NBC 7’s Omari Fleming explains why they’re blaming more than bad weather for the damage to their homes and lives.
For a second time, a Southcrest homeowner is in the process of suing the City of San Diego because of flooding damage to his home.
Greg Montoya is now one of nearly 300 plaintiffs in a case that says that after years of the city neglecting to take care of storm drains, it's created a deluge of problems.
The San Diego native’s home of nearly 30 years is now gutted because of the severe flooding that hit San Diego in January 2024.
He’s frustrated with city leaders over policies that he says created the perfect storm — that helped damage hundreds of homes, forcing him and others to continue living in hotels months after the floods.
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“I love the city of San Diego, but it’s unfortunate the politicians have let part of San Diego look like a third world country. It’s through their policy and neglect that's happened.”
Those claims of negligence are spelled out in a lawsuit he and nearly 300 others submitted to be filed.
They're alleging the City of San Diego inadequately maintained its stormwater system, contributing to its failure and flooding.
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The suit also claims the city was well aware, for years, that it didn't have enough money to fix the problem.
“What we’re hearing from the city is the same type of arguments we heard back in 2019," said plaintiff’s attorney Evan Walker, who calls this most recent suit a terrible case of deja vu.
Not only because the suit says city engineers told the city back in 2016 that the South Chollas Creek Channel needed repairs, but also because Walker represented Montoya in a similar flooding case against the city back in 2019.
That case was settled.
“The city new about it. We have documentation cited in the complaint, but the city didn't do anything about it for years and they knew something like this could happen," said Walker.
City leaders called the punishing rains that fell for just a few hours in January, a generational storm that no system could've contained.
Montoya says the crisis could have been averted if the city would do what he does, and what residents have requested for years: to clean out the storm drains and make fixing the stormwater system a priority over other projects.
“Installing bike paths, they knew the storm drain system was inadequate. It’s mismanagement, neglect,” said Montoya.
It's alleged neglect that could cost the city $100 million in damages because of the lawsuit.
NBC 7 reached out to the city for comment. A spokesperson said they haven't been served with the lawsuit yet but will not comment on pending litigation.
