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Neighbors press county over drainage as Waterly Ridge preliminary plat wins approval
Summary
The county approved the Waterly Ridge preliminary plat (PP2026-03) despite objections from adjacent residents who said a poorly built detention feature has long sent sediment onto their properties; staff and developers said the ponds and roads will be rebuilt to county standards.
The Oklahoma County planning board on June 18 approved the Waterly Ridge preliminary plat (PP2026-03) after residents raised sustained concerns about drainage, sediment and a detention area they say was built improperly during earlier construction.
Eric (county planning staff) told the board that the project originated as a mobile home park special use permit that was later vacated in court and that the property had since been rezoned and replatted. He said the central technical issue has been the existing roads and drainage: "the roads that are out there don't meet the county standards," and the developer plans to remove the existing asphalt and reconstruct subgrade and pavement to county specifications.
The developer team — represented by Tim Johnson of Johnson Associates and Harrison Turner, who said he was hired by Mr. Shaw — described planned repairs and upgrades. Turner said the developer is under contract with a paving contractor and addressed stormwater by adding a new detention basin: "We are also going to be adding a new detention pond and common area seen... the new detention pond that is going in this front corner is going to be about I want to say 0.75 of an acre," he said.
Nearby property owners said past construction left lasting problems. Greg Ripple, who lives adjacent to the southeast detention area and serves on the Edinburgh Point HOA board, said the original feature functioned as a flow-through that routed sediment toward his yard and that he has spent considerable money to mitigate damage: "I've spent thousands and thousands of dollars building structures on my property to divert the water," Ripple said. He asked whether the repaired feature would be deep enough to hold water and capture sediment.
Eric responded that county inspections and state involvement (DEQ) followed earlier violations and that the repaired pond will be restored to county plan specifications and operate as a dry retention basin that temporarily holds runoff and releases at historic rates: "When they go back in there to repair the pond itself... they're going to have to dig it back to its proper depth... it's going to be a dry pond... and then, as it rains... it's going to release water at the historic rate."
Other neighbors raised traffic and sight-distance concerns for the Waterloo Road entrances; staff said sight-distance analyses fall to the county engineer and that planned right-of-way work and turn lanes will be built to meet engineering standards. The board also confirmed that lots are sized for private wells and aerobic septic systems, and that streets will be private but constructed to county standards so residents have a consistent baseline for maintenance.
Despite the objections, the board moved and seconded approval and recorded affirmative roll-call votes from Mr. Rob Murray, Mr. Jeffrey Farmer, Ms. Patterson, Mr. Greg Davidson and Mr. Foster.
The approval includes conditions and standard permitting oversight: staff said inspections required under rules adopted in 2021 will be enforced as construction proceeds. Residents and developers said they will continue discussions post-meeting about pond depth and sediment-control measures.
The next practical milestone is the developer's construction and permitting phase; the developer indicated an aim to begin lot sales in early 2027 if preparations proceed on schedule.
