Jamestown officials should absolutely work with the town of Busti to help a South Avenue resident deal with runoff that floods their yard and pool.

The issue is somewhat difficult because South Avenue acts as a border between Jamestown and Busti, meaning crossing the street takes someone from Jamestown to Busti. South Avenue also has no proper drainage since it’s not a certified street with curbs, gutters and drainage.

At the same time, city officials shouldn’t just look at South Avenue. Anyone who lives on the south side of the city knows drainage is a pain whenever we see prolonged rains or a heavy thunderstorm. It’s not uncommon to see pools form in backyards and basements to quickly flood. Drainage is an issue both on Forest Avenue and then moving into the valley toward Foote Avenue.

There is no cheap solution. Any fix is going to require a lot of outside funding. But finding a way to improve drainage throughout the south side of the city would be a major quality of life improvement for hundreds of city residents who now spend their free time babysitting their basements every time we get a bad storm or dealing with naturally made swimming pools in their back yards.

South Avenue drainage is an issue worth fixing. We certainly hope Busti and Jamestown officials can come together on a plan that helps the resident who spoke to the City Council recently. But while we’re talking about a few houses along the border between Jamestown and Busti, the city should put some time into addressing the larger issue of drainage throughout the south side of the city.

Homeowners would be ecstatic to have drier basements – though the deer may be disappointed to lose an easy source of drinking water throughout south side backyards.