Claim by Ronald SchneeTHE CITY OF
DUB UE MEMORANDUM
Masterpiece on the Mississippi
TRACEY STECKLEIN
PARALEGAL
To: Mayor Roy D. Buol and
Members of the City Council
DATE: October 7, 2011
RE: Claim Against the City of Dubuque by Ronald Schnee
Claimant Date of Claim Date of Loss Nature of Claim
Ronald Schnee 10/05/11 Between 2000 Personal Injury/
and present Property Damage
This is a claim in which claimant alleges that an approximate 1 OW slope occurred when
the City widened Reeder Street between 2000 and 2002, causing excess water to flow
onto claimant's property at 25 Alpine Street. Claimant states that as a result, claimant
now has breathing issues due to his exposure to mold and his property has sustained
water damage.
This claim has been referred to Public Entity Risk Services of Iowa, the agent for the Iowa
Communities Assurance Pool.
cc: Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager
John Klostermann, Street & Sewer Maintenance Supervisor
Ronald Schnee
OFFICE OF THE CITY ATTORNEY DUBUQUE, IOWA
SUITE 330, HARBOR VIEW PLACE, 300 MAIN STREET DUBUQUE, IA 52001 -6944
TELEPHONE (563) 583 -4113 / FAx (563) 583 -1040 / EMAIL tsteckle @cityofdubuque.org
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CLAIM AGAINST THE CITY OF DUBUQUE, IOWA
This written report constitutes your claim against the City of Dubuque, Iowa. You
should complete this form in full and attach any additional information that
supports your claim.
The claim must be filed with the City Clerk at City Hall, 50 West 13th St.,
Dubuque, IA 52001. It will then be referred to the appropriate department for
investigation and to the City Attorney's Office. Once that investigation is
completed, a report and recommendation will be submitted to the City Council.
You will be provided with a copy of that report and recommendation.
The final decision on all claims is made by the City Council. No employee of the
City of Dubuque has the authority to make any representation to you as to
whether your claim will or will not be paid.
1. Name of Claimant: �oNRLD O. Sc N�
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4. Date of Incident: w t 20oo 3 Y E.WEAJT
5. Time of Incident:
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6. Location of Incident (Be specific):
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7. Describe the accident or occurrence that caused injury or damage. (Give full
details upon which you base your claim. If a City employee was involved, give
the employee's name.)
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8. What were weather conditions like?
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9. Give name and address of any witnesses:
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10. Did police investigate? (If so, give names of officers.)
11. Was anyone injured? (If so, give names, addresses, and extent of injuries).
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12. Was any damage done to property? (If so, describe property and the extent
of damages. Attach estimates of damages or describe basis for ascertaining
extent of damage.)
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13. What other damages do you claim, if any?
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14. Have you been compensated for any part or all of your claim by any
insurance company? (If so, give name and address of insurance company and
amount paid.)
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15. What amount do you claim from the City of Dubuque?
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16. Why do you claim the City of Dubuque is responsible?
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17. Have you made any claim against anyone else for damages as a result of
this incident? (If yes, give name and address.)
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18. If the answer to Question 17 is yes, have you received any payment from that
source, and if so, in what amount?
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Response to question 7 and 16.
Approximately 8 to 10 years ago, between 2000 and 2002, the City of Dubuque widened Reeder
Street. Reeder Street intersects at Alpine. Reeder Street is a two way street, until it approaches the
intersection of Alpine and Reeder, toward the West Side. It is at that point that the street was like an
alley, with allowance for only 1 %2 cars. The city, for reasons not known to me, decided to widen the
street at that end to accommodate two vehicles, or to make the streets uniform. They widened the
street on the north side of Reeder Street. They poured asphalt to do this. In their work, the city of
Dubuque widened Reeder Street on the North side approximately 10 1/2 inches higher than on the south
side of Reeder Street. The street was now at a significant slope.
It should also be noted that my property is located over the former entrance to Wooten's mine. There
is flowing water running under my land. Due to this, my property is more susceptible to water damage
than most though I have not had a history of damage due to water. I have a central air conditioning unit
on the north side of my home. Because of the condition of the property under the home, the property is
continuing to settle, causing me to have to re -pour a concrete slab for my central air conditioning unit to
sit on. I have had to re -pour this slab approximately three times since 2000. Because of this condition,
excess water flow into the property causes more damage than would be done to a property that did not
have flowing water underneath it.
