Hilliard resident says private stormwater basin flooding basements; council staff weigh legal limits as city funds basin rehab

Dominic DeSabato, a Hilliard resident, told the City Council on May 12 that a privately owned stormwater basin behind his home has flooded his basement three times since 2012 and currently leaves about 8 inches of water trapped in a pipe below his house.

DeSabato said city crews had “poked a hole” to relieve local street flooding after the most recent event but told him the basin is private so “there was no more nothing else they could do.” He asked the city to “bring a backhoe or mini excavator to have it cleaned up.”

Council members and staff described two limits on immediate action: unclear private ownership and the city’s lack of a legal easement to enter and perform maintenance on private property. Dan (staff) said property records show the legal owner may be an inactive incorporated trust with the sole member deceased, and that title and tax issues make the chain of ownership “complicated.” Kelly (staff) said the city has in the past cut grass at the location but that mowing alone does not establish authority for other maintenance.

City staff said they have been researching options, including coordination with Franklin County on tax foreclosure processes and potential nuisance enforcement, but stressed the city needs an identifiable owner or legal authority before performing more extensive work. “Without ownership or without an easement for a property like this, we really should not be doing work to maintain a private basin,” staff said. Staff also agreed to provide a formal analysis of legal risk if the city were to enter private property and perform the requested cleanup.

Council members pressed staff on whether the city is already incurring risk by mowing the parcel and whether the city could simply clean the basin to restore its original function. DeSabato said he had hired or rented equipment himself at times and that the sump pump in his basement continued to run for days after rain because the exit was clogged with sediment, roots and yard debris. He said, “we got my whole family… I pumped water out of my basement from the sump pump into the court,” and called the situation “not acceptable.”

Separately at the same meeting the council approved Resolution 25‑R‑37 to award contracts for the 2025 detention and retention basin rehabilitation program, a city-funded effort to repair and maintain basins that the city owns. The contract awarded the base bid for three city-owned basins to V3 Construction Group (with Prime AE Group providing contract administration), and the resolution passed by roll call vote, 7‑0. Staff said the program will fund sediment removal, outlet repair, bank stabilization and vegetation work on three prioritized city-owned basins and that the total financial impact for the project is $645,556.65, funded in the capital improvement budget.

City staff told council the work to the city-owned basins is separate from the private-basin problem raised by DeSabato and that the rehabilitation program follows a 2023 city study of publicly owned basins. Staff also said the contractor process and charter requirements limit adding private-property work to an existing city contract unless costs and procurement thresholds are met.

For now, staff committed to continuing title searches and legal review and to report back with a formal risk assessment and timeline for next steps. DeSabato said he had emailed council and offered to supply photographs.

The council did not take immediate legislative action specific to DeSabato’s parcel during the meeting; staff said they would provide follow-up and an assessment of legal options and potential costs.

Ending

Council members said they understood DeSabato’s frustration and asked staff to accelerate research on ownership and legal risk; staff requested additional time to develop a formal recommendation.