I rent a space in a strip mall style building for my restaurant. There is a recurring sewer line backup because the line is old and makes a 90° turn. This gets clogged a few times each year. The turn is about 160 feet from my shop. Despite this affecting at least four other tenants, I am always the person who calls to get it fixed.
The landlord knows what the problem is and will not fix the pipes because it is “cost prohibitive.” They have a contract with a local plumber to come blast hot water down the line periodically.
Even with that plumber coming out, we have backups a couple times a year still. The sewage backs up onto my floor through a floor drain, through my utility sink, and my toilet. Other tenants are similarly affected. Earlier this year it backed up so bad one of the other tenants closed for two days to have professional cleaner come in and clean up their store.
I am wondering what options I have here. I have a lawyer who helped me with my lease who I could contact. But I figured I would ask and see if anyone here had any suggestions before I make that call.
You must log in or register to comment.
How much time is left on your lease, and the other four leases?
I worked for ten years as environmental program manager for our county’s air quality division. Part of our responsibilities was addressing malodor complaints.
This could be from spreading manure around fruit trees, sick chickens at egg processing plant, tire burning, back up sewers and septic systems, chemical spills, etc.
Alleged violators were issued 30 day notice to clean things up without penalty.
Perhaps your county has program that can assist you.
look at your lease agreement to see if there is a section about repairs and responsibility.
If they are being fairly responsive to the issue, then see if they can start being proactive about it and calling the plumber out once per quarter, or monthly if quarterly doesn’t help enough.
Sewer pipes can be both unclogged and repaired without ripping up the street using the newest technology.
The traditional approach to the problem is cost prohibitive. You might bring along some of this information and have a “Never Split the Difference” conversation.
My guess is that there is some number that works for your landlord when it comes to solving the problem…
If you get into a “What is?” “What if?” “What Wows?” and “What Works?” mindset, there possibly might be a workable solution. And do toss rent reduction and other mitigation solutions into the pot.
Getting to the state of “pitchforks, flaming torches, hot tar and feathers” easy. Finding a workable solution not so much…
Some issues can be resolved using trenches plumbing technology, but this specific problem of an old underground 90, mixed with tampons/blue shop towels/grease cannot be fixed like that. That fitting needs to be dug up, replaced with a longsweep, with and added 2 way cleanout that is jetted once a year both ways, with an investigation on who is flushing the towels, because that’s who I’d be backcharging the costs too
And yes, lawyers do need to make a living…
I’d call the county health department next time it happens
Your state puc ‘might’ be able to help
Depending on your state, there might be statutes that the landlord is violating depending on circumstances
You need legal help not small biz help
Check your lease agreement on repair requirements. I am not 100% sure on who handles it for business leasing but HUDs usually quickly get involved with housing issues like this so I assume there is a dept that would be concerned here. Whatever local department it is would not be happy about a landlord preventing a business from safely operating, thus costing tax dollars if eventually you are shut down due to health code violations. Maybe if you have to escalate, keep that in your back pocket as you can sue for cost of lost income while being shut down due to the landlords negligence. Keep a paper trail of these communications because I can’t see sewer backing up into a restaurant on a regular basis being a sustainable business practice.
A local fried chicken joint was dumping grease down the toilet. Eventually, it clogged and backed up to the other spaces in the strip mall, causing a months-long closure for everyone. It took so long to repair that everyone in the mall, including the chicken place, went out of business. Sad story.
Lawyer up.
Sounds like someone who should does not have a grease trap?
Lawyer.
I had this exact problem in my house I rent where I had sewage backing up and the landlord refusing to spend the money to fix the main line that was clogging. Informed my landlord I’d retained a lawyer and would be putting rent into escrow on their advice until the pipe was fixed and like magic it got fixed the next week.
Not the same issue in a house you rent (where a warranty of habitability is usually required) and a business. Seems the same. Is not. Many more variables in a business.