MOORESVILLE, N.C. — Mooresville Mayor Chris Carney shared details on how the town plans to fix a massive sinkhole that forced a decades-old business to close in February, years after it formed and became the talk of the town.
Carney said the town plans to buy the property along West Plaza Drive where Tire Masters operated and use grant money to repair a failed storm drain that caused the sinkhole to form. The plans were first discussed during a special meeting Wednesday.
Carney said he's confident the town will get enough money to buy the property and cover the cleanup. Duke Energy accepted responsibility to test and clean up the stream, with work expected to begin next month, according to Carney, who said Duke will test the water where it flows into Lake Norman.
"We're at a place where we can come forward with a plan," Carney said.
The mayor said it was his duty to be "transparent" with the public over how the sinkhole will be fixed and to share everything they've found to this point and going forward. He said the sinkhole will be filled with clean dirt once crews are able to get in and repair a storm drainage pipe that collapsed several years ago.
"A lot of blame has been pointed around," Carney said of the pipe failure. "The installer of the pipe is what failed. It was done improperly, and because of that, its integrity gave out and it's what caused the sinkhole."
Carney said Chris Medford, the owner of the property, was in an unfair position because he didn't have the pipe installed. He said it was done so long ago that town officials couldn't find any record fo who did the work or when.
Additionally, Mooresville leaders hired an independent group to test the stream water in the area. Carney said the town will test storm and groundwater on the property, but they're unsure just how contaminated it will be. The mayor said it's "common sense" to expect some coal ash, which is why the town is moving forward with testing as soon as possible.
"I don't fault anybody who is concerned," Carney said. "When it comes to drinking water, we test that and I can tell you the drinking water hasn't been impacted, which is the first thing every citizen should know."
Carney said there are still many unanswered questions as the town is just getting started on the repairs. It's also still too early to tell what Mooresville will do with the property once the sinkhole is filled.
"We're at the beginning of the alphabet, A, B, C," Carney said. "That's something we'll deal with when we find out exactly what the long-term impact of the property is. We haven't even started to think about what we'll do with it once it's cleaned up."
Medford was there with his wife and attorney, clearly emotional over the entire ordeal.
"Like I've said, [over] 28 years you have met a lot of people and become friends with a lot of people, and that’s hard," Medford said.
“We are so grateful for Mayor Carney, members of the board, and other groups that have worked so diligently with us to not only resolve what could be a safety issue but put them in a position that would allow them to be in a better position and move on with their lives,” Richard Yeoman, Medford's attorney, said.
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