Since around 2019, the Sandovals have lived in a home that\u2019s been damaged by flooding at Claribel Road and Roselle Avenue. They live at the crossroads of a massive project that will replace Claribel with an extension of highway 108.<\/p>\n
From the front yard, Melissa Sandoval and her father, Robert Sandoval, can see the crawler cranes towering across the street.\u00a0<\/p>\n
There had been a drainage pipe under the road on the north side of the intersection in front of their home. But contractors blocked up the pipe in error while widening the street as part of the North County Corridor project.<\/p>\n
When heavy rains came, there was nowhere for water to go on the low-lying property. So it pooled in their yard, uprooting trees and causing extensive water damage.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe flooding got so bad to the point we actually had to put a fence up, because rather than helping us, there were people complaining about the way our property looked,\u201d Sandoval said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Multiple agencies, elected officials and contractors have tried but ultimately failed to fully resolve the problem that caused major damage to their home in rural Riverbank.<\/p>\n
The North County Corridor Project plans did not include the drainage pipe.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe project plans did not include this pipe,\u201d reads an email by Stanislaus County Public Works Director David Leamon to county CEO Jody Hayes in February. Leamon added the city and county went back and forth about replacing the pipe for years.<\/p>\n
The Sandovals\u2019 neighbor two doors down, Tammy Smith, also has had flooding after the county widened the road and blocked the drain. \u201cEverything got worse,\u201d Smith said. \u201cWhen it was sort of flooding and coming off the roads, I\u2019d get a pump and pump it out,\u201d Smith said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
To bring attention to the problem, Sandoval got loud. On a wooden fence facing the road, she posted photos of her trudging through the trenches she dug to keep water out. She attached laminated copies of the project plans that showed the drainage pipe was never taken into consideration. She went to city and county meetings to speak during public comment, and she left a cavalcade of comments on social media.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Leamon said in an email that the increased social media attention in fall 2025, pushed the county to enlist a contractor to finally replace the pipe on Dec. 2 \u2014 seven years after the flooding first started.<\/p>\n
Robert Sandoval\u00a0said he has lived in the home his entire life and his family has owned the property for six generations. But the Sandovals don\u2019t hold the deed to the house, and Sandoval said the family members that do aren\u2019t interested in filing a claim about the damage.<\/p>\n
Instead, Melissa Sandoval said, they told her they planned to wait until the property would be sold as part of an eminent\u00a0domain claim related to the corridor project.<\/p>\n
Her family member did not respond to multiple calls from The Bee for comment.\u00a0\u201cThere are no plans to demolish the home as part of the North County Corridor project,\u201d county spokesperson Carissa Lucas said in an email to The Bee.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the\u00a0nearby North County Corridor project continues to cause disruptions for the father and daughter, both of whom have disabilities that keep them from working or leaving the property they say is no longer safe.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have one room, and we have a curtain up, and we\u2019re splitting that room,\u201d Melissa Sandoval said.<\/p>\n
The home no longer has carpet since they ripped it out after extensive water damage.<\/p>\n
Two days before Christmas, after the new storm drain was put in, the water from their well stopped flowing. Since then, the Sandovals have not had running water. They use a portable outdoor shower to keep clean.<\/p>\n
Sandoval tried to get a contractor to repair her well but was told that the low overhead cables feeding power to the corridor project prevented them from safely doing the work.<\/p>\n
In January, her power was shut off for 24 hours because of work related to the project.<\/p>\n
In early June her father was informed PG&E would be doing \u201cgas safety work\u201d from June 8 to 10.\u00a0They were also informed that their gas will eventually be shut off entirely.<\/p>\n
\u201cI work so hard just to not think about everything here,\u201d Sandoval said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Part of what led to the delay in addressing the Sandovals\u2019 concerns was a misunderstanding of who was responsible for stepping in.<\/p>\n
Since 1997, the Sandoval\u00a0property has been within the boundaries of Riverbank but father and daughter were completely unaware.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Apparently, so was the county, which\u00a0responded to multiple calls to vacuum\u00a0water at the property with the understanding the home was in unincorporated Stanislaus County.<\/p>\n
\u201cCounty Public Works has previously provided services there, in the last 7 years or so \u2014 such as cleaning swales and sending the Vactor truck \u2014 but that should no longer continue,\u201d reads an email by Leamon. \u201cThe Sandovals need to work directly with the City of Riverbank.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 2024, Riverbank placed a large sign that reads \u201cWelcome to Riverbank\u201d on the corner of the property. Her address was quickly changed, which caused a delay in\u00a0mail delivery.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThey sent us like a little letter, it was a printed letter, and all it said was, \u2018Congratulations, you\u2019re in Riverbank, we are your new post office.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Riverbank Councilmember Stacy Call said she reached out to the Sandovals to let them know she was their city representative.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In June, Call asked a city engineer to determine Riverbank\u2019s responsibility for the property, vs. the owner\u2019s responsibility. But, to move forward, Call said she needs a total of three members of the City Council on board.<\/p>\n
\u201cI haven\u2019t had any follow up,\u201d Call said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She requested communication between the city and the Sandovals but said it\u2019s mainly been a few communications with public works.<\/p>\n
We have three different jurisdictions communicating about it,\u201d Call said. \u201cWe\u2019re just trying to play catch-up at this point to figure out what\u2019s been done, what\u2019s been said.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Robert Sandoval, left, and his daughter Melissa have been fighting county and city officials over flooding caused by construction errors in area of Roselle Ave and Claribel Road in Riverbank. Andy Alfaro aalfaro@modbee.com <\/p>\n
The Sandovals want to put a trailer in the backyard and live in it, but a neighbor who had tried a similar setup was evicted.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe suffer so much,\u201d Sandoval said. \u201cWe deserve answers, just like everybody else. I just don\u2019t think it\u2019s right.\u201d<\/p>\n
She\u2019s called every representative in charge of her area, from local to President Trump. The ones who respond, eventually drop off communication.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThey say, \u201cOh, we\u2019re going to help you, we\u2019re going to help you, and the next thing you know, \u201cOh, we can\u2019t help you, then we don\u2019t hear from them,\u2019\u201d Sandoval said. \u201cWe just kind of feel forgotten.\u201d<\/p>\n
The county said its remaining work in the region will include sidewalk improvements from the southwest corner of Roselle and Claribel to beyond the eastbound ramps of the new interchange. \u201cWe understand how difficult and disruptive drainage and water service concerns can be for any family, and we recognize the frustration this situation has caused the Sandoval family,\u201d Lucas said in her email. \u201cThe County remains committed to working cooperatively with our local agency partners to help ensure residents are connected with the appropriate jurisdiction and resources.\u201d<\/p>\n
This story was originally published July 14, 2026 at 12:11 PM.<\/p>\n
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