KIRKLAND - A group of citizens in Kirkland say they're being bullied by town officials over a piping problem.
The town found a problem with the sewer pipe system and wants individual residents to foot the bill for the repairs.
It's an issue with environmental consequences, but neither side appears willing to budge.
Ben Sud is just one of dozens of Kirkland homeowners in the area who were sent a letter from the city in February.
"(It) said that you have a problem--fix it within a month and get back to us," he told CTV Montreal's Camille Ross.
Sergei Brovkin is one of the residents affected; he's also an engineer who says it's a common problem -- and a serious one. The problem is cross-connected sewer pipes, he says.
"Dirty water is coming from the house is connected to the so-called clean pipe-- which goes directly into the open water open lake--and in our case--its Lac St. Louis," he said.
The faulty sewer pipes have been this way for 40 years, but were only detected a few years ago.
In an email response to CTV, the city says it plans on going door to door to explain to each resident the rationale behind its position.
The repairs could cost anywhere between $2,500 to $5,000.
Meanwhile, some residents say they plan on taking legal action, but hope it doesn't come to that.
"We do not see any moral or legal responsiblity for something that has been improperly done 40 years ago and supervised by the municipality," said Brovkin.
