Collapsed storm pipes that caused the 3500 block of Central Avenue to flood during last month's storms will cost $277,000 to repair, according to an estimate the city received.
Hot Springs City Manager Bill Burrough said $9,000 to $10,000 in design fees may need to be added to Engineers Inc.'s cost estimate. The drainage system's location on private property, underneath the parking lot of the 3539 Central Ave. strip mall, puts it outside the right of way of the state highway, making the property owner responsible for maintaining it, the city and state have said.
Tai Pham, who, according to property records, acquired what was then a vacant lot in 2012, has said the city damaged the pipe when its contractor was attempting to locate the 24-inch wastewater gravity main between the parking lot and sidewalk in 2013.
Pham said the excavation damaged the drainage system and ultimately caused part of his parking lot to collapse. The inability to access the sewer main required the strip mall's wastewater service line to be connected to the 6-inch gravity main on Mangum Street instead of the larger Central Avenue main.
A September 2013 work order the city provided in response to a records request indicated the depth of the Central Avenue sewer main prevented the connection of the service line.
"To the best of my knowledge, those (storm) pipes were probably laid back somewhere in the '90s before we had any stormwater regulations," Burrough said. "There are two 48-inch pipes that are about 15 feet deep in that parking lot. I don't know if the recent renovations they did with heavy equipment had anything to do with that or not, but it did start developing a sink hole and those pipes are collapsed.
"The pipe that was used was not rated for the kind of weight it has on it. But now we're in 2020, and we have a crisis. Every time we have a 2-inch rain we have to send out a swift water rescue team to safely remove people in the 3500 block of Central. (The Arkansas Department of Transportation) has a position that it's private property, and they don't do work on private property. I can understand that. We can't do that either, but when you have a safety issue the magnitude of this I think you have to look at all angles to see how we can accomplish this."
The city's public works code allows it to assume responsibility for drainage systems on private property if they have a "significant and consistent impact" on public streets and lands. Burrough explained the system's significance to the city's state legislative delegation in a Sept. 1 email the city provided in response to a records request.
"This is a unique situation as it conveys stormwater from several surrounding areas and businesses," he wrote in the email. "It is not practical to shut down Highway 7/Central Avenue each time it rains or risk someone losing their life trying to drive through it. This no doubt has to be repaired."
The email indicated the city would be willing to share in the repair cost but asked if any state highway or safety funding could help defray the cost. Burrough reaffirmed that willingness Thursday.
"I think the city is willing to try and put in some money to solve this through our stormwater utility if we can get help from the state," he said. "The ultimate burden, I believe, may fall on the property owner. It's an issue we're all concerned about, and it has to be solved."