Johnson County neighbors seek answers as roads crumble in their development
NORTH TEXAS – A group of Johnson County neighbors built their dream homes in a new development, only to watch the roads begin to crumble within a few years. They say the issue is further compounded because no one is taking responsibility for the repairs.
"It's just really frustrating because everyone's just pointing fingers instead of someone taking responsibility," said Sarah Birchmeier. She and her husband built their home for their growing family in March 2022. "The goal is for this to be a forever home," she said.
Just down the street is the country sanctuary of Paula Woods' dreams.
"It's supposed to be my retirement home," Woods said. "But unfortunately for me, every time it rains, pieces of the road actually go into my yard."
The streets in their neighborhood are falling apart. Massive potholes mark the main intersection at Rock Dove Road and Scissor Tail Drive.
"It's continuously getting worse and worse, and as you can see, it is actually undrivable at this point," said Woods.
The neighbors keep hitting dead ends with every attempt to get the roads fixed. Each municipality in Texas has its own rules and standards when it comes to the construction and maintenance of public roads. This neighborhood is outside both Godley and Joshua city limits, so they're not responsible for servicing the streets. As it turns out, neither is Johnson County.
"Everyone says the county should fix it, but the county is saying the developer should fix it," Birchmeier said. According to the county, this problem falls on the developer, Silveroak Realty. County commissioners approved the final plat in 2018, giving Silveroak Realty the ability to start selling lots, with the caveat that streets were built to county specifications.
"So that's actually in the motion that yes, we're taking the plat for filing purposes only, and we're dedicating these roads for public use," said Commissioner Kenny Howell, who represents Precinct 2. "But in no way is the county assuming any maintenance responsibilities."
Commissioner Howell says the developer has to then submit a separate request for the roads to be added to the county maintenance program.
"But in this case, we never heard back from this gentleman," he said. "We've never received anything in writing. We haven't had a phone call."
Still, Silveroak Realty went on to sell the majority of lots to Carnegie Homes, and construction began. That doesn't sit right with homeowners.
"Why didn't [the commissioners] make them complete the roadway the way it's supposed to be before they completed the housing additions?" Woods said.
Commissioner Howell says the county's regulations are as stringent as possible, while still allowing developers to easily move forward with projects.
"You hope that everybody who comes in here, every developer who comes into this county is a good developer and has good intentions and wants to do their job," he said. "But that's not always the case."
CBS News Texas asked if he thought the county should be doing more to hold developers accountable for building roads to a certain standard.
"Certainly I think that would be something to think about, look into and talk about is trying to strengthen that rule somehow," said Commissioner Howell.
Howell says it bothers him so much, he wished he'd put up signs in the neighborhood to warn potential homeowners.
"So those individuals drive down there to buy a lot or buy a house and they see it and go, yeah, you know what? Let's not buy here because these aren't county maintained," he said.
Without any kind of warning, neighbors say they felt blindsided.
"None ever said, check up on the status of the roads," Birchmeier said. "That's not something you'd ever think about… We're just kind of at a standstill. Why are we as residents suffering because the developers we trusted with all our money didn't follow the guidelines?"
CBS News Texas finally managed to talk to the head of Silveroak Realty, after weeks of trying. He was under the impression the home builder he sold the lots to would be responsible for maintaining the roads. That company is no longer in business. However, the developer did say now that this has been brought to his attention, he plans to get the streets repaired.
If he doesn't follow through on that promise, the residents can either file a lawsuit against Silveroak Realty or come up with the money themselves to first bring the roads up to standards, then go through the process to get them in the county maintenance program. The county hasn't done an official estimate yet but said it would easily cost tens of thousands of dollars per street in the neighborhood.
"We paid handsomely for these houses," Woods said. "We shouldn't have to pay for the roads. That should have already been done."
If you are purchasing or renting a home and aren't sure who is responsible for maintaining the roads, you can always contact your county commissioner's court to avoid ending up in a similar situation.
