real estate

Projects cause flooding

Residents complain that natural waterways diverted by construction is provoking floods.

Engineering authorities admit that with so few inspectors, developers get away with omitting steps.

carlos lemos/la prensa

unstill waters: Residents of communities near the South Corridor complain that developers of new housing projects have put the area at a greater risk of flooding by rechanneling drainage systems.1119277

Seven residential developments being constructed between the district of San Miguelito and Vía Tocumen were discovered to have flouted the findings of hydrological, mitigation and environmental impact studies by altering the natural course of streams and rivers in the area, putting nearby neighborhoods in danger of flooding.

Rudy Nieto, a resident of Bis Ciudad Radial, a community adjacent to a land reclamation project being done to prepare the way for a proposed commercial center, said that the authorities began inspecting the project after their homes were plunged under several feet of water last month.

He explained that the real estate development has blocked a creek bed that passed below the South Corridor into a mangrove forest. Contractors built a channel to divert the water, which is forced through a kind of funnel before ending up in the mangroves.

That’s a lot of water for such a small channel, said Nieto, who added that water accumulates there and adds to the threat of flooding when heavy rains hit.

And then there are the pipes and storm water drains in the area, which are often clogged with mud, waste cement, vegetation and trash.

“The real estate company has done nothing to fix this problem, and meanwhile we have to run to hoist up mattresses, furniture and tables every time rain begins to fall,” he said.

Salermo Aispurúa, a spokesman for the communities of Altos de Tocumen Plaza, Las Acacias, Villas of Don Bosco and Villas Las Acacias, complained that a similar situation was created by three projects by Promotora Provivienda, also near the South Corridor.

“After a 30-minute downpour, the water level reaches the lip of the channel built by the company. Then we have to wait for it to overflow so that the authorities come to correct the sloppy work that is obvious to anyone,” he commented.

Engineering director for San Miguelito, Eric Zapata, said that although developers must submit plans to several government ministries before a building permit is granted, many companies evade some of the required steps.

Zapata added that his office is expected to conduct regular inspections of the work sites, but that there is a chronic shortage of inspectors.