Seminole County crews clear drains, push flood fixes before hurricane season

Excavators worked along Sipes Avenue in Midway as Seminole County road and stormwater crews cleared roadside channels and pushed drainage work meant to keep heavy rain from turning into home flooding. Near the Washington Street canal, crews used equipment in steep terrain to pull debris and improve flow, a reminder that the neighborhoods with the most to lose are often the ones where drainage work is hardest to see until a storm hits.

Midway sits at the center of that risk. Seminole County’s Midway Basin covers about 5 square miles, with roughly 3 square miles in unincorporated Seminole County and 2 square miles in the City of Sanford. The census-designated area had about 1,700 residents in the 2010 census, and county planners said the basin study was built to create a stormwater master plan, measure flood-control service, map the 100-year floodplain and develop mitigation options for chronic flooding.

The county broke ground on the Midway Drainage Improvement Project on March 25, 2026, with Chairman and District 5 Commissioner Andria Herr leading the ceremony. County project materials put the estimated cost at $26 million, while a county feature story described more than $30 million in proposed improvements funded through federal, state and local sources, including the county’s Penny Sales Tax. Phase 1A was set to run along Jack Court, Hughey Street, Sipes Avenue, Dixon Avenue and Water Street, with 18-inch to 48-inch drainage pipes and upgrades to a nearby stormwater pond. The county also planned a new sidewalk on Main Street from Sipes Avenue to Beardall Avenue.

Midway is not the only place under repair. Seminole County said active flood work also includes the Boland Drive Drainage Improvement project south of Oviedo, the Willow Avenue-Alhambra Avenue Drainage Improvement Project in Forest City and the Nebraska Avenue Bridge Drainage Project north of Sanford. Across the county, roads and stormwater crews completed 127,728 feet of ditch and canal cleaning last year alone, and most of Seminole County’s 21.5 miles of canals are cleaned regularly with a rubber-tire excavator.

The county’s push comes with fresh memory of Hurricane Ian, when Seminole County declared a local state of emergency on September 23, 2022, because of severe weather, heavy rain and flooding threats, then extended it after flooding and hazardous debris from Ian and Nicole. FEMA has designated portions of the county as Special Flood Hazard Areas, and the county’s Floodplain Management Plan is tied to FEMA’s Community Rating System. Winter Springs says residents should also check FEMA, Floodsmart, real-time water-level information and floodplain maps, a sign that the line between public works and household preparedness is already in place before the next storm arrives.