Pipe Repair History – Windermere Chase HOA

The amendment passed – 85 approve and 14 disapprove. Thank you for your votes and involvement.
We will continue to update this page with information about the projects and the process.

9/18 Meeting Documents – Each owner should have received these documents in the mail this week – September 18 Meeting Documents

8/25 Membership Meeting Update
A full room on Monday night consisted of a long discussion about the vote and the options for paying for infrastructure repair. Despite the crowd and the proxies sent by owners, under half the homes of the neighborhood were represented in the vote.

A vote by the members, not the board, extended the final date for the vote while encouraging additional neighbors to cast a vote. Another meeting will be held on Thursday, September 18th, at the Family Church in Windermere.

All votes cast on Monday are still valid; owners do not have to vote again. Any new votes or proxies can be sent to Beacon or given to board members before the next meeting.

FAQ for the drain repair and the amendments for the upcoming meeting –
WC HOA FAQ

Documents for August 25th Amendment Vote – Full Packet
– Letter from the HOA Board
– Member Meeting Announcement and Agenda
– Article of Incorporation Amendments
– Covenant Amendments
– Proxy
– Notice of HOA Board Meeting and Agenda

** A note about the mailer – you as a homeowner do not have to do anything unless you cannot attend the meeting. If you cannot attend please complete and provide your vote or sign the proxy to a trusted neighbor or an HOA board member – this is critically important. The documents in the packet do NOT have to be notarized or signed by you – they are the amendments the board would sign and notarize if the vote is passed.

8/20 – The Pipe has been replaced and the hole is filled! The repair of lawns and irrigation should be completed soon.

So where do we stand now? We have referred to this part of the process as “Phase 1” All the equipment – pumps, plugs, and hoses that we have been renting will be returned. The pipe is repaired but not secure – it still has water and sand intrusions. The intrusions and washed away sand are the likely culprits for the pipe collapse.

After the meeting on the 25th we will determine how to financially move forward to fix and line the pipe, and secure it for the future. We will solicit additional quotes to find the best price and best contractor.

It was quite a mess this week as bigger equipment was brought in for the replacement

Several torrential downpours did not help the process

Past Windermere Chase HOA Meeting – 8/6, 2025 – Meeting recording

JULY/AUGUST 2025 – DRAIN PIPE COLLAPSE

Week of August 11

ProVac finished cleaning and scoping the drain pipe this past weekend. Construction to rebuild the crushed section of pipe should start on 8/18

Week of August 4

Last week Duke completed the process of digging down to the pierced drain pipe, severing the powerline, and connecting it in a new vault next to the sidewalk. Repairs and 7 truckloads of dirt were inserted in the hole after preparing the drain pipe to prevent dirt from entering the holes left by the powerline conduit.

New powerlines were installed underground to replace the cut powerline in our drainpipe.

ProVac continues to clean the collapsed drain pipe in preparation for replacement of the crushed section of pipe. A large amount of dirt is being removed from the drain pipe. Some of the other pipes leading down Windermere Chase Blvd. have been checked with a camera. A mix of plastic and concrete pipes were found. Cracks and water intrusions have been noted in these pipes as well.

The problem with water intrusion is that sand is also intruding. Small amounts of sand can be carried away by normal drainage but the absence of sand outside the pipe is causing a void in the ground making it unstable around the pipe.

Similar issues have been delt with in the past next to several drains in our roads – look at places that have multiple asphalt patches next to the storm drain – the ground was sinking next to the drain and had to be repaired.

Weeks of July 21 and 28

On Wednesday, July the 23^rd an HOA meeting was held to answer questions and ratify votes to retain ProVac and SDC to secure the sinkhole and replace 20’ of broken pipe.

On Thursday July 24^th the hole left by the collapse of the pipe was finally secured. This is a major step in this repair process and will be followed by the replacement of a 20′ section of pipe.

July 28

After communicating with Duke Energy about the conduit and powerline piercing our drain, Duke teams reviewed the situation and determine how to address the issue and resolve the situation.

July 29

Multiple teams of Duke contractors arrived to remove the 9’ of dirt to uncover the drain pipe and electrical conduit. A plan was established to cut the electrical line and create a new “splice vault” to connect two new lines that will eventually be installed to replace the cut power line. The new sidewalk will be a little different but fortunately the power was not interrupted for any residents and the yards were not impacted nearly as badly as expected. This process will take one or two more days to complete. Please be careful of the work crews and trucks.

