City to pay Broken Arrow city councilor for sewer damage to home

The city of Broken Arrow will be paying for more than $6,000 in damage that occurred to Broken Arrow City Council Johnnie Parks’ home during sewer work.

Parks submitted a tort claim against the city on Oct. 26 alleging that a failed sewer coupling damaged his home at 1313 N. Ash Ave. The coupling was meant to connect Parks’ private sewer line to the city’s public sewer line.

City crews performed the work on the connection and installed the coupling as a part of the overall repair to the gravity sewer system that had collapsed under the street.

In order to perform the repair on the public gravity sewer line, the city had to disconnect the private sewer line. The process is a standard approach to this type of repair, said in a memo to the City Council. The coupling failed due to physical constraints and conditions at the site.

The memo said city staff and legal department recommended the city pay this tort claim of $6,218 and that was authorized Nov. 15 by City Manager Michael Spurgeon

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