Hi Pam, this is Thomas. The City of Huntsville has an open work order for your request. We will get this issue taken care of as soon as possible. We have multiple ditches on the list to be dredged, with Haddonstone being one of them. We don't have a timeframe for you yet, as it is often times difficult to pin one down for maintenance jobs. Thank you for continuing to bear with us on this. If you have any other questions or concerns, feel free to post them here. I will try to keep you informed as updates are given to me. Thank you Pam!

Thomas,
Thank you for responding to my post. I will await hearing when we do move onto the list for the drainage ditch to be cleared.
Thank you,

Morning Pam, hope you had a great Thanksgiving! I was informed that your Area Supervisor has spoken with you or your husband this morning and that work will begin on the ditch sometime within the next couple of weeks. Thank you!

Wanted to inquire about the beginning of the work on the ditch. You stated on November 29, 2016, that work was to begin within a couple of weeks. No work has been done as of this date. Why not?

Good afternoon Pam and Sim, we apologize for the delay on getting this started. I was just informed that work will begin as soon as the weather and the ditch are both dry. Thank you so much for your patience!

Thank you for your prompt response. Does this mean the work is never going to be done then? Because the problem with the ditch is it never dries out because it can't drain. Any rain or sprinklers leaves standing water for days.

Afternoon Pam and Sim. If you wouldn't mind, please give us a call at (256) 883-3944. What I will do is transfer you directly to the supervisor over your area that is handling this job and he will be able to give you better assistance with this discussion. Unfortunately, Huntsville Connect is not the best place to have conversations which is what we need right now to assist you with this issue. Thank you Pam and Sim, talk to you soon!

Let me explain our apprehension in calling. My husband made the first call to Huntsville Public City Works in July of 2016, he was told a work order was generated. He met with someone who came out. My husband didn’t get his name, but was told they would get to the matter shortly.

My husband called again in August, was told the same thing.

Come September 13th, I told my husband I would call so that we would have a record of the calls, since his phone is a work phone and we do not get the phone records. As I stated in my first posting here, we did not hear anything and don’t know if someone came out from the September 13th call.

Then I called again on November 1, 2016. I was then told there was no record of us calling, anyone coming out, or any work order created since 2008. The next morning two gentlemen came out from Public Works, looked at the situation, said it needed to be taken care of but could not give me a time frame as to when anything will be done, nor would they be getting back with me. That was the day we posted on Huntsville Connection.

We have had three more visits since then, that we know of. You can read, in the post, the progress that has not been made. If we call, then there is no record of whatever we are going to be told. Our understanding is Huntsville Connect is the best place to have these conversations and that was why it was created, for transparency. We would like to have it explained to us so we understand why our calling now “is what we need to assist you in this issue”, when we have already made numerous calls and have had four visits by Huntsville Public Works? As we stated before, the ditch can not dry out, because it can't drain.

Good afternoon Pam, I apologize and we understand your apprehension and appreciate the comment. I have been informed that the Public Works Supervisor over your area has spoken with your husband today.

Due to privacy fences, one of your neighbors has been kind enough to agree to let us use his property to access the drainage easement. In order to dredge the ditch, we have to use heavy equipment such as dump trucks, etc. We are waiting for the weather to warm up and dry the ground due to the fact that our equipment will damage his yard.

The ditch is still flowing even though there is standing water in places. As long as the water flow is moving and draining this is not an issue that would force us to immediately dredge the ditch when property damage is a concern. Now, if the ditch was not draining and you were under threat of flooding, then yes, we would sweep in and get the job done without hesitation. We are currently working on other easement issues where flooding homes is an immediate danger and those take priority.

This job will be performed at the end of the winter season and during the beginning of the warm season to prevent property damage by allowing the ground to dry for our heavy equipment. Again, I apologize for the run around. You are correct about the need for transparency in Huntsville Connect. Thank you for your time and please continue to keep in touch concerning your drainage easement or any other issue you need help with. Have a wonderful weekend Pam!

Thank you for the explanation! Very appreciated!!

Thank you, that is better then constantly being told a couple of weeks and nothing happening. I will await the end of the winter season.

Ok. Warm weather is upon us once again and the debris continues to amass in the subject drainage ditch along with the mosquitos and yard refuse. Not understanding the rationale for the City not cleaning the drainage eaement, i've been in contact with the city attorney in pursuit of completion and closure; and health issues due to mosquito breeding..

Soon we will be acknowledging the second birthday of the condition being brought to the cities attention. The first work order was closed without action.

HELP......

Hi, Thank you for your patience in this matter. We are aware of this issue, and we are working on trying to fix this. You will be contacted by the Supervisor over your area. This way you and him can work out the details on a time frame. We greatly appreciate your understanding, and thank you for using Huntsville Connect.

Thank you for reporting your service request to the City of Huntsville. Your issue has been handled and we are closing your request. If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Thanks for checking in with Huntsville Connect!

Your Customer Service Team