Resident reports property damage, lost power during fiber installation; asks city to intervene

A Lansing resident told the City Council Aug. 20 that subcontractors installing fiber-optic cable had worked across his property without adequate notice, damaged electrical equipment and failed to follow up on repair requests.

Chase Spears of 529 Bear Sweet Road told the council his neighborhood had experienced about two weeks of intensive excavation by a company he identified as Tex Excavating Incorporated, a subcontractor the resident said was working for AT&T. He said workers repeatedly entered his yard, left conduit across his lawn and knocked out power for himself and neighbors. "The gentleman on the phone actually initially tried to blame me for my power being out," Spears said. "I did try to reach out to the subcontractor ... He never showed up." Spears asked the council to contact the contractor and to use the city's permitting authority to obtain a response.

City staff members confirmed the contractors were performing fiber work and said staff would reach out to the contractor and the owner of the utility project to follow up. A staff member said the company appeared to be an AT&T subcontractor and that the city had provided permit contact information to the resident.

Outcome: staff agreed to contact the contractor on the resident's behalf and to review permits for the work. Council did not take formal enforcement action at the meeting; the matter was recorded as a resident complaint and staff was asked to follow up.

Why this matters: the complaint highlights friction between private-property rights and permitted public-utility installations and raises questions about contractor communication and restoration responsibilities. The resident said the incident caused personal expense and lost working time and asked the city to use its permitting leverage to secure a response.