LEHIGH ACRES — Fox 4 has now heard from several people living in Lee County who tell us construction is leading to flooding.
That includes one woman in LeHigh Acres who is blaming the new pool of water in her front yard on the house being built next door. Kathleen Rubino said it would now be easier to swim across her front yard on Richland Ave. than to walk through it.
“Nobody has that kind of water in their front yard unless there’s a drainage issue, and yeah there is a drainage issue. A big one," said Rubino.
She believes that drainage issue is caused by her new next door neighbors, Adams Homes, which is building a new house and possibly blocking the water. Rubino said she’s called the company.
“They tell me oh have patience. Well how many patience do I need to have? Six months worth? I’m afraid not," said Rubino.
Meanwhile, Rubino is worried about her shed she built in the backyard.
“That’s going to cost me more money to have to have somebody come and raise the shed up," said Rubino. "I’m going to have to put in some kind of drainage to get the water out of my yard, but that’s more money coming out of my pocket. Being on a fixed income, that ain’t going to happen," said Rubino.
Rubino isn’t the only one worried about flooding due to construction.
On Tuesday, we talked to Chris Doyon in Cape Coral, who believes the development behind him is causing his neighborhood on SE 9th Terr. to flood.
“They are approximately three to five feet higher in elevation, and there’s no footer underneath that wall. So obviously, when they fill up with water, the water’s going to go to the lowest point," said Doyon. "Obviously it was mis-engineered, so how that got approved is beyond me."
Like Doyon, Rubino said, if the flooding isn’t addressed soon, it could become a safety issue because the water actually crosses the road.
“It’s going to become an issue for everybody else around us, not just me," said Rubino.
When we reached out to the County Wednesday, they responded saying they talked with the Department of Transportation and they will be sending out an inspector to look at the area on Thursday.
We’ll continue to follow this story to see if Rubino can get a solution soon.
