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Subdivision wrecked water wells, suit claims Central Point East developers were warned, plaintiff says By CHRIS BRISTOL Two years ago, Central Point farmer Ken Beebe and his neighbors threatened to sue the developers of a huge subdivision and everybody involved, saying it sucked their wells dry. Now they've made good on that threat. In a lawsuit filed last week in Jackson County Court, the 79-year-old orchardist and 10 of his neighbors demanded more than $500,000 in combined damages for the loss of well water they say coincided with a storm drain that was constructed as part of the 239-home Central Point East subdivision. Beebe, a Rogue Valley native and local historian who has been a vocal critic of farm-chewing urban sprawl in Oregon, says the developers and local officials were warned what would happen long before the drainage system was installed. The lawsuit makes the same claim. "When we told them it would ruin the water table here, they said they didn't give a damn," he said Monday. "They said it would be back in two weeks. That's a lie, because our well's bone dry. And that's been two years now." Named as defendants were various Central Point East developers -- including DeCarlow Homes and IMAC West Coast Projects -- as well as project engineer Michael Thornton, contractor Southern Oregon Underground, the city of Central Point and Jackson County. Although most of the defendants had not been formally served copies of the complaint by Monday, the lawsuit was not a surprise -- Beebe and his neighbors filed tort claims in 1998. The defendants' attorneys declined comment, as is the custom under Oregon's strict bar-press guidelines. According to the lawsuit, the city required construction of the drainage system to channel storm water runoff into Bear Creek, which borders Beebe Road near the Central Point East development off Hamrick Road. Jackson County approved the permit. Part of the subdivision, including the drainage system, lies outside city limits on Central Point's eastern urban growth boundary near the Medford airport. The lawsuit, filed by Portland attorney Laura Schroeder, contends the trench that forms the drainage system was negligently designed and constructed without benefit of a hydrological study, causing a permanent and precipitous drop in the water table. The plaintiffs -- which include Shepherd of the Valley Catholic Church -- consider the loss of water an unconstitutional "taking" of private property. The lawsuit also claims negligence and a legal theory known as nuisance, which addresses interference with the owners' enjoyment and use of their property. Some of the wells are now dry, the lawsuit said. Others have seen a significant reduction in the quality and quantity of water, which was used for a variety of household and agricultural purposes. The lawsuit stated the plaintiffs have had to cope in various ways to replace the lost water. Some dug new, deeper wells, some installed holding tanks, others have water trucked in and still others say they may have to connect with city water in the future. Lack of moisture also damaged the soil, killing vegetation and cracking the ground so badly that it even damaged houses and other outbuildings on property belonging to the plaintiffs, the lawsuit said. Beebe says that even though he predicted the harm the Central Point East storm drain would cause to wells, he never realized the effect it would have on the ground itself. "I never was aware of the fact that the water table did so much to stabilize our soil," Beebe said. "Sure gettin' a lesson in that." Today's Edition : News | Sports | Business | Weather | Tempo | Classifieds Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA