Middletown authorizes bids for Langhorne Gables Phase 2 drainage after residents raise flooding concerns

MIDDLETOWN, Pa. — Middletown Township supervisors on June 13 authorized the township to advertise bids for Langhorne Gables Phase 2, a stormwater and drainage project designed to add infrastructure along Longview Avenue and adjoining side streets and to address deteriorated pipe and culvert sections.

Township staff described the base bid as work along Longview from Buttonwood to Jefferson, with alternates for additional streets. The project’s base work is planned to be funded from the township’s 2022 Capital Improvement storm sewer and drains budget; additional phases would depend on grant funding.

At public comment, longtime resident Walter Klass said homes on Clay Avenue have flooded repeatedly since at least 1996 and 2011 and raised specific technical concerns: he said the downstream Clay Avenue pipe remains “beyond capacity” (he cited a 36-inch pipe), questioned whether diverting half the flow to Fir Avenue would improve conditions, and asked what the township would do if homes still flooded after construction.

The township engineer responded that the Phase 2 design splits the existing flow roughly 50/50 between Fir and Clay, that gravity and existing elevations constrain outcomes, and that the goal is to get water out faster rather than eliminate all flooding. Board members acknowledged the long history of the problem and committed to follow up if the work fails to resolve house flooding.

After discussion the board voted 5-0 to authorize bid advertising for the Phase 2 drainage project.

What happens next: Township staff will prepare bid documents and solicit contractors; alternates will be assessed if bids and budget allow. Board members said they will monitor construction outcomes and asked residents to report any post-construction issues.