Residents press Austin City Council over repeated basement flooding; city outlines multi‑year fixes and interim homeowner options

Multiple Austin homeowners told the city council on July 20 that recent storms caused hazardous sewer backups and even basement wall collapse in northeast neighborhoods, pressing elected officials for faster fixes and help with repair costs.

"My neighbor's basement caved in," said Vicky Rector, who gave her address as 1707 3rd Avenue Northeast, describing sewage and stormwater entering homes after the July rainfall events. Other residents said they had never seen water in basements until street projects were completed in recent years.

City Engineer Steven Lang responded that the city does not shut off pumps and that the volume and intensity of recent rainfall exceeded design standards. He told the council the treatment plant saw flows near 27,000,000 gallons per day during the peak event, compared with roughly 4,000,000 gallons per day in normal dry weather. "We're getting 4 or 5, 6 times our normal peak," Lang said, and staff are continuing system studies to identify sources of excess clear-water inflow.

Lang also outlined planned work in upcoming capital improvement program (CIP) years: about $3,500,000 in projects on 6th Avenue Southeast and the Ellis Ditch target areas with frequent backups, plus televising and pump-station inspections already underway. He said the point‑of‑sale inspection program has been a tool to find footing‑drain connections but a broader city‑wide inspection would be more intrusive and raises liability and funding questions.

Several homeowners described repair estimates they said were unaffordable. "I had five feet of sewer water in my basement. My basement's demolished," said Scott Novitsky, who said he received a contractor's estimate of $3,600 for a check‑valve installation. Others worried that installing backflow preventers could raise pressure elsewhere in the system and displace problems to neighbors.

Lang acknowledged tradeoffs: installing check valves at homes can reduce backflow into a basement but can increase pressure in the sewer main, and a comprehensive sewer‑service inspection program would likely require funding and homeowner participation. He said the city's timeline for a more aggressive service‑scoping program has slipped and that staff currently estimate the larger inspection work will land in the 2028–2030 window unless the council reprioritizes CIP funding.

Council members and the mayor acknowledged the distress of impacted residents and asked staff to revisit CIP prioritization. "I think we can look at how to potentially move some of that stuff up," the mayor said, urging staff to explore short‑term relief alongside long‑term upgrades.

Residents asked whether recent street reconstruction had changed inlets or pipe sizes; Lang said the city televises sanitary sewers and WHKS (an engineering consultant) has not found evidence that sewer reconstruction was the cause. He said the storm sewers in some neighborhoods were designed for roughly 15–20‑year events and were overwhelmed by what he characterized as a 100‑year intensity event in early July.

Several speakers asked whether state or federal grant dollars could help homeowners pay for required repairs. Council members suggested the Austin HRA's CHIP programs (low‑interest loans for home improvements) as one option and asked staff to research additional outside funding sources.

The council did not take formal action during public comment; staff said they will reexamine CIP timing and continue studies and televising to identify problem sources. The city also said it will continue outreach about homeowner options such as check valves and coordinate with residents on immediate concerns.