The culverts, which are supposed to be able to withstand all but one-in-50 year rain events, but which have flooded three times in the past year, are an ongoing headache for the Saddle Hill Community Board.
Chairman Scott Weatherall and board members Jules Radich and Andrew Wiley had helped with sandbagging low-lying properties in Brighton Rd, opposite the Ocean View Reserve, during heavy rain in January and twice last year.
"We have been there in thigh-deep water at times - so there has been a lot of water around," Mr Weatherall said.
A larger culvert at the McCall Rd end of the drain system was fine, but it fed into much smaller pipes, until it met a larger outfall pipe which took it under the road and out to the beach, he said.
"The water backs up because it can’t flow from the larger pipe into the smaller ones, and there is a vegetation factor as well," he said.
The frequency of heavy rain meant the culverts were flooding more often, which put property at risk.
"We are keen to see a plan in place to move forward and resolve this issue for our local residents."
Contacted by The Star, a Dunedin City Council spokesman said it was aware of the flooding issue raised by the Saddle Hill Community Board.
Work was under way on a study, which would aim to address the problem.
"It is a challenging site to develop a robust engineering solution, but we are working to identify and assess the best options for a fix," the spokesman said.
