WINONA LAKE – Robert and Randa Coppes attended the Winona Lake Town Council meeting Tuesday night seeking an apology and perhaps even financial assistance for a sewer problem they said the town helped create.

After a 20–minute discussion on the issue, the town council meeting was adjourned and officials, including two councilmen, met with the Coppeses in Town Coordinator Craig Allebach’s office to discuss it further. No decision was made during the public council meeting.

Robert brought the matter up during the public comments section of the council meeting.

“We’ve encountered a sewage nightmare in Winona and are requesting our voice to be heard,” he said. They reside at 2506 Marjorie St. and have owned an investment property at 1600 The Pass since 2016.

“Within the first year of purchasing 1600 The Pass, we encountered sewage problems and then failure. Trying to correct it – myself, I’m a contractor – I opened up the plumbing and snaked the lines to try and solve the problem myself. It was discovered that our sewage line is shared by a neighboring property on 1606 The Pass, that’s our next–door neighbor, a rental property. The owner doesn’t live at that property,” he said, and did not identify the owner.

This morning, the owner, Sally Bailey referred comments on the matter to her attorney, Rick Helm. He said the Coppes’ contractor trespassed on Bailey’s property and now are trying to blame her for protecting her property rights.

Robert said the sewage line was not obstructed on his property, but 1606 had the obstruction “due to what was described to us as old orangeburg pipe.” He said Weed Septic advised them that the problem would probably persist because the orangeburg pipe would continue to degrade.

“After more failures, we attempted to discuss the situation with our neighboring homeowner, who doesn’t reside at 1606, inviting her over to meet, review and hopefully agree that each owner co–pay for a permanent solution to update our shared line. However, she chose not to cooperate with us and suggested we go to the town and get our own sewer,” Robert explained.

Robert and Randa were advised the town no longer allows or wants residents to share sewer lines and directed the Coppeses to install their own sewer line using a utility easement on the property line between two neighboring properties.

Robert said the solution was discussed in detail on multiple occasions between them and the town as well as a contractor who ended up doing the work for the Coppeses.

On May 9, Robert said they went to Winona Lake Building Commissioner Gene Seiman to apply for a permit, but was told it wasn’t required as it was deemed a repair and not new installation. Street Superintendent Tom Miller was asked to join the conversation. Miller told Seiman that he had been to the property, had spoken to the Coppeses in detail about the easement that exists and to utilize it for a new sewage line, Robert recounted. He said Seiman was satisfied with it and he and Miller both approved the details of the project and the use of the easement “specifically any area 10 feet on either side of these utility poles that run down the property line.”

Helm said, “They don’t have an easement. If the town told them they had an easement, that’s not something Sally Bailey is responsible for.”

He said the town has closed all communication on the issue to the extent that he’s tried to reach out to it.

Along with a green light from town officials on the project, Robert said they were also told it wasn’t necessary to inform neighbors of the work due to the existing easement. However, they notified their neighbors anyway except for the renter at 1606 The Pass because he was gone for a period of time.

The new sewer installation line is working beautifully, Robert said, but now the town and the Coppeses have received  “threatening legal letters” from Bailey’s legal counsel claiming various damages and trespass, contending the easement doesn’t exist.

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“They trespassed. The Coppeses hired a contractor who dug up the yard,” Helm said.

He said if they feel threatened by having to follow property rules, so be it. “They’re the ones who created the mess.”

After receiving notice of the first legal letter, Robert said they went to the town office to inquire. “Winona has basically turned its back on us and said that they have no interest in this. We would never have executed this work without the direction, permission and approval from the town to begin this work,” he said.

Robert said he had no inkling the easement was there before the town told him to use it. He said they spent $3,500 on the installation of the sewer line but now are being “threatened” with having their sewage line disconnected, paying Bailey for the easement, paying for Bailey to tap into the Coppes’ sewer line and she wants them to pay her legal fees. They also have to pay for their own legal advice as well as pay for a survey.

Robert said they contacted Allebach to address the issue at the June town council meeting but were told it wasn’t a town matter. “Working sewage, we feel, is a town matter for citizens who pay taxes and pay monthly sewage bills and for a resident who specifically went to the town presenting our issue and repeatedly received specific direction what to do without any warnings or concerns for us,” he said.

While he believes Winona’s original intentions were to help them correct the problem, “after learning they made an error by instructing the use of an easement that does not exist, coupled with the aggressive actions of the neighbor, who would not discuss repairing the line in the first place, Winona has thrown it back into our lap and left us to fend for ourselves with all the financial consequences  and the stress and the prospect of being sued by an angry neighbor,” he said.

When people make mistakes, he said the right thing to do is own up to it and contribute to making it right, but that’s not what Winona did.

“We’re just asking for some help, some understanding and we want the public to know what’s going on because we feel like this has been pushed down and swept under the rug and we feel we’ve been taken advantage of,” Robert said.

Town attorney Jim Walmer suggested they hire an attorney. “This property that the superintendent believed was an easement is called prescriptive easement, that means it’s not put in any documents or so,” he said.

Walmer said the problem was between them and their neighbor.

Helm said Walmer is wrong on the prescriptive easement and claims there is no prescriptive easement.

After some back and forth between Walmer and the Coppeses, Council President Bruce Shaffner proposed finishing the rest of the council meeting, and then meeting with the Coppeses to talk about possible solutions.