Bonita Springs • Lee County
Drainage & Grading in Bonita Springs, FL
Bonita Springs has spent the years since 2017 working on flooding at the city level: a Stormwater Master Plan, the Quinn/Dean neighborhood stormwater project, a voluntary home buyout program focused on the Quinn Street and Downs Drive areas, and a stormwater assessment, adopted in 2019, that is based on each property's impervious area. A single yard cannot fix a river, but it can stop making its own problem worse. Hodges looks at where roof water lands, whether the lot pitches toward the house, and whether a French drain, regrading, or extending downspouts to the swale will move water off the slab faster. Before digging, it is worth checking your flood zone on the city's Find My Flood Zone map; coastal and riverside lots can fall in the AE or VE zones, and any grading there should not push water onto neighbors.
or call (239) 301-9455
Where it comes up in Bonita Springs
Downs Drive area
San Carlos Estates
Imperial River corridor
Bonita Beach Road corridor
Plants and materials that suit it in Bonita Springs
- Fakahatchee grass
- Muhly grass
- Cocoplum
- Pigeon plum
- Perforated pipe in washed stone and filter fabric
- Pop-up emitters at the swale
Questions
How do I find out if my Bonita Springs home is in a flood zone?
The city's flood protection page has a Find My Flood Zone map you can search by address. Blue areas are the 100-year AE and VE zones; the shaded area is the 0.2 percent X zone. The Community Development Department keeps elevation certificates on file.
Will a French drain help if the whole street floods?
Not when the river or street is already full; water has nowhere to go. It does help with the far more common problem of rain sitting against the house for hours after a normal summer storm, by moving that water to the swale or a lower spot.
Can I add fill to raise a low corner of my yard?
Small regrading is common, but raising ground can send runoff onto a neighbor, and flood-zone lots fall under the city's flood hazard rules. Hodges keeps grading changes modest and directs water to the swale; for larger fill, check with the city first.