Sinkhole repairs in West El Paso a nuisance for residents
David Valles has lived at the corner of La Placita Ave. and Villa Hermosa Dr. for almost 30 years.
Valles said his once calm and quiet neighborhood is now too loud. That’s because just a couple of feet away from his house is a full-blown construction site.
To make matters worse, his driveway is blocked by orange construction barrels.
Valles uses a motor scooter to get around outside, and a pair of canes when he’s indoors. With his truck blocked in the garage, he has to take his other car which is parked on the street. That requires him to go down three large steps at the front of his home.
“I have bad legs. I used to be able to go in my garage and get my car and just take off,” Valles said. “Now I’ve got to go down my steps and get in the car. When I come back, I got to walk all the way back up and it’s hard for me.”
On July 22, a woman was driving in the area when she, and her vehicle, fell into the first sinkhole.
El Paso Water officials told ABC-7 a storm drain under the road collapsed.
The woman was able to get out of the pit with minor scrapes.
Two days later, two separate sinkholes emerged.
Anne Nichols, who has lived in the neighborhood for over 10 years, said the construction hasn’t affected her too much.
“It’s one of those things that it has to be done,” Nichols said. “It does start early in the morning and it can be noisy but they’ve been very gracious about moving their vehicles in and out. For what a huge project it is, it hasn’t been too much of an inconvenience.”
Valles said at times the construction can start as early as 7 a.m. and workers are out there seven days a week.
“You have to enjoy summer, but I can’t enjoy it because there’s people working day and night and man I just can’t do anything,” Valles said.
Valles said he was told the construction would take about two months. So far construction has been going on for three weeks.
“I can’t enjoy my yard, my back yard, my front yard, my side yard. It’s just a pain in the ass,” Valles said.
