A Message From the Director of Public Works

Robert Knecht, Director of City of Memphis Public Works

Robert Knecht, Director of City of Memphis Public Works

Welcome to the City of Memphis Public Works Storm Water website/social media outlet! Education and public outreach are one of the most important communication efforts that local governments must focus on. Public Works is striving to improve and we hope these outlets will enable us to do just that. Let’s face it, Memphis is so fortunate to have such abundant sources and access to water; however, we also have a number of challenges and needs. Pollution threatens our waterways and environment; creating a number of problems. Only together as a community can we make the right choices and steps to help protect these wonderful resources. I hope that through these outlets you will learn that water is not only a resource, it is an invaluable asset- one that too many take for granted. If you were to stop and think about all the ways water impacts our daily lives and how beneficial it is, then you would agree how important it is to protect it. We also hope that as you learn more about water and its benefits that you would consider the importance of sustaining it so that it is available to future Memphians. Lastly, Public Works is committed to finding solutions toward reducing the impacts of flooding while preserving its storm water infrastructure. Accordingly in 2013, Public Works started a City-wide storm water master planning program with the goal to evaluate public drainage systems and identify the impacts that flooding represents to property owners. This program focused initially on prioritized areas of the City that had been identified as having higher occurrences of repetitive flooding problems, but we will transition to the remaining areas so that the entire City is evaluated. Once completed, this master plan will enable Public Works to develop comprehensive solutions toward reducing these flooding risks in a sustainable, transparent, and efficient manner.

 I want to thank the citizens of Memphis for your partnership in ensuring that water is recognized for the importance it plays in improving the quality of life we all enjoy. Only together in this partnership can we make tremendous positive changes that will ensure the highest quality of life for all Memphians.