 "Photo: Jon Huang")
For more than a year, passers-by have tiptoed around or jumped over muddy waters engulfing the streets, sidewalks and grass at the intersection of Pearl and 22nd streets.
Old sandbags line the curbs to re-route water flowing down Pearl Street, but they have not helped.
Government senior Caroline Cummins, who walks by The Block on Pearl Street apartment complex every day, said she noticed the water on the streets about three months ago and has heard people complaining to nearby construction workers about the problem.
"Everything gets dirty," she said. "My jeans get dirty and cars splash around. Even driving can be annoying."
Since The Block on Pearl complex was constructed, water intended to remain underground has found its way onto the street.
Most of the new apartment complexes built in the West Campus area have underground parking garages that interrupt the flow of groundwater. Builders must use a French drain technique to pump the groundwater onto the street to prevent water from leaking into the building. The groundwater should drain into nearby storm sewers located on most streets throughout West Campus.
But no storm drains were built on Pearl Street. Mike McHone, spokesman for West Campus neighborhood association University Area Partners, said the intersection has collected
rainwater for almost 100 years, but city officials have yet to install a storm sewer.
"[The intersection] is on top of a hill, so you wouldn't expect this," McHone said.
The water at the intersection has caused severe road erosion and pedestrian inconvenience and has created standing water that can attract mosquitoes, said Chuck Lesniak, spokesman for Austin Watershed Protection.
"The streets are in bad shape and are causing all kinds of headaches," he said.
The city of Austin street codes require storm-sewer installation in locations where groundwater is present on streets, and, Lesniak said, the developers of the property are held responsible for providing proper infrastructure that is necessary for development.
"On The Block, they didn't know they were going to encounter groundwater, or at least to this kind of volume," Lesniak said.
After daily complaints from local residents and neighborhood associations about the water, Austin Watershed Protection is working with CWS Apartments, who owns all Block properties, to build a storm sewer on Pearl Street. The spokesman for CWS Apartments did not return phone calls from The Daily Texan.
McHone said he is hoping the city can develop a piping-system plan in the next six weeks that will connect to the storm sewer on Rio Grande Street, eventually draining into Shoal Creek.
"The Block property owners are responsible, but because no one knew this would be a problem, we want to work with the developers to install [a storm sewer] at least cost," Lesniak said.
Though it may take more than a year to complete the pipe installation on Pearl Street, McHone said the method the city chooses will help if similar situations occur in the future.
Lesniak said it could cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to build a storm sewer on Pearl Street and that even after it is in place, the city will have to repave the streets affected by the water.
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