Carrollton Erosion Suit Going to Federal Court

Homeowners say city neglience caused major erosion in their backyards

A lawsuit filed against Carrollton by a group of homeowners over erosion in their backyards is heading to federal court.

Homeowners on Barclay Drive say they have been fighting erosion for years because the city was negligent in maintaining the drainage of Dudley Branch Creek, which borders their property.

The lawsuit says the city's actions caused undue stress to the homes' walls, causing them to crumble and fail.

The suit names slope failure as the cause of the severe erosion.

The homeowners say they have seen their backyards disappear and drop off into the creek bed and are having issues with sloping floors and cracked tiles as the homes settle.

"We don't know what would happen if our house moved so much that it got separated from the gas lines," Laura Brewer said. "It's a terrifying situation."

The city of Carrollton has maintained that the issue sits on private property, thus making it illegal by Texas law to spend municipal dollars on privately owned land.

The homeowners say they have already seen two major washouts following big rainstorms and are fear of losing their homes completely during the spring rainy season.

"Nobody likes when it rains, nobody likes to drive in the rain," Brewer said. "I mean, we worry about losing our house."

Neighbor Petra Chudejova agreed, saying she gets anxiety every time rain is in the forecast.

"It's just scary, that we could wake up one day and our house could be in the creek," she said.

Bruce Turner, the attorney for the neighbors, said the move to federal court may speed up the legal process, which the neighborhood is taking as positive news.

The homeowners say their homes have taken major hits in value since the erosion issue began, losing anywhere from tens of thousands of dollars in value to about $100,000.

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