“If something’s not done (soon), we’re eventually going to have units washing down the hill,”

Appalachian Villas POA President Kevin Brooks and Joan Britton are holding the City of Jasper responsible for property problems. During Monday’s city council meeting, speaking on behalf of the Appalachian Villas Community Joan Britton and Kevin Brooks presented their case to council.

“Since the units have been built there, we’ve had issues with the western side (of the property),”

Brooks said. He went on to explain the back of the property has experienced severe erosion.

“If something’s not done (soon), we’re eventually going to have units washing down the hill,”

Brooks said. Further, Britton explained the original plans for the homes (built ca 2005) included a retaining pond and a water retention wall, neither of which were installed at the completion of construction. As such, standing water and improper drainage has caused erosion. Despite the negligence of the builder, Ken Padget of Pickens West Inc., the homeowners received certificates of occupancy. The certificates certify the builder has completed all aspects of construction. Since the pond and wall were not installed, certificates should not have been issued. Regardless, the city signed off on completion of the job.

“If the developer would’ve done what he was supposed to have done and if the city would’ve overseen the work that was being done, us(sic) as the property owners wouldn’t be footing the bill for something that should’ve been done up front,”

Brooks said. For her part, Britton says she can’t get the proper insurance because of the erosion problem. She said the POA doesn’t have enough money to make the corrections, saying residents include retired occupants on a fixed-income. She also emphasized the danger of the erosion.

“We have a blind person—legally blind—who walks that property,”

she said during the meeting.

Additionally, the drainage problems have affected Mr. Randy Eaton’s property, located beside Appalachian Villas.

In short, Brooks and Britton said they want the city to correct the problem. Speaking for the city, Mayor John Weaver said, though, the city cannot correct the problem due to a lawsuit brought against the city by Randy Eaton. Mr. Pickett, an attorney who works with the city, said since the city is in litigation with Eaton it is not allowed to go on Eaton’s property, which Weaver maintained is the only way to correct the problem. However, in a conversation with FYN today, Eaton stated he has in fact allowed the city to use his property, provided the city corrects the issues with Appalachian Villas’ property and returns his property to its original condition when the work is complete. Also, Britton refuted Weaver’s claim that the work can only be done by utilizing Eaton’s property. This week she told FYN Global Builders and Restoration gave her an estimate on the cost of the work of installing a retention pool and water retaining wall. Global’s estimate was $123,000. Global also stated it would not be necessary to utilize Eaton’s lawn to complete the work.

During the meeting, Weaver said the city has tried to correct the problem.

“Four or five years ago,”

he said,

“the city went down and corrected what we thought were draining issues that were poorly built by the developer,”

which according to other testimonies were the responsibility of the city to oversee prior to the issuance of certificates of occupancy. Eaton confirms the city performed some work on the property, but deemed it dismal. The work, he said, included scattered pine straw and laying an inept 6 X6 wooden post, which he said was supposed to give stability to the malleable land, but proved ineffective. He also noted the city installed a drainage pipe that only made things worse, making his property look like a dam of water. Eaton explained he had a hydrology study done and then hired a civil engineer to draw up plans to correct the situation. He then wanted Mayor Weaver to sign off on the plans, but said Weaver wouldn’t return his messages to finalize the deal, never signing the contract. Around this time, Eaton said he received a letter from Jasper threatening a lawsuit for his inability to control water flow on his property, a result of the pipe the city had installed. At this point, Eaton filed his lawsuit. He also said that following the deposition Judge Brenda Weaver pushed back the case, along with others, to September.

Eaton estimates the lawsuit has persisted for almost two years now and cost him close to $200,000. He’s looking for several outcomes to the situation. 1) The city to fix the erosion problem with the Appalachian Villas property 2) The city to drop the lawsuit 3) The city to correct the drainage problem on his property 4) The city to pay for the damage done to his property based on property value 5) The city to pay his attorney’s fees.

The city, though, offered no solace Monday night to Brooks and Britton, and indirectly Eaton.

“I can’t take any other ownership of your homes or property or the land until this lawsuit is settled,”

Weaver said.

“And once we get on a working relationship with the joining owner (Eaton) this can be resolved from the bottom up.”

Brooks asked Pickett for suggestions to remedy the problem in the interim.

“If the owners would do some of their own maintenance, it wouldn’t be such a bad problem,”

he said, adding,

“You can get out there with a shovel and rake and move the water instead of letting it just sit there.”

Mayor Weaver had similar advice. “It’s going to have to be maintained with shovels and picks at this time,” The mayor said. Following the meeting, Brooks and Britton said they were not satisfied with the outcome.