City may seek legal action to fix Grande View roads

Published 4:32 pm Thursday, May 28, 2009

If you’ve driven through parts of South Grande View Estates, you’ve probably noticed it is no smooth ride.

Cracks, potholes, raised manholes and uneven surfaces are rampant on several roads in the development.

The issue has reached a boiling point with the city, and it came to a head during the May 21 City Council meeting.

During the meeting, a hearing continued from April 2 seeking a resolution to the matter.

The city contends the bases of several streets were not built to city specifications, which must be done before the final seal coat is applied.

The city cannot take over any road until the seal coat is applied.

The city charged developer Charles Givianpour with fixing the road before the May 21 continuation, but that did not happen.

Instead, the development had a contractor patch several places before the hearing continuation.

Councilman Tommy Ryals said the patchwork was placed on areas that have still not been inspected, which means it will have to come off before the seal coat is applied.

“I don’t know what the developer and contractor were thinking,” Ryals said.

Ryals said it’s the city’s responsibility to coerce the developer to fix the areas before the city can take it over.

Loretta Barber has lived on the corner of Grande View Ridge and Grande View Pass for nearly two years and she said it’s past time for the road to be fixed.

“It’s very, very frustrating,” Barber said. “You think you’re moving into a nice neighborhood and then you have this roller coaster street in front of you.”

Barber said at least one of her neighbors has damaged to their car due to the road, and she hopes the developer will fix the entire road instead of covering up trouble spots.

“I just feel like something needs to be done now, not five years down the road,” Barber said. “Patching is not the answer.”

Other developments, such as Lacey’s Grove, have had similar problems, but Ryals said they have taken initiative to fix the problem. In the case of Lacey’s Grove, Ryals said the developer even added a second entrance.

Repeated attempts to contact Givianpour were unsuccessful.

Givianpour was also noticeably absent from the May 21 continuation.

“It’s very frustrating because it forces you to take the next step in legal action,” Ryals said. “When you continually push and push and push and the responsible party doesn’t show, it forces you to take the next step to get these people a good street to drive on.”

Givianpour’s wife, who is also the development vice president, did attend the meeting, but she said she had limited knowledge of what her husband had planned to fix the problem.

Following the May 21 hearing, the council authorized the mayor to take any and all legal action necessary to correct the problem. Ryals said that action could include cashing in the bond for the seal coat put up by Givianpour, placing a moratorium on the developer building anything else or placing liens on other property he owns.

The city could also declare the street a nuisance.

“He should be responsible to finish what he started,” Ryals said. “It’s only fair.”