Looking forward

Once the crushed section of the pipe is replaced and the rest of the pipe examined, the next phase of the repair is to install grout to stop the water/sand intrusions and then line the pipe with a sleeve that will provide a new stronger pipe within the old pipe.

We plan on having an informational meeting to review the current status of repairs and status of the community. Another meeting will be held in Mid August to vote on the options.

We are still working on securing locations for both meetings and letters will arrive shortly once the details are finalized. Things will be moving very rapidly to repair the failed drain pipe and establish a method to pay the contractors.

This is obviously not an easy or fun process for anyone but we have to find a path to repair the damage for the pipe and for the other major revisions in our community – namely the repaving of the roads.

The goal is to provide as much information for you as possible without being overwhelmed. We want informed homeowners with a solid understanding of what we are collectively facing and the plans to get us through these challenges.

Come to the meetings, ask questions, review the community documents and finances on the Beacon website. Be informed. We are working with a variety of folks from the community to provide guidance and working with industry professionals to identify solutions.

Rest assured that our key goals are to ensure the long term viability of the Windermere Chase community and make smart use of our resources to keep costs as low as possible for everyone. We want everyone in Windermere Chase be proud to live here.

Additional information will be added to the website about our community status, repair status, and options.

HISTORY
On July 11 deep hole suddenly appeared, and we now know the cause is a 42″ drain pipe that collapsed between two homes. The hole is approximately 9′ deep and has been fenced off for the safety of neighbors and pets. The hole is approximately 15 feet from a house and 12 feet from a pool. The drain starts at the north end of Huntsville Road and drains y 1/3 of the community into our north drainage pond.

ACTIVITY LAST WEEK
Multiple engineers and contractors were consulted on the phone and visited the site to assess the situation. The pipe was plugged, cleaned, and inspected on 7/16. The inspection revealed that a Duke Energy power line which was replaced in 2023, had penetrated the pipe and will need to be removed. The pipe collapse is located 94 feet into the 250-foot length of the drain.

We have been working with 3 engineering firms and have been in communication with four different contractors in the past week. Now that we have a partial inspection and confirmation of the collapse.

The board met with our attorney on 7/15 and 7/17 to review options for handling this issue as well as options for covering the cost of the emergency.

The two HOA meetings held for this issue were to:

Monday, July 14th – Approve the usage of reserve funds to address this emergency and update the HOA members.

Friday, July 18th – Update the HOA members and ratify votes to hire
Link for the 7/18 meeting recording
– Provac as the contractor to clean and explore the pipe
– IES Engineering to review the status of the two affected homes and the site. IES will review the work once completed to ensure the ground is secure
– KPMFranklin advising Civil engineering guidance

The pipe is currently partially plugged. An industrial pump to handle large rain events is parked on Windermere Chase Blvd. The inspection allowed a visual inspection of the first 94′ of the drain, but we will not know about the rest of the pipe until the collapse is cleared.

The contractors all agreed that the collapsed pipe had been impaired for many years, and the sand had been washing away for a very long time. Some of the dirt is in the collapsed drain, but a large volume has been washed away. We discovered several dozen other water intrusions in the first 94′ of the drain that continue to pull sand into the drain.

An initial engineering preliminary report states that no structural damage has occurred but containment is urgent.

THIS WEEK
Contractors will secure the sides of the hole on 7/21 and provide the board options for a quick, but long-lasting resolution.

Contractors we consulted last week, and an additional contractor, will provide options and estimates.

COSTS SO FAR
The total spent for cleaning, equipment rental, and inspections so far is approximately $20,000. We are constantly reviewing costs and potential cost with field experts and several Windermere Chase residents in the industry to ensure our funds are used properly.

PLANS
The thought on the initial plan is that we will need to:
1 – Clean the collapsed area and replace or rebuild the pipe
2 – The pipe would be grouted to seal the water/sand intrusions and lined internally with a very stiff liner that will provide structure and strength for a very long time.

We have requested estimates for completely replacing the pipe as a comparison to lining it. The drain’s depth and length may prove that replacement is not a viable option.

Duke will have to move the power line before the pipe can be lined or replaced.

FUTURE
After this issue is resolved, engineers strongly recommended that we review rest of the drain system in our neighborhood to any identify significant areas of concern.

We will continue to keep you posted as events unfold. Several cost estimates should arrive early this week for repairing or replacing the drain and the side of the hole should be secure by Monday evening.

Please remember that this incident is on private property. Please respect the homeowners privacy. Images are below and will provide additional information.

Location of the drain and the collapse