Residents tell River Ridge board plugged inlet left Pinehurst ponding and flood risk; engineer to study

Resident Shari Perkins told the River Ridge Community Development District Board on July 23 that, a week after a street inlet was plugged, drainage problems persist "and water has been overflowing in the triangle monument area," and that a retention pond between River 8 and River 9 appears nearly 1 foot above the drain, raising flood concerns.

District Engineer John Baker said the underlying cross‑connection that had been allowing water to flow from one system into another was addressed when the inlet was plugged, but that "there is no place for the water to go" now and the result can be "akin to a very tiny pond in a pipe." He told the board that resolving the remaining ponding will likely require additional study and that staff should collect photographs and video to document observed flooding.

At the meeting, a board member asked whether anyone had video of water bubbling out of the drain; Perkins said she would provide photographs and video to district staff. District Manager Chuck Adams explained the pipes in question run between two houses, across the street and across the golf course into the ditch that flows to the Estero River.

The board directed staff to have the district engineer view the drainage areas firsthand and to follow up after the engineer’s inspection. No formal motion to fund repairs or a timetable for repairs was recorded at the meeting.

Next steps: staff will accept the resident’s photographs and video and the district engineer will perform a site inspection and report back at a future meeting.