Dearborn City Engineer M. Yunus Patel (left) addresses city council questions about sinkholes at the Aug. 17 council meeting, while City Clerk George Darany and Council members Leslie Herrick, Robert Abraham, Michael Sareini, David Bazzy, Erin Byrnes and Brian O’Donnell listen.
A sinkhole in the 7700 block of Payne Avenue in Dearborn has the resident concerned for the safety of his grandchildren.
By SUE SUCHYTA
Times-Herald Newspapers
DEARBORN – The City Council authorized the expenditure of up to $350,000 to waive property owners’ share of costs to mitigate up to 125 rain-event-caused sinkholes during its Aug. 17 meeting.
The motion authorizes the Department of Public Works director to waive the property owners’ share of the costs, and for the finance director to recognize and appropriate the funds from the sewer fund.
The unanimous roll was attached, with the motion to take immediate effect.
It was estimated that $2,800 would be waived for a typical sinkhole repair.
Sinkholes can occur when excessive rain liquifies soil, while at the same time an underground pipe leaks or breaks, adding even more fluid to the saturated soil. It was noted that sandy soil tends to liquify more readily that a clay-like soil.
Councilman Michael Sareini said his priority was to fix the sinkholes that occurred after the recent rain event, which caused sinkholes that might have occurred eventually had not the sudden soil liquification caused them to occur sooner.
“We are trying to fix the ones now, that the resident came outside and said, ‘But for this storm, I wouldn’t have a hole in my backyard,’” he said.
Councilman David Bazzy said he was all for helping residents impacted by the flood event, and he wants to get the massive holes addressed immediately.
“The city needs to own up, whether FEMA reimburses us or doesn’t reimburse us,” he said. “This body has always been reasonable, at an indication of things that occurred where the city had some responsibility, and made sure that they were made whole.”
Bazzy said he doesn’t want to open up a Pandora’s box of claims.
City Engineer M. Yunus Patel confirmed that some of the sinkholes occurred in areas where there was no basement sewer back up, but noted that the presence of a significant amount of rainfall and the subsequent ground infiltration of water was enough to precipitate a sinkhole.
“Because of so much rain, it can happen next month, it can happen next year,” Patel said. “Make a decision and let me know what you want me to do.”