JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – People who live near the site of a downtown road collapse are concerned their property values will plummet. And some City Council members said the collapse could have been prevented if the road had been fixed properly years ago.
In 2012, a crane weighing thousands of pounds caused a section of Liberty Street to sink in. A few hundred feet away another section collapsed with nothing on top this week. That leaves many wondering how extensive the damage is to Liberty Street and why it wasn't fixed sooner.
"We need the city involved, assurance from the city that they're going to do something and the DOT to assure us that our townhomes are safe. And they need to assure the community that our homes are safe," said Viki Burnett, who lives near the collapse.
City Councilman Don Redman, whose council district's border is Liberty Street, said the city was warned there could be a problem.
"I talked to a man that worked on inspecting underneath the bridge and he told me several years ago when they did the inspection that they warned the city, 'You've got a problem. It could be dangerous,' and they did nothing with it," Redman said.
Redman said he's been fighting to fix Liberty Street for years and only got the funding passed by City Council a few weeks ago to fix the original hole made by the crane.
"It goes back to the Mayor's Office," Redman said. "He's in charge, but you know, public works was responsible for making sure our roadways are in proper repair."
The Mayor's Office said it has been in litigation with the company who owned the crane and issued this statement: "After those private parties failed to complete repair, the city has initiated legal action to protect taxpayers. In 2014, we asked Council to appropriate money for that incident. "
"The city let it sit, waiting for them to pay for it, which wasn't happening and from what I could see it wasn't going to happen," Redman said.
Redman said it's quite possible this week's collapse could impact the city's lawsuit against the crane owner, if the owner can call into question whether the supports were bad to begin with.
The people living at the townhomes nearby said their homes are secure and separate from Liberty Street's problems. But local Realtor David Elian said even the appearance that the supports could be bad can kill property values.
"It's going to affect their perception, even if it's not a true danger or true issue," Elian said. "The perception can produce a lesser desire for people to move there."