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Montgomery family says erosion destroying their home
FOX 26 Reporter Jade Flury spoke with the family about what's happening.
HOUSTON - Erosion is taking a devastating toll on one Montgomery family’s home. The house is in danger of possible collapse, which is threatening to crumble it to pieces.
The American Dream has turned into a nightmare for Kenneth and Katherine Ridlehuber, who purchased their home back in 2022. Since then, the property has eroded away to the point where they've lost their backyard. Their home is now being held up by a 30-foot man-made concrete cliff.
"This is not good. This is dangerous and this is going to affect everybody unless they figure it out," said Kenneth Ridlehuber.
Two years ago, Kenneth and Katherine Ridlehuber thought they had found their dream home in Montgomery, but as time went on, their property began to erode away.
"I’m talking 20 foot pieces that would shear off basically overnight," said Kenneth Ridlehuber.
Last year, was when the couple noticed their backyard was beginning to crumble. They alerted their local officials, who promised to fix the problem with slope remediation. But eight months later, the nightmare continued.
"What you see here is emergency shoring. That was the first emergency project to keep the yard and save the house. That obviously failed," said Kenneth.
As a second line of defense, an almost 30-foot wall was built to secure the property, but still it didn’t stop the erosion from continuing. Kenneth said the property officials claimed the erosion was caused by storm and groundwater that was held due to improper drainage.
Real estate attorney, Richard Weavers, said in many circumstances, retention ponds, like the one behind Ridlehuber’s home, are required to be maintained by homeowners associations or by the MUD district.
"After looking at this gentleman's situation, what I’ve noticed and learned is that this looks like this is a result of improper drainage design or improper drainage construction," said Richard Weaver, of The Weaver Law Firm.
"We are beyond devastated. We would like answers," said Katherine Ridlehuber.
In a statement, the Montgomery County Municipal Utility District said in part:
"As the erosion has also impacted the drainage and detention facilities of Montgomery County Municipal Utility District No. 166 ("MUD 166"), MUD 166 began work to reconstruct the slope when it became aware of the conditions earlier this year. Please see attached for an update made available last week on the project’s history, status, and expected completion timeline.
The District has worked to obtain the necessary approvals from regulatory agencies, including the TCEQ and Montgomery County, in connection with this effort. Our entire team is working diligently to allow the District’s contractors to build a retaining wall, complete the restoration of the site, and ensure the safety of the nearby properties and residents, on as quickly a timeline as possible."