COLUMBUS – After denying a request a couple of months ago to pave a portion of Barber Street to fix a drainage problem, Columbus Town Council reconsidered the request and decided this month to fix the problem.

Barber Street is located off Peniel Road in Columbus, with the request coming from Dale Owens, who lives at 78 Barber Street.

Columbus Town Council met Oct. 19 and decided to fix the issue.

Council originally denied the request earlier this year, then heard from Owens during its July meeting. Owens asked council to reconsider the repairs to his drainage problem. He told council then that a tree fell on his house over the summer and caused significant damage. Owens said a responding arborist determined the drainage issue could have been a contributing factor to the tree falling.

Columbus Public Works Director James Smith reported last week on what the town has done to check the issue and check the catch basins in the area. Smith said they ran a sewer camera down the catch basin and it went down but at one point they couldn’t push the camera any further. A jetter was also sent down and got hung up, Smith said.

Columbus Mayor Eric McIntyre said the pipe has obviously been terribly compromised, meaning it’s no longer functioning.

Smith suggested the town run a new pipe as well as a speed bump to run the water where it needs to go and away from Owens’ yard.

Town manager Tim Barth said the curbing won’t have to be that large. He said by the time the water hits the curbing, it’s going to be a relatively small stream of water.

Smith said the cost to the town should be about $3,000 for the pipe and the labor and shouldn’t take more than a day and a half of labor by the town.

This is the second drainage issue Columbus has been requested to fix this year. The town recently paved Gary Street in the Holly Hill subdivision, also off Peniel Road, after the nearby homeowner said town water was causing damage to his property.