UNION COUNTY, N.C. — You may have heard the expression that when it rains it, pours. But a couple in Union County says that when it rains, it floods their backyard.
Archie Wright says his backyard becomes a swamp after heavy rain.
Wright shared photos of the flooding with Action 9′s Jason Stoogenke. “It was a torrent of water coming in. It seemed like a lot more than just ‘some water,’” Wright said.
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Wright is worried about how much the flooding will cost him. He’s worried about his property value, being able to use his backyard and having to pay for repairs out of his own pocket.
“This is not what I think my backyard should look like,” he told Stoogenke. “It just doesn’t seem right. I know it’s not right.”
Wright says the people who designed and built the neighborhood messed up.
He claims they should have done more to prevent runoff onto his property. According to Wright, they even created a swale, or channel, that diverted more water his way.
Wright and his lawyer, Steven Bimbo, say there is a solution. There are performance bonds, which are essentially insurance policies. If the work isn’t done right, the Town of Stallings can cash in the bonds to fix the problem. But Wright says the town hasn’t done that.
“There’s $700,000 worth of bonds for this subdivision, plenty of money to resolve Mr. Wright’s situation, but for whatever reason, it’s honestly a mystery to us, the town’s been very, very opposed to calling those bonds. Or at least using the bonds as leverage,” Bimbo said.
So, Wright is suing the Town of Stallings, the Homeowner’s Association, the developer Bonterra, the company that took over Bonterra (Taylor Morrison), and the engineering firm that designed the storm management plan for the neighborhood (The Isaacs Group).
Neighbors such as Chris Ball agree with Wright’s decision to sue and are worried they’ll end up having to foot the bill themselves.
“The rest of us are all holding the bag because the town won’t do what they’re supposed to do to manage the problem,” Ball said. “I don’t want to pay to maintain the stormwater system.”
Stoogenke tried asking all the defendants for their side of the story.
The HOA and The Isaacs Group did not respond in time for this report.
Bonterra and Taylor Morrison said they will not discuss pending litigation.
The lawyer representing the Town of Stallings says the town takes this issue seriously and denies any wrongdoing. He says the town is always hesitant to go on private property to address an issue, especially if it runs the risk of shifting the problem from one property owner to another. It’s not clear if that would happen in this case, but the town says that is always a concern when you’re dealing with stormwater. The attorney told Stoogenke the performance bonds could still be part of the solution. He says the parties are scheduled for mediation next month.
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