My home is located at 25 Alpine, right on the south corner of Reeder and Alpine. I have done
significant improvements to my property over the years. (See attached photos of home prior to
damage, marked A) The widening the city completed on Reeder Street has caused significant damage
to my property over the years. With the city only pouring asphalt on the north side, it caused a slide like
effect on the street. Any time it rained, snowed, etc., the water and refuse ran directly into my yard. I,
however, did not notice this immediately as the effects were slight at first. I did, however, notice initially
when they widened the street that the grade was significantly higher on the north side than the south
side.
In Spring/Summer of 2010, I walked into my home through the back door. There was an
overwhelming smell of mildew and mold. I investigated in the home first and noticed mold accumulating
in the basement. This is bizarre because I have never had a mold issue, never had a water issue and, in
fact, have a fully furnished basement that has been dry for years. Since I noticed this, I began
investigation elsewhere. I started in the yard. I noticed that the yard was starting to get moldy. I
looked at the windows at basement level. When I purchased the home the basement windows were
approximately 5 inches from ground level. At this time, the windows are now flush with the ground and
because of this, the windows are rotting out and need to be replaced. (See photos marked B) I have a
shed that I custom built on the north corner of the lot. The baseboards are rotting away due to excess
water and refuse that pushes through my yard. This shed was just repainted two years ago and the paint
is peeling and the boards are rotting. (See photos marked C) I custom built this shed to last forever
and because of the water damage, it now needs extensive repair in order to keep it in working order. I
discovered foundation line cracks.
I had three trees in my yard: one elm and two apple trees. These trees were mature and I planted the
apple trees myself. The apple trees provided an incredible amount of apples each year. In the
Spring/Summer of 2010 I noticed the elm tree seemed to be dying. I called in a tree removal service
and had to have this tree removed because it was full of fungus. The apples from the apple tree in the
Fall of 2010 were puny and unacceptable. I had the apple trees tested and they were also full of
fungus, which is caused by extensive moisture in the soil. I planted these trees myself, and I will never
be able to see an apple tree in the same condition in my lifetime. (See photos marked A).
Even though I started to notice a potential mold and mildew issue, I did not have water in my basement
until the exponential amounts of rain Dubuque received in the Summer of 2010. Because there was no
barrier, except my hedges, to block the massive amounts of rain that we received, my basement
flooded. My water heater was ruined. My furnace was ruined. FEMA did step in and give me a
$923.00 allowance for clean up and compensated for replacement furnace and water heater. I have
since treated the walls myself to get rid of the mold. However, my basement was a liveable space. I
had a daughter who was living in a room in the basement. It was carpeted. We stored collectibles in
the basement with no problems. I have lost all of my collectibles, my daughter has lost a good portion
of her belongings. All of these items cannot be replaced and do not carry a specific monetary value.
Due to the extensive amount of rain received in the Summer of 2010, combined with the lack of any
water barrier and the city's decision to place even a steeper slope on Reeder Street, I called Nauman's
Nursery to install drain tile. I paid Nauman $955.00 for the work done to cure the water problem
going to the basement. His work was less than satisfactory and left my front yard and side yard in
shambles. (See photos marked D). However, I had this work completed before I realized that water
continued to stream into my yard from Reeder Street. After his work, my yard never completely
drained from all the water spilling into my yard and left it brown and unsightly. (See photos marked E)
I will need all of this work completed again.
In September 2010, I finally called the city as I was determined their action was the cause of most of
my problems with water, moisture and expanding soil. A representative from the city came to my
property , John Klostermann, and nearly immediately city staff were working on the improvements that
are there now. The city poured extra asphalt on the south side of Reeder Street in an attempt to level
out the streets. Additionally, they installed a steep curb to prevent any further water damage. (See
photos marked F) However, the damage has been done.
My hedges are my only water barrier, and they need to be removed. A fence needs to be constructed
to prevent water flow into yard. The constructed sidewalk needs to be removed and replaced
because of extensive water damage. The sidewalk needs to be re reouted to avoid the curb installed
by city and provide better outflow to the street. I will need a fence to help keep water inflow down.
My yard continues to fill up with water, turning the remaining soil into mud and clay. (See photos
marked G).
The city caused this problem by increasing the grade and slope of Reeder Street. The effects of this did
not become known until Summer /Fall of 2010. The city stepped in to correct the problem they caused
by installing a curb upon my complaint. The curb helps matters, but my property has been damaged
extensively. I have attached an itemized estimation of damages.