, heavy rain throughout the day sent the lake spilling over onto the grass and into the center.

“It was money well spent,” said Village Clerk Bob Barra.

Thomas McAleer, the village’s building superintendent, said there were two to three inches of water in the building last week, a far cry from the three feet that inundated it in 2011 but enough to show village officials that the upgrades were necessary.

Most of the walls, which were once wood paneling and sheetrock, were replaced with cinder block during the renovation. A waterproof floor was installed, and electrical outlets were moved 3½ feet off the floor. All the furniture is plastic. The thinking was that if the building flooded, it could simply be dried out.

When village officials noticed that the lake was about to crest during last week’s storm, an employee was sent in to stack the furniture and remove items like throw rugs and plants from the floor. After the water receded, a three-man crew of village employees dried and disinfected the floor and any furniture that got wet.

By 1 p.m. on May 1, the day after the storm, village officials said the building was back to normal. “We were open that afternoon and they were doing Zumba that night,” McAleer said, referring to a regularly scheduled exercise program at the community center.

By contrast, the 2011 storm forced the village to permanently relocate the Recreation Department’s offices to the Firemen’s Field Clubhouse, and the Silver Threads senior program had to move out for a year. Other programs that had been housed in the former administration building were displaced as well.

Barra said that if the building were flooded by several feet of water again, the village would implement the same procedures as last week, though it would likely take longer to get the building back to normal. He added, however, that he is confident the damage would be minimal.

McAleer said that while he is happy to know the renovation of the building was effective, he would prefer not to see water inside. “It’s unfortunate that it happened,” he said. “We’re not glad that this ever happens, but we were prepared. This will happen again.”