Cape Coral City Council unanimously approved an emergency purchase order of up to $500,000 for the immediate repair of a roadway depression on Northwest 16th Terrace Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Jack Johnson, an affected resident, spoke during public comment.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe street in front of my house is completely under water. My driveway is un-drivable. I can\u2019t even get in,\u201d he said. \u201cI built that big garage in 2021 and never had a problem with the ground \u2013 never had a problem with anything. The day they started digging for that 711 on the corner of Diplomat and Chiquita, my driveway started sinking and the road in front of my house started sinking.\u201d<\/p>\n
Johnson said he is a retired disabled veteran who lives on a fixed income.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy problem here is why has it taken 14 months to fix the road and now 14 months later I have a driveway that is unusable,\u201d he said. \u201cI paid $17,000 to have it repaired once \u2013 came out twice \u2013 the third time they came out, and they won\u2019t do it again until the city fixes the street. I am stuck with another repair and would like to hear what the city will do to help me out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Deputy Public Works Director Bill Corbett said the repair includes injection of a grouted column \u2013 firm and stable surface to repave and rebuild the road. He said by injecting down into the ground, it would not go into a straight column, but will spread, so it may have a positive benefit outside of the linear column providing support on the outskirts of the right-of-way.<\/p>\n
The completed Geotechnical Engineering Report from July 17, 2026 by ECS Florida, LLC, \u201cfound that the roadway continues to subside with no indication that the movement has stopped.\u201d <\/p>\n
The recommendation includes 12 grout-injection locations with an average 40 foot depth.<\/p>\n
Corbett said the report went down 270 feet until they found firm and stable ground.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere has been loose soils and water that is what is contributing to the settlement,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Corbett said the possibility could be caused by the reduced levels in the aquifer \u2013 the water drawing down almost consolidates the layers with it and pulls the soils down.<\/p>\n