Claimant says: "On July 28, 2011 we had a flood / backed up sewers in our neighborhood and there were 6 of 7 homes red tagged and 3 out of 4, including ours, that had basements, had basement walls collapse. We had to take out a loan for $34,000 to just fix our basement. We are still trying to get our home in livable condition but on March 22, 2012 with only, per internet reportings, .04 inches of rain it started flooding again. Since it was a short rain the homes were not hurt but the manhole covers popped off then the road severely”
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Claimant says: "On July 28, 2011 we had a flood / backed up sewers in our neighborhood and there were 6 of 7 homes red tagged and 3 out of 4, including ours, that had basements, had basement walls collapse. We had to take out a loan for $34,000 to just fix our basement. We are still trying to get our home in livable condition but on March 22, 2012 with only, per internet reportings, .04 inches of rain it started flooding again. Since it was a short rain the homes were not hurt but the manhole covers popped off then the road severely flooded. This has been happening since I moved there 23 years but has gotten A LOT worse since the 7/28/11 flood. It used to take A LOT MORE to flood the road. The City of Lansing admits the drains/sewers cannot handle the rain but it would cost too much to fix the issue and though they admit it would be cheaper to buy us affected home owners out, they have no money for that either. Though it did not matter that we did not have the $34,000 to fix our home. After being ignored and ignored by the City of Lansing after finding they had been meeting on the issue unbeknownst to us, I then INSISTED we be included in the meetings. As of 3/7 they were saying they were applying for a grant to hopefully buy us out though it would be not until 2014 before we would see the money. Then on 3/21 they said in a meeting the next step to applying for the grant was to do elevation studies of the homes and send us damage surveys which they would send the following week. After not getting it I spent a week trying to get an answer to an email about the surveys and after contacting someone I found they were no longer doing elevation studies or surveys and were going in another direction though he did not know what that was. I asked who did and he did not know. After day before the next scheduled meeting of 4/18 I got in contact with the Public Services Chair SHE did not even know why it was not being done. As of our 4/18 meeting the director of Public Services decided he does NOT want to even file for the grant, they have no money and it is OUR responsibility. What are we to do? Dig up the road and put in new sewers and drains ourselves? SOMETHING is causing this severe flooding and loss of homes. After all the tragedy we have to go thru we should not have to keep chasing the City down and try to get answers. The City has to take responsibility for their drains/sewers that are destroying our neighborhood. They did some work on a sink hole that appeared right after the 7/28/11 flood and after trying to get info on what was done via Freedom of Information Act I was sent for a work order a copy of someone's March 9 desk calendar with handwritten notes on what was supposedly done. Really? the City of Lansing that has a job that takes 4 workers 8 hrs and 1 worker 4 hrs to do the ONLY thing they have to show for it is a hand scribbled calendar? And they are paying workers with taxpayer dollars off this hand scribbled calendar? The orig patch job on 7/29/11 that took 1 person less than hr was on OFFICIAL work order that said Lansing Public Services...but yet a lot more major job was on someone's calendar that did not say who wrote it or that it was even the City of Lansing? Or was that NOT the true work order? We have A LOT of questions and are DESPERATE for a safe place to live and the City of Lansing just thinks because they have no money that it is ok to let their citizens/taxpayers live in unsafe homes. Please we need any help with this issue we can get.*” ...Show less »