Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Point Loma is a drippy mess

Don't worry about that water leak

Image by Dorling Kindersley

Chrissy Seigler noticed a leaky water main valve on the sidewalk in front of her Point Loma home. The water was seeping out from the lid and dribbling down the street.

In early June, Seigler called the emergency hotline on the City of San Diego Public Utilities Department website to report the leak. Seigler claims that “four or five days later” a repair crew came out to her home and fixed it.

“It was working okay for just a month or so, but then it busted again,” Seigler says.

Again, she called to report the leak and the public utilities water workers came back out to Seigler’s home.

“They looked at it and they said, ‘It’s not just gushing out, it’s just at the top,’” Seigler says. “I said, ‘Yeah, but look, it’s on the street.’ He said, ‘It’s on our side. It’s okay because it’s not that serious of a leak.’”

The man heading up the work crew told her not to worry about it because she wasn’t being charged for the water waste and then they left without fixing it.

Sponsored
Sponsored

According to a staffer at the public utilities department, water-leak reportage has increased in the months since Governor Brown declared a drought state of emergency in January. Although she does not know the total number of leak reports that come in to the department as a whole, she estimates that she takes five to six leak reports per day.

“There’s a lot more people calling and taking pictures of leaks that are happening from sprinkler heads and runoff,” she says.

In an email to the Reader, Arian Collins, senior public information officer with the City of San Diego, wrote, “More people reporting leaks is helpful. Whether they are leaks on the City water system or from private property, or if it’s a case of water waste, the City wants to know in order to respond and fix the issue.”

The public utilities worker claims that whether the property where the leak originates is commercial, private, or city-owned makes no difference.

“The worst leak possible first,” she says. “The leaks are prioritized based on the type of leak it is. Main breaks, of course, are first, and then water calls. And leaks are prioritized based on workload. They have to follow up within 24 to 48 hours to make the initial investigation, and then it’s up to them or their supervisor to determine which property gets serviced first.”

In his email, Collins explains that although the city wants to be made aware of all leaks, not all investigations will result in repairs by the public utilities department. Some are determined to be “property site issues” that must be fixed by the property owner.

“Most calls are about legitimate leaks,” he wrote, “however, not all leaks are from the City’s water system. Some are from private property, and some are the result of over-irrigation drainage.”

The water main at the Vons on Midway is leaking approximately one cup every 30 seconds, which adds up to 180 gallons per day.
Place

Vons Market - Midway

3645 Midway Drive, San Diego

On Tuesday, July 7, a leak was reported from a water main behind the Vons shopping center on Midway Drive. One witness estimated that the valve was leaking approximately one cup every 30 seconds, which adds up to 180 gallons per day. According to the aforementioned public utilities worker, the water department investigated on July 8 and discovered that the leak is a “private backflow behind Vons, so we do not make repairs to those.”

“When they did the investigation they said it was a property site issue,” she says. “They said they left the findings, so they did [alert] the address at the property. They made them aware that there’s a leak at the backflow, so it is now their responsibility to have that fixed.”

On August 18, the leak still ran.

Other reports are more questionable and less clear as to who is responsible.

The water-main valve box at Dana Middle School in Point Loma stood filled with water and the ground around it was a soggy mess.
Place

Dana Middle School

1775 Chatsworth Boulevard, San Diego

Also on July 7, a citizen reported a leak at Dana Middle School on Narragansett Avenue in Loma Portal, where a water-main valve box stood filled with water and the ground around it was a soggy mess.

According to the records the staffer pulled up, the public utilities department investigated the issue and found that the standing water was not the result of a leak but rather was from irrigation runoff at the school.

Sometime at the end of July or early August, the leak was repaired and the site is now dry.

Regardless of where other investigations in her neighborhood have led, Chrissy Seigler remains baffled as to why her leak was left to run after it was investigated. Although the public utilities workers tried to assure her that she need not worry because she wasn’t being charged, she remained concerned.

Seigler was so concerned by the “don’t worry about it” response that on July 6 she called to report the leak again. But this time, she decided to raise the stakes.

“I threatened them that we’re going to get it on the news,” she said on July 7, “and they’re out today, they’re repairing it. They came out pretty fast.”

