When sinkholes opened in the alley behind Tim Tilt's home he thought, no big deal. I'll call the city and they'll fill them Boy, was he in for a surprise. Tilt watched the holes grow from small, six inch circles to a trench more than a foot wide, seven feet long and eighteen inches wide.
One day Tilt was mowing the grass in the alley and noticed the small hole. he stepped near it and the ground tried to swallow him. The hole grew to about a foot across. With the recent rains, Tilt has watched the one hole continue to grow and others begin to form. There are now more than half a dozen in the alley.
Tilt first called AT&T because he could see an AT&T cable in one of the holes. They sent someone out, who called their supervisor only to be told it wasn't the phone company's problem...call the city. Tilt next called the city. He was passed back and forth five times until he got tired of the hand-offs and called Eyewitness Wants To Know.
Surprisingly we learned the problem belongs to Tilt and any other homeowner who is unfortunate enough to live adjacent to an alley and a problem arises in the alley. According to city code, homeowners who's property adjoins an alley or easement are responsible for the maintenance of half of that alley. That means mowing the grass or weeds and if a sinkhole opens...filling it.
Tilt was lucky in this case though. When we called Code Compliance, they called Public Works, who said they had a crew working in the area anyway...so they would go ahead and fill the holes. But keep in mind, the next time you call code compliance with what you see as a problem...it may just create a liability for you.
