GILBERT, Ariz. — More Gilbert residents are coming forward saying the fiber optic construction project in town has damaged their property.
The project being overseen by Gigapower and Tilson Technology is meant to add high-speed internet to the area but many residents say it's not worth the headaches the project has caused.
Courtney Hampton has a new, large crack across the driveway of her Gilbert home. She said it happened during Tilson's construction work.
“I kind of did a little trip right on this spot," Hampton said as she showed the large crack.
Hampton's neighbor had his water line struck and also had damage to his driveway. That damage has since been patched but the patchwork does not match the rest of the driveway.
“I just want someone to take accountability because it's multiple houses," Hampton said.
Her neighborhood near Ray and Power Roads is the same neighborhood where one resident's home was flooded with wastewater after her sewage line was struck.
Tilson has since reimbursed her for the $7,500 pipe replacement she had to pay for but she is still fighting insurance to cover the damages inside of her home. She remains displaced.
Natasha Boehler also lives in the Gateway Village neighborhood and has a large crack across her driveway.
“The lack of respect is very frustrating," Boehler said.
She also has a filled-in circular hole that no longer matches her driveway.
"I know this isn't half as bad as the neighbors that we've got but still it's not okay," Boehler said.
Another neighbor who's irrigation system was broken shared Ring doorbell footage with 12News showing a fiber construction worker sideswipe their car. The crews are seen getting out to inspect the damage. They then take off without any communication.
The problems are not new to Gilbert town leaders.
During a town council meeting in May, Mark Neuse addressed the council about the damage to his home caused by the fiber project.
"My dispute is with the City of Gilbert in regards to Tilson's method of installing fiber optics in our neighborhood," Neuse said. "Tilson is tunneling through our front yards, and in my case, they destroyed our driveway. In the process, they have cut a 9-inch hole in my driveway."
Months later, Neuse got his driveway fixed, but it took two attempts to get it right.
"The curb appeal to our home has since diminished and will affect the value of our home. Along with this, the pain and suffering Tilson has put on my wife and I through during this fiasco has been overwhelming to say the least," Neuse said.
12News brought some of these residents' concerned to Town Councilmember Yung Koprowski.
"We understand that these disruptions can be very frustrating to homeowners, especially when activities happen near their homes that may crack a driveway or break the underground utility and we deeply empathize with them, but ultimately the responsibility is with the fiber contractor and their and their contractor," Koprowski said. "But we do try to mediate whenever possible. When, when we do hear of these instances occurring."
12News has learned Gilbert receives two percent of Gigapower's gross revenue as part of the licensing agreement with the town. When Koprowski was asked if she believes this deal means the town bears some responsibility for the problems associated with the project, she stated she was not aware of the agreement.
12News also asked Koprowski if the town has plans to ensure subcontractors working under Tilson are properly vetted and qualified.
“The town does not do any vetting of subcontractors of the utility company. So the utility company, like Gigapower, is just like any other utility company that provides cable or electricity or gas, and that subcontractor or contractor is responsibility of the utility provider itself, and so perhaps those complaints could be taken with that entity," Koprowski said.
"Wouldn't you be able to go to them and say, 'Hey, you guys have got to hire better people otherwise the work is going to be put on pause?'" asked 12News reporter Bianca Buono.
“We are responsible for doing the inspections and making sure that those lines are constructed to our standards. It is not unusual for those utility conflicts to occur during the construction, especially as widespread of activities that they're doing, and so what we try to do is make sure that those are mitigated as quickly as possible and identified and addressed to make sure that that is fixed and made right," Koprowski said. "But it's not necessarily possible to prevent every single conflict from happening. It's part of construction activity and we try to minimize that as much as possible.”
A Tilson spokesperson said, "Tilson takes residential damage claims very seriously and addresses them immediately once we are notified."
They stated they have cut ties with the subcontractor who sideswiped a resident's vehicle and repaired their irrigation system on Tuesday.
They also said they visited Boehler's home on Tuesday and have scheduled a replacement of her cracked panel on her driveway.
As for Hampton, Tilson said they determined the cracks on her driveway were not related to their construction.
"We work closely with residents to resolve their concerns. We encourage any resident who believes they have damage to their property to contact us at chandlerfiber@tilsontech.com," the Tilson spokesperson said.