Water dripping from a bathroom light fixture and repeated ceiling damage brought dentist Freddy Hackney before the Grundy Industrial Development Authority on Sept. 22 to seek help with persistent leaks at the Grundy Town Center.
Hackney, whose office is above El Sombrero Mexican Restaurant, said water enters his office and a hallway during heavy rain. He told the authority that replacing damaged ceiling tiles would do little good until the source of the leaks is fixed.
“Our roof is a mess,” Hackney told the Town IDA. “I got leaks after leaks. Right now I got six ceiling tiles that needs to be replaced. I guarantee you that we have replaced in the past year or two, at least 20 or 30. Until the roof gets fixed, it going to continue.”
Hackney also described hearing water inside a wall during heavy rain, although the source has not been located.
The discussion at the town offices turned to grease around the restaurant’s (El Sombrero) rooftop exhaust equipment, standing water near heating and cooling units, and access to the roof. Hackney said he was concerned about grease on an air conditioning unit he purchased about a year ago. He said he does not regularly inspect the unit and should not have to police what happens around it.
Photographs shown at the meeting prompted questions about how grease from the restaurant’s exhaust system was being collected and cleaned up. IDA properties manager Dennis Ramey said an attