Property owners along Post Road have been suffering from far more than just road construction work that has spanned the last 18 months.
Darin Taylor, who lives at 324 Post Road, said he has contacted project contractor Markwell Paving about flooding to his property and surrounding homeowners. When he spoke with company officials in August 2011, he was assured corrective measures would be taken.
Taylor also contacted Midwest City Councilman Jeff Moore, who said he was looking into Taylor’s dilemma. The last contact Taylor had with Moore was more than two months ago.
As of June 2012, nothing had been done and there had been no more contact from Markwell Paving, Taylor said.
“The construction has made a pond of our yard, and when I spoke with (Markwell Paving President) Damon Markwell, he said it was caused by a drainage problem as a result of a design flaw,” said Taylor.
Taylor said the water levels in his yard, as well several adjoining properties, rises with the rain. While his home has been spared for the most part, one of Taylor’s neighbors has had their home completely flooded.
Bad before better
The situation may get worse before it gets better because city and state officials have declared the original road work inadequate. The $5.1 million project will require significant adjustments since the new road is uneven, according to Cole Hackett, a spokesman for the Oklahoma Department of Transportation. The cost of the additional work reportedly will be split between the city, state and Markwell Paving, Hackett said.
City Manager Guy Henson said additional storm drainage will be added on Post Road as part of a change order approved by the city council. The drainage improvements and new median work will be paid for by Midwest City, Henson said.
ODOT has been working with Markwell Paving to find a solution to the Post Road problem since funding for the project was administered by the state. Most of the problem centers on the “ride of the road” or how smooth the road should be, Hackett said. He also attributed part of the dilemma to the original road construction plans.
“We hope to see the medians done by next week, and the road by July some.time,” he said. “The plans weren’t specified correctly, and the utility wires also delayed the project,” Hackett said.
Markwell and Hackett agreed that Midwest City officials erred by not raising the utility wires high enough to allow the paving trains to move steadily.
Legal action?
Taylor also mentioned possible legal action, since neither Markwell Paving nor Moore have done anything about the complaints from property owners.
“I don’t want to do that, because of how long that could take, but it has been brought up,” Taylor said.
Taylor has looked into flood insurance, but was given a quote of $1,600, and has since then done his best to stem the flooding waters.
“We removed the silt sensors, with the help of some people with trucks. If we hadn’t we would have been up to our knees in water,” Taylor said.
Businesses affected
Businesses along Post Road have been affected by the road project, which began in 2010. The sprinkler system along Post Road was ripped up and has yet to be replaced, said Angela Cantrell, of Voss Vision Clinic. When the company attempted to report the damage to the city, they were referred to the contractor to file a damage claim.
Tinker Federal Credit Union’s Nancy Entz said the road project curtailed business growth for that branch.
“We are seeing growth, but not as fast as we were before the construction,” she said.
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