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

OSHA rules wall falls our fault

Who, U.S.?
Next Article

Angry Pete’s goes from pop-up to drive-thru

Detroit Pizza sidles into the husk of a shuttered Taco Bell
Image by Dorling Kindersley

Chrissy Seigler noticed a leaky water main valve on the sidewalk in front of her Point Loma home. The water was seeping out from the lid and dribbling down the street.

In early June, Seigler called the emergency hotline on the City of San Diego Public Utilities Department website to report the leak. Seigler claims that “four or five days later” a repair crew came out to her home and fixed it.

“It was working okay for just a month or so, but then it busted again,” Seigler says.

Again, she called to report the leak and the public utilities water workers came back out to Seigler’s home.

“They looked at it and they said, ‘It’s not just gushing out, it’s just at the top,’” Seigler says. “I said, ‘Yeah, but look, it’s on the street.’ He said, ‘It’s on our side. It’s okay because it’s not that serious of a leak.’”

The man heading up the work crew told her not to worry about it because she wasn’t being charged for the water waste and then they left without fixing it.

Sponsored
Sponsored

According to a staffer at the public utilities department, water-leak reportage has increased in the months since Governor Brown declared a drought state of emergency in January. Although she does not know the total number of leak reports that come in to the department as a whole, she estimates that she takes five to six leak reports per day.

“There’s a lot more people calling and taking pictures of leaks that are happening from sprinkler heads and runoff,” she says.

In an email to the Reader, Arian Collins, senior public information officer with the City of San Diego, wrote, “More people reporting leaks is helpful. Whether they are leaks on the City water system or from private property, or if it’s a case of water waste, the City wants to know in order to respond and fix the issue.”

The public utilities worker claims that whether the property where the leak originates is commercial, private, or city-owned makes no difference.

“The worst leak possible first,” she says. “The leaks are prioritized based on the type of leak it is. Main breaks, of course, are first, and then water calls. And leaks are prioritized based on workload. They have to follow up within 24 to 48 hours to make the initial investigation, and then it’s up to them or their supervisor to determine which property gets serviced first.”

In his email, Collins explains that although the city wants to be made aware of all leaks, not all investigations will result in repairs by the public utilities department. Some are determined to be “property site issues” that must be fixed by the property owner.

“Most calls are about legitimate leaks,” he wrote, “however, not all leaks are from the City’s water system. Some are from private property, and some are the result of over-irrigation drainage.”

The water main at the Vons on Midway is leaking approximately one cup every 30 seconds, which adds up to 180 gallons per day.
Place

Vons Market - Midway

3645 Midway Drive, San Diego

On Tuesday, July 7, a leak was reported from a water main behind the Vons shopping center on Midway Drive. One witness estimated that the valve was leaking approximately one cup every 30 seconds, which adds up to 180 gallons per day. According to the aforementioned public utilities worker, the water department investigated on July 8 and discovered that the leak is a “private backflow behind Vons, so we do not make repairs to those.”

“When they did the investigation they said it was a property site issue,” she says. “They said they left the findings, so they did [alert] the address at the property. They made them aware that there’s a leak at the backflow, so it is now their responsibility to have that fixed.”

On August 18, the leak still ran.

Other reports are more questionable and less clear as to who is responsible.

The water-main valve box at Dana Middle School in Point Loma stood filled with water and the ground around it was a soggy mess.
Place

Dana Middle School

1775 Chatsworth Boulevard, San Diego

Also on July 7, a citizen reported a leak at Dana Middle School on Narragansett Avenue in Loma Portal, where a water-main valve box stood filled with water and the ground around it was a soggy mess.

According to the records the staffer pulled up, the public utilities department investigated the issue and found that the standing water was not the result of a leak but rather was from irrigation runoff at the school.

Sometime at the end of July or early August, the leak was repaired and the site is now dry.

Regardless of where other investigations in her neighborhood have led, Chrissy Seigler remains baffled as to why her leak was left to run after it was investigated. Although the public utilities workers tried to assure her that she need not worry because she wasn’t being charged, she remained concerned.

Seigler was so concerned by the “don’t worry about it” response that on July 6 she called to report the leak again. But this time, she decided to raise the stakes.

“I threatened them that we’re going to get it on the news,” she said on July 7, “and they’re out today, they’re repairing it. They came out pretty fast.”

Comments
Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Melissa Etheridge, The Imaginary Amazon

Events April 1-April 3, 2024
Next Article

San Diego's Uptown Planners challenged by renters from Vibrant Uptown

Two La Jolla planning groups fight for predominance
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.