City of Morganton will pay local church $600,000 after drainage issue damages building

MORGANTON, N.C. — A Baptist church in Morganton will receive hundreds of thousands of dollars from the city after a storm drain issue shuttered services and closed facilities.

According to court documents, Morganton Free Will Baptist Church, near South Sterling Street, is expected to receive more than $600,000 in a settlement with the city.

The city admitted negligence in the city storm drain failure that caused significant structural damage at the church, court documents said.

The issues began back in 2015 when church operators began to notice water “pooling” in the building’s lower levels, court documents said.

After a storm in 2017 during a Sunday night service, more than a foot of water was left behind in the building, according to court documents.

A 36-inch storm drainage line that runs under the building had failed. The water damage caused cracks in the building, collapses in the concrete slabs, mold and mildew and the discovery of voids under the church.

The storm drain was eventually rerouted, but not before significant damage was inflicted on the building.

Court papers indicated the cost to repair the building and storm drain was not feasible. Instead, the church would have to be torn down.

On Wednesday, signs posted on the church’s parsonage and fellowship hall said the structure is unsafe.

Channel 9′s Dave Faherty found out that the church wants to stay at this location and that building a new church on the property would be cheaper than making repairs. However, that would include removing the old sewer pipe on the site.

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