Town Chairman Dave Dubey said the town hasn't been able to do anything yet because it doesn't have the money. The town is facing a potential deficit because of overruns related to snow removal and salt costs and has been making cuts to avoid red ink.
Additionally, some town officials think affected homeowners, not town taxpayers, should bear the cost of any solution.
The town in mid-June received word that it will receive a $506,000 grant from Waukesha County toward the pump station and pipeline project.
But Dubey said the town still is trying to determine what conditions are attached to the money. "Until we figure out what the restrictions are, it's kind of pointless to debate options."
The Town Board expects to discuss the grant at its July 15 meeting, he said.
The Ziebells are angered by the lack of action.
"Let's put it this way -- if the town supervisors lived in this house and had the water problem, they'd find an answer. But since they don't live here, they don't seem to want to care and find an answer," Richard Ziebell said.
"It's frustrating because there's no help from any level. Nobody is willing to step up to the plate to do anything."
Where is all the water coming from in Country Bliss?
"That's the billion-dollar question," Richard Ziebell said.
The Ziebells say they never had a water problem until homes started sprouting up a couple of years ago at the adjacent Stone Brook Hollow subdivision. That pushed the water their way, the Ziebells believe.
Country Bliss is a hilly neighborhood, and the Ziebells and many who are having water trouble are in a low area.
Dubey doesn't believe Country Bliss' problems are caused by Stone Brook Hollow.
Periodically, there are high groundwater levels in the area, and this appears to be one of those times, Dubey said.
Country Bliss residents, meanwhile, have come up with an alternative to the pipeline to Jericho Creek, but it requires the help of their neighbors in Stone Brook Hollow.
Those in Country Bliss have proposed that a pipeline be built to carry water to a retention pond in Stone Brook Hollow at a cost of $300,000.
Linda Dykas, who lives on N. Oak Tree Court, has been pumping water out of her basement, but not at the rate of the Ziebells. She said engineers have looked at the proposal and say it won't cause any problems in Stone Brook Hollow.
Dubey said, though, that the town hasn't evaluated the plan and points out that it is contingent on Stone Brook Hollow agreeing to it. "There is some opposition," Dubey said.
Dykas remains hopeful. Last year, Stone Brook Hollow allowed the town to pump water from the flooded Oak Tree Drive into one of its retention ponds. It took about a month of pumping, but the road eventually reopened.
"Stone Brook has been a gracious neighbor. Last year, they were pretty much our salvation," Dykas said. "We're hoping that things will work out."
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