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Sunrise Commissioners Weigh Fixing Canal (UPDATED)

I just got off the phone with Sunrise City Manager Bruce Moeller. He is set to ask the Sunrise City Commission tonight to spend $240,000 to stabilize the canal bank behind a row of townhomes at Spring Tree Cove West.

You'll remember that a chunk of the backyards of several homes collapsed into a canal on December 16, 2010, sending frightened homeowners scrambling as they feared their homes would be swallowed up due to the erosion.

Moeller said the 3rd Rock Restoration Company was the low-bid on the project and plans to expedite work on the project, beginning next week and hopefully concluding in about 3 weeks.

The plan is to build the backyards out about 5 feet then slope off towards the canal. Before the collapse, the backyards were about 15-17 feet long before the slope began.

According to the item on the city's agenda, "the canal must be stabilized in order to prevent future failure that could result in the inability for the City to provide stormwater drainage for nearby residents and businesses."

Moeller said this is simply a stabilization project. He said if the homeowners want to rebuild their backyards, they will need to hire companies, apply for permits and have the work done.

Moeller reiterated that the city of Sunrise does not believe they are financially responsible for the land but they are paying for the work because it's the right thing to do.

The city believes the county owns the land and has been trying to get the homeowner's association to fix a problem with the way the canal was built as far back as 1993. The city contends the HOA failed to fix the problem.

Before the residents can move back in, insurers and inspectors will have to certify that the homes are stable.

Residents are concerned that their homes may not be habitable even after the fix. Lester Diaz said he sees cracks in his door frame and windows.

"The land had to have shifted," he told me.

Diaz also questions who actually owns the land. He believes the HOA failed to pay taxes on the land back in 2006, meaning the county or city is responsible for it.

"They're gonna stick us with the bill when it's their property," Diaz said.

For now, Diaz is trying to find a place to rent for his wife and two kids while things get sorted out.

Another resident -- Allen Lueck -- said he believes the issue of responsibility will be decided later. For now, he just wants to go back home.

"I'm excited that the city is going ahead with this," Lueck said. "No one else is taking responsibiltity for this except the city. I want to see the backyards restored so homewoners can start returning to their homes."

(UPDATED) City Manager Moeller emailed me just after 7 this evening to tell me that commissioners unanimously approved the project.

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