Urgent Complaint Regarding Pipe Replacement Damage & Unfair Financial Burden

[gloria faley]

Last week, OWSAS completed pipe replacement work in our neighborhood. During the process, you ripped up the road, and shut off my water multiple times without warning. Then, yesterday afternoon, I was abruptly notified that I had a leak in the pipe running from my house to the main line.

Today, I hired a plumber under the understanding that any such leak was my responsibility. What I did not expect was to be told I now owe $6,500 to replace the entire pipe leading to my home. Why? The newly installed main line drastically increased the water pressure, directly causing my older line to rupture.  

Let me be crystal clear:

This home was built in 1951. I am a 74-year-old woman living on Social Security. There was no prior notice that your upgrades would significantly impact water pressure, potentially causing catastrophic failure of critical infrastructure in older homes like mine. Currently, I have no water because I had no choice but to shut it off entirely due to the ongoing leak.

To make matters worse, water was running uncontrolled into the ditch all weekend, which not only damages my property and wastes a vital resource, but also likely adds to my water bill — which has now skyrocketed from my usual $40–$50/month to over $200. That is unacceptable.

This isn’t just about one broken pipe. Every home in this neighborhood was built in the 1950s. That means every one of your longtime, tax-paying residents is now at risk of financial devastation due to your negligence. Was there any outreach to inform us of this risk? No. Not a word.

Do you have any idea what it’s like to do this to an elderly woman with health problems? I doubt it. But the Chapel Hill News, the Chapel Hill Herald, and — soon — the Orange County Council will understand exactly what has been done to us.

I demand the following:

1. A full investigation into the impact of your water main upgrades on nearby private lines.
   

2. Immediate financial assistance or reimbursement for damages directly caused by the increased pressure.
   

3. A public explanation of why no notice or support was given to vulnerable residents ahead of such disruptive work.
   

I expect a prompt and thorough response. And rest assured, I am not the only one in this neighborhood who will be angry when their pipes rupture.  I will be speaking at the following public comment periods.  My wife is handicapped and I use a cane, but we will be at these meetings.

OWSAS Board meeting (Thursday, August 14, 2025, at 6 p.m.. )

Chapel Hill town board (no comment until  September 25th. that board took a vacation)

Carrboro town board (no comment until Tuesday, September 24th at 6 p.m., that board took a vacation)

Gloria Faley

glori...@zoho.com

919-4149391

[gloria faley]

============ Forwarded message ============
From: gloria faley <glori...@zoho.com>
To: "michael_hughes"<michael...@owasa.org>, "tbendor"<tbe...@owasa.org>, "johnny_randall"<johnny_...@owasa.org>, "susana_dancy"<susana...@owasa.org>, "pgarcia"<pga...@owasa.org>, "elmira_mangum"<elmira...@owasa.org>
Date: Tue, 29 Jul 2025 14:52:56 -0700
Subject: Urgent Complaint Regarding Pipe Replacement Damage & Unfair Financial Burden
============ Forwarded message ============

[gloria faley]

I have been endeavoring to locate an alternative repair company capable of replacing the pipe at a cost lower than $ 6500 during the past two days. I have obtained estimates from all plumbing service providers, each of whom has also charged a fee for an inspection. These expenses were unforeseen this month, especially considering my additional healthcare costs incurred this month. Currently, I am engaging with my fourth repair company. All have reached a consensus regarding the volume of water flowing through the main line when the water supply is restored. The rupture occurred due to the high volume of water passing through the main line.

Please inform me of a suitable time when Nick would be available to visit and discuss this matter with me. We are at home and available at your convenience.  

Gloria Faley

919-4149391

---- On Wed, 30 Jul 2025 08:27:15 -0700 OWASA Customer Service <customer...@owasa.org> wrote ---

Good morning Ms.Faley.  Thank you for updating us on the issue you are experiencing. I called earlier and left you a message to let you know I have asked Nick Rogers, Assistant Director of Distribution and Collections to investigate further and follow up.  Please give me a call back when you are free.

Kind Regards,

Denise Battle

Customer Service Manager

Orange Water and Sewer Authority

400 Jones Ferry Rd

Carrboro, NC  27510-2001

dba...@owasa.org

919-537-4293

, gloria faley <glori...@zoho.com> wrote:

NOTICE: In accordance with the North Carolina general statutes, chapter 132, this email address is subject to North Carolina public records law. As such, please note that all inbound and outbound messages are subject to requests for review and may be disclosed to third parties.

81939:231968

[Todd Taylor]

Gloria,

 

I am sorry to hear about these issues you’ve been experiencing.  I need to meet with my team today to get up to speed on this situation and will provide you our response by the end of the day.

 

I appreciate your patience and understanding.

 

Todd Taylor, P.E.

Executive Director

 

Orange Water And Sewer Authority

400 Jones Ferry Road

Carrboro, NC 27302

 

Direct Office: (919) 537-4216

 

 

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[Todd Taylor]

Dear Gloria,

We are sorry to hear about the issue you are experiencing with your water service. Based on our conversation earlier today, it is my understanding that you have made arrangements with a plumber to make the necessary repairs next week. I am relieved to know that you will have this taken care of soon.

We appreciate you contacting OWASA to express your concerns and for your patience as we investigated this matter. As you are aware, OWASA is in the process of replacing the aging water main in your neighborhood, specifically on South Circle Drive and East Drive in Chapel Hill. This project involves replacing 2,800 linear feet of 8-inch and 6-inch water lines that were originally installed in 1970.

Before and during these projects, we strive to maintain open communication, minimize service disruptions, and work closely with our customers regarding planned water outages. I understand that you are frustrated with OWASA’s communication throughout this project and are concerned that our work caused the break in your service line.

To the latter point, I reviewed the details of our work with my staff and want to convey to you that OWASA does not believe our project caused this leak. You mentioned that your plumber suggested the cause of the water leak was drastic changes in water pressure due to our newly installed water main. However, the size of the water main that was replaced did not change, so we would not expect any changes in the pressure serving your home. We have successfully completed seven other service changeovers for your neighbors without incident.

However, if you maintain the belief that OWASA’s work directly caused this issue, there is a formal process for reviewing your concern. The first step is to have the necessary repairs made by a licensed plumber (which I understand is scheduled to happen next week). Once the repairs are completed, you may submit a claim along with documentation and repair invoices to OWASA’s liability insurance carrier for review. Please contact Kelly Satterfield, our Director of Finance, at ksatte...@owasa.org or (919) 537-4238 for more information on how to initiate this process.

In terms of our communication with you about the project, below is a summary of OWASA’s attempts to connect with you. I recognize that you may have missed some of these, but good faith efforts have been made to communicate with you throughout the project.

We sent four emails in March and April regarding the upcoming project to replace the water main in your neighborhood. In reviewing our communications records, we see that the four notices emailed to your email address were unopened. I’m afraid they may have been directed to your junk folder. If there is anything that we can do to help you troubleshoot that, please let us know.

As part of our communication procedures, we make it a priority to contact customers directly before turning off their water to connect their service to the newly replaced line. On Monday, July 14, 2025, our crews knocked on your door to inform you that we would need to turn off your water for 2 to 4 hours to complete the connection. Unfortunately, there was no answer at the door. After completing the changeover, our crews returned to your door and successfully contacted you to let you know that the water was back on. At that time, we saw no evidence of a water leak.

A week later, on Monday, July 21, 2025, our crews returned to your neighborhood to continue connecting homes to the new water line. At this time, we noticed a significant leak coming from your service line. Please note that the water service line between your home and the meter is your responsibility, as the property owner, to maintain. OWASA is not authorized to perform repairs on privately owned plumbing.

When we detected the leak on July 21, we attempted to notify you by knocking on your door but received no answer. We also called your phone and left multiple voicemails, but did not receive a response.

The extent of the leak on your service line interfered with our crew's ability to connect your neighbor to the new water line, requiring us to turn off your water for 2-4 hours while we completed the connection. We knocked on your door to notify you of this disruption, but no one came to the door. During our work, our crews saw you leaving your home and were finally able to inform you about the leak and the temporary water shutoff. Our crews showed you the leak's location, and you confirmed that you would contact a plumber.

Throughout the week of July 21 and into the following week, we continued to observe the leak and made multiple attempts to reach you to discuss the issue, but we did not receive a response. On Tuesday, July 29, 2025, Nick Rogers, our Assistant Director of Distribution and Collection, visited your home, called you, and waited in your driveway until you came out to discuss the situation.

Later that same day, you contacted our customer service department to report concerns that OWASA had damaged your water service. Our customer service team noted that your meter had stopped reporting usage information on July 9, 2025.

On July 30, 2025, our crews arrived to troubleshoot the issue with your meter not reading. We noticed your water was turned off, which we assumed was done by the plumber you contacted. We resolved the issue with the meter not reading; however, we did not turn your water back on in case a plumber was conducting repairs.

Our advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) system automatically sends customers notifications via email when irregular or high usage indicates a possible water leak. Our records show that we have sent you periodic leak alerts since 2019. This year alone, you received notices in January, April, May, and June. We suspect you may not have received one in July because your meter was not functional. Our records also indicate that the previous emails were not opened, suggesting they might have gone to your Junk folder.

Finally, I know that in addition to repair your service line, the cost of the water lost to the leak can present some hardship. OWASA can offer you a credit adjustment for the cost of your leak. Additionally, our Care to Share program can offer temporary bill assistance. Please reach out to Denise Battle, our Customer Service Manager, at dba...@owasa.org or (919) 537-4293 to discuss these options further.

We are sorry you are dealing with this difficult situation. I understand that you plan to meet with Nick Rogers on site and discuss next steps. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any further questions or concerns.

Sincerely,

Todd

[Michael Hughes]

Excellent response … Thanks !!

[Denise Battle]

Good afternoon, OWASA Board of Directors and Leadership.  I have an update on the status of Ms. Faley's complaint.  

I spoke with Ms. Faley today, and she shared the excellent news that she found a contractor to replace her service line at a reasonable price. Her water use indicates no continuous water use.  She said she will email me copies of her repair bills if she decides to accept the $339.74 leak credit we offered.  

Ms. Faley thanked me and asked me to pass on her gratitude to everyone on our staff who has shown concern by visiting, emailing, and calling her to help with this issue.  She said she did not follow up sooner because her dear sister had passed away. I offered our condolences and reminded her that we are always here to help her when she needs us. 

She had no further concerns, questions, or feedback regarding her account.

Warm regards,

Denise Battle

Customer Service Manager

Orange Water and Sewer Authority

400 Jones Ferry Road, Carrboro, NC  27510

919-968-4421(Main) | 919-537-4293 (Direct) | 919-819-4119 (Cell)

dba...@owasa.org | customer...@owasa.org | www.owasa.org

 

---

From: Michael Hughes <michael...@owasa.org>
Sent: Friday, August 1, 2025 5:39 AM
To: Todd Taylor <tta...@owasa.org>