South Minneapolis business owners look for answers after destructive water main break
Nearly two weeks since the Minneapolis water main break that devastated businesses and evacuated residents, local businesses said it is still unclear who will be paying for damages.
"Uncertainty is the name of the game right now," Terzo co-owner Charlie Broder said.
The Feb. 13 water main break pushed water to the ceiling of the restaurant's basement and left 18 inches of water in the main dining room.
Broder said he is unsure if they will ever open again.
"The gravity of the damage in those pictures really conveys the massive lift it's going to be to even get close to reopening, let alone understanding if the building is habitable," Broder said.
The foundation of the building caved in and there's no gas or water. That's why the city of Minneapolis posted a "notice to condemn" on the building.
A city spokesperson said the building would only be condemned if those issues go unaddressed, or larger structural issues are found.
The question now is: Who is responsible for all this?
"I don't know who's liable at this time. Clearly, it was a city water main break, but the nuance and dynamics around legal liability and insurance, I leave to the professionals," Broder said.
Just one door down from Terzo, come similar questions from Paperback Exchange manager Rachel Pedersen.
"Currently, the city hasn't given us a lot of answers right now," Pedersen said.
A city spokesperson said six damage claims related to the pipe burst are not yet complete.
"Once the claims are complete, the city will evaluate the claims based on Minnesota law," a city spokesperson said.
There has not been an obvious cause for the water main break, according to the city. The pipe was installed in 1922 and was last inspected in 2007.
In the meantime, there's fundraising to fill the funding gaps: an online fundraiser for Terzo employees and another for Paperback Exchange. The latter has now raised more than $40,000.
"We're so blown away by the support from our community, our book-loving friends, other bookstores, Moonplace books. We wouldn't have been able to do any of this without them," Pedersen said.
