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Resident asks council to revisit code 9-9(h), saying homeowners bear cost for street sewer failures
Summary
A Terre Haute resident urged council to review city code 9-9(h), arguing homeowners are being held responsible for sewer lines they cannot access or maintain and asking the council to consider a change to protect homeowners from unforeseeable street-level failures.
Susan Edmonson addressed the Terre Haute City Council during the public-comment period on Feb. 6 to ask the council to review city code section 9-9(h), which she said currently makes homeowners responsible for sewer lines that run beneath public streets.
“My understanding is this ordinance 9 dash 9 h, And I'm asking you to consider because that affects all of you too because you live in the city,” Edmonson said. She described a neighbor who had an underground sewer failure likely caused by another utility company; because the cause could not be proven, the homeowner had to pay for repairs that displaced funds the owner had been saving for home improvements.
Edmonson said homeowners remain responsible for sewer lines once the line reaches private property but noted that homeowners cannot see or maintain the portion of sewer that runs under the street. She asked the council to “look at that ordinance and consider changing that so that homeowners are not responsible for something we can't do anything about.”
Council President Nation asked for the citation; Edmonson provided “9-9, parenthesis H.” The council did not take action on the request during the meeting; the item was recorded as public comment and may be referred for staff review or a future agenda item.
