![\"Flooding](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/81649EF039190020F35EC6062D0F3AE7.jpg\")
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ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – A neighborhood in St. Pete<\/a> was drying out Monday after this weekend\u2019s storms brought flooding residents say they\u2019ve never experienced.\u00a0<\/p>\n “It looked like a cascade,” Nestor Lopez, who had lived in Disston Heights for nine years, said.<\/p>\n RELATED: St. Pete city council approves church housing project despite concerns from neighbors<\/a><\/p>\n Local perspective:<\/p>\n Lopez and his neighbors said they\u2019ve never seen their streets flood like they did this weekend, even during hurricanes.<\/p>\n “What happened last night, it was hard to believe unless you saw it,” Silvia Paredes, who has lived there for 53 years, said. “That amount of water was going up on the curve into people’s yards and all of that dirt flushing down,” she said.<\/p>\n Neighbors said water reached front doors and garages of several homes, flooding one of the garages. They blame the construction of an affordable housing project at Palm Lake Christian Church that broke ground about a month ago.<\/p>\n READ: St. Pete’s MLK parade keeps city funding despite concerns over Florida DOGE audit<\/a><\/p>\n “The flow of water with the runoff from the dirt and everything else from this lovely project is clogging up the drains down around here, which is exactly what we told the city council back in \u201823 when we had our meeting with them about this project going in our neighborhood,” Randy Bryant, who has lived in the neighborhood for 30 years, said.<\/p>\n “The water is so muddy coming from the project, when it hits the streets, and it goes into the storm drains, there’s no place for that sand to go. It piles up and the next thing you know, your streets are flooded. These people that lived here forever, these afternoon thunderstorms that are just common are now faced with their houses flooding just for a common thunderstorm, which is absolutely wrong,” Bryant said.<\/p>\n Dig deeper:<\/p>\n The city\u2019s public works team visited the site to make sure the developer, Newstar Development, was in compliance. A city spokesperson said developers are required to follow certain guidelines when constructing new properties, including having sediment barriers installed to prevent runoff.<\/p>\n St. Pete\u2019s chief building inspector and deputy building official were also onsite on Monday and will follow up with their findings.\u00a0<\/p>\n MORE: St. Pete City Council to discuss economic impact if Rays leave after 2028 season<\/a><\/p>\n What they’re saying:<\/p>\n Neighbors said if the project can\u2019t be stopped altogether, they want the developer held accountable.<\/p>\n “They certainly have to do something in regards to control the water over there,” Lopez said.\u00a0<\/p>\n The other side:<\/p>\n The church said in a statement, “We have begun our investigation and made some extra mitigation to ensure things move smoother.”<\/p>\n According to Brian Evjen, the president of Newstar Development, LLC, his firm is partnering with Palm Lake Christian Church and the Pinellas County Housing Authority to develop the Palm Lake Urban Sanctuary<\/a> attainable housing community adjacent to the church.<\/p>\n In a statement, Evjen said, “I discussed the drainage concerns with our civil engineer and general contractor, and I also visited our development site today to survey the current drainage systems. We also had City of St Pete inspectors on site today. Per our engineer, the current drainage system is compliant with the SWFWMD and City of St Pete drainage requirements, and we will continue to monitor for compliance and complete the system as designed and approved\/permitted.”<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/flooding-concerns-st-pete.jpg\")
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