Stormwater network improvements

Kippax Group Centre stormwater improvements

Stormwater upgrades will be delivered in and around the Kippax Group Centre. The current project is focused on 3 sites:

1. Southern Cross Drive bridge underpass (northeast of the Kippax Group Centre and adjacent to Florey Drive): These works will include widening of the bridge underpass, construction of new stormwater infrastructure (new sumps and a swale) and landscaping/reinstatement.

2. Moyes Crescent, Holt: These works will include construction of new stormwater infrastructure (stormwater pipes, sumps and a swale) and landscaping/reinstatement.

3. Starke Street, Holt: These works will include clearing of the existing overgrown swale and landscaping/reinstatement.

More information, including timeframes, will be provided prior to commencement of construction.

Narrabundah stormwater improvements

For more information see Narrabundah stormwater improvements.

Duffy stormwater improvements

1. Duffy Oval: This project will deliver earthworks and stormwater upgrades to the southern boundary of Duffy Oval. Duffy Oval functions as an existing retarding basin with these works to direct overland flows into this basin.

2. Eucumbene Drive: This project will deliver stormwater upgrades along Eucumbene Drive from its intersection with Cotter Road.

More information, including timeframes, will be provided ahead of construction beginning.

Hall Village stormwater improvements

Preliminary design work is progressing for stormwater improvements in the Hall Village. A community pop-up was held in August 2025 for the local community to meet with the project team and ask any questions about the proposed design.

Following the pop-up there may be some changes to the proposed design (PDF 3.6 MB) to include community feedback.

The ACT Government will continue to update the community about tree assessments, heritage considerations and any proposed changes to streetscapes within the Hall Village as work progresses.

It is anticipated the Development Application (DA) will be submitted by mid-2026.

An update will be provided on this page when the DA is publicly notified.

The Territory’s stormwater infrastructure consists of sumps, stormwater pipes, stormwater channels, water quality pond embankments, cut‐off drains, retarding basins, gross pollutant traps, dams and weirs.

The Directorate manages the stormwater network in the ACT within government land but also inclusive of inter-allotment drainage (stormwater connections within dedicated easements of some residential blocks).

Maintenance alone is not able to address the flooding issues – the piped network is not sized for 100-year events and even running at optimal capacity does not protect leases from inundation in the target areas. Maintenance is not meant to replace the benefits of infrastructure upgrades and it can be seen as a band-aid solution at best. In a major storm event in Canberra, the Directorate stormwater maintenance personnel and contractors need to spread their time and focus over the entirety of the ACT. It is thus not practical to affix their attention solely to Narrabundah through a proactive approach. However, they certainly focus their efforts noting issues in Narrabundah are well established.

Upgrade work to infrastructure must be accepted as a rolling program throughout the ACT and Narrabundah is presently in line for the necessary works to ease the identified burden on the stormwater network. Through this, flooding will be alleviated for impacted residents in Narrabundah and free up the Directorate maintenance personnel to respond to other problem areas in Canberra until funding is available to improve flooding issues elsewhere.

Regular and routine inspections are carried out throughout the Territory on the stormwater network. In the course of these works, areas beyond ‘typical’ maintenance are identified and investigated further. The locations are then captured in a priority list whereby funding to complete designs (and future construction) are progressed through Treasury. It is to be noted funding sought does not always eventuate (in the short term) as the Territory must strategically grant funding for a range of projects and services to the broader ACT community.

If the ACT Government does not upgrade stormwater in known problem sites, it could be exposed to compensation claims if flooding occurred because it had failed to augment stormwater infrastructure to help manage increased flows.

When issues are identified, all efforts to remedy are undertaken but it is noted addressing a problem may take time due to funding availability. In the meantime, maintenance would be undertaken (as practical) to minimise flooding but it is also noted that residents/businesses impacted by flooding would remain susceptible until such time as upgrade works are complete.

A retarding basin acts like a dam. It holds back water during extreme storm events, preventing the water from flooding properties. Unlike a dam, retarding basins only hold water if there has been a large amount of rain. Their purpose is to temporarily store water and reduce the rate of water flow into the underground drainage system. When the basin is empty it looks like a depression in the ground with sloping walls.