Homeowner wants Cape city's help with flooding problem; city says it is developer's responsibility

Heavy rains flooded Mike Jones� basement and dumped a thick layer of mud on his street and sidewalk.

Jones said Monday the recent storm dumped 4 feet of water on his street.

Jones said his house and others on Copperfield Court have dealt with repeated flooding ever since a contractor installed a drainage pipe and filled in a ditch in a low-lying area in the subdivision. The ditch drains into a nearby lake, he said.

The subdivision is in the City of Cape Girardeau west of Interstate 55 and north of Bloomfield Road.

A drainage pipe is seen Monday in a backyard off of Copperfield Court in Cape Girardeau.KASSI JACKSON

Standing outside his basement door Monday, a frustrated Jones said he has repeatedly tried to get city officials to send a letter to contractor Rick Sample demanding he take out the drainage pipe and open up the ditch.

City manager Scott Meyer said the city government does not regulate storm drainage on individual lots. He said the issue on Copperfield Court is a matter for civil litigation by property owners.

Meyer said it is up to the contractor to clean up the mud on the city street.

Some cities regulate development of �every single lot,� but Cape Girardeau has no such regulations, Meyer said. The city council has chosen �not to have that added regulation,� he said.

Water drips off of carpet pulled from a trailer in homeowner Mike Jones' driveway Monday in Cape Girardeau.KASSI JACKSON

Jones, who is a builder and contractor, said he knows about storm drainage.

In the backyard of the house across the street, a concrete drainage pipe maintained by the city empties into a section of open ditch bordering the opening of a pipe put in by the contractor.

Jones claimed the pipe put in by the contractor has become a bottleneck that doesn�t allow the stormwater to drain away from the houses fast enough.

�It created a dam that gives 4 feet of water in our street,� he said.

Mud covers part of Copperfield Court on Monday in Cape Girardeau.KASSI JACKSON

�We didn�t have problems before,� said Jones, estimating the stormwater drainage problem first surfaced about four years ago. While recent flooding was severe, Jones said �we�ve lost count how many times we have had 2 feet of water over our street.�

Jones said, �If you alter the city�s drainage system, you should have to get approval.�

Sample said he is not to blame for the drainage problem, but declined to discuss the situation in detail because of ongoing litigation.

Homeowners Lenny and Mary Martin, whose house is across the street from Jones� home, filed a civil lawsuit in 2016 against Sample�s Distinctive Home Solutions (DHS) company, TNT Real Estate Development and RPM Enterprises, which handles drainage pipe work.

A drainage pipe is seen Monday in a backyard off of Copperfield Court in Cape Girardeau.KASSI JACKSON

The plaintiffs� attorney recently filed a notice to dismiss RPM Enterprises from the suit.

The suit claims Sample, the contractor, decided to install a sewer pipe in the rear yard of the Martin home, �which involved altering, rerouting, deepening, widening, obstructing and/or changing existing drainage facilities.�

Defendants failed to apply to the city manager of Cape Girardeau for approval of a stormwater management plan and failed to obtain a city permit for the work, the suit claimed.

The pipe was improperly designed, sized and/or installed, causing stormwater to back up in the yard and into the basement of the home, the lawsuit states.

Water drips off of carpet pulled from a trailer in homeowner Mike Jones' driveway Monday in Cape Girardeau.KASSI JACKSON

Defendant TNT Real Estate argues in a court filing the drainage problem rests with earth work done by a neighbor.

The suit, which is pending in Cape Girardeau County Circuit Court, seeks damages for the cost of repairs or the loss in market value of the home as well as punitive damages.

Meanwhile, the neighborhood continues to cope with repeated, flash flooding.

�It is a mess,� Jones said.

mbliss@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3641