LOCAL

Answer Man: West Asheville sinkhole 'janky' fix? Sardis Road ripped up?

The Citizen-Times

This sinkhole on Louisiana Avenue was temporarily repaired, but the Metropolitan Sewerage District had a more extensive pipe repair plan in place.

Today’s batch of burning questions, my smart-aleck answers and the real deal:

Question: I drove past a sinkhole on Louisiana Avenue near Tanglewood Drive on Tuesday in West Asheville. It was a small hole, about 6 inches across, but a worker inserted the handle of a metal rake into the hole to demonstrate how deep it was. The handle went in all the way, so it was at least 5 feet deep or so. It looked like MSD filled it with dirt and then the road reopened. Is this janky pothole-style fix actually safe for a sinkhole?

My answer: As someone who's been accused on occasion of offering "janky" answers, this question stings a bit. I thought that was a compliment.

Real answer: It was a quick fix, but a permanent one was in the works.

On Wednesday, Mike Stamey, construction director for the Metropolitan Sewerage District, explained the situation via email.

The head of a metal rake is visible in this photo, with the handle dropped into the sinkhole to demonstrate how deep it is.

"I just received word from the North Carolina DOT that they have been investigating the sinkhole and placed the gravel in the hole," Stamey said. "With that said, MSD crews have further investigated the sewer system in this area and found an issue that needs to be addressed."

The plan was to get a construction crew out there this past Wednesday to make the repairs, which will definitely not be "janky."

The work, Stamey said, was to "include excavating at the sinkhole site, repairing the damaged sewer line, back-filling with select material, and compacting the trench material to meet N.C. DOT and city of Asheville density requirements. Afterwards the roadway area will be patched with asphalt by city of Asheville street crews."

In a 2016 story on sinkholes, the Citizen Times noted that Asheville has had more than 20 sinkholes over the past two decades, nearly all caused by underground pipe failures.

PSNC Energy has been digging into Sardis Road for maintenance work on its gas lines, then putting temporary patches over the holes. Once the work is finished, permanent repaving will take place.

Question: For what is beginning to seem like years, the natural gas company has been digging holes and filling them up on Brevard Road, and now on Sardis Road. A person working for them said they were patching leaks. We are talking over 30 holes per mile. That seems like a lot of leaks, but my big concern is the patching. None of them are smooth and a lot are like potholes. I am afraid we will have to put up with them until the work at Brevard Road and I-26 is complete and they resurface the whole area. My questions are: Are they really patching leaks, and does DOT have smoothness standards for patching holes in highways? Oh, and will they move on to Sand Hill Road when they finish with Sardis?

My answer: Man, it looks like the "Janky Sinkhole Repair & Paving" company has really been busy of late.

Real answer: "Concerning the digging on Sardis Road, PSNC Energy is performing maintenance on their gas lines under and along the road," said N.C. DOT spokesman David Uchiyama. "We have limited their lane closures to the hours of 7 p.m.-6 a.m. This overnight work schedule helps reduce the potential for congestion throughout the day."

The asphalt patches are temporary.

"PSNC will be required to resurface sections of the road once their maintenance work is complete," Uchiyama said.

Persida Montanez, a spokeswoman for PSNC Energy, said the ongoing work "is related to our system integrity program where we survey our infrastructure in accordance with regulations.

"We didn't find any significant issues," Montanez said. "While we are mostly done with inspections, we will move on to N.C. Highway 191, Sardis Road and Sweeten Creek Road for final surveying. We will overlay all those the patches per DOT specifications this month, early next."

As far as the long-term outlook for the Sardis/Sandhill Road area, Uchiyama said improvements are coming.

"We are developing a project to improve Sardis/Sandhill Road with construction planned to commence in 2022," he said. "The proposed project would improve the section from Brevard Road to Smokey Park Highway. Engineers are analyzing traffic forecast models to determine how many lanes and what sort of multi-modal facilities would best fit the needs of the area."

This is the opinion of John Boyle. Contact him at 828-232-5847 or jboyle@citizen-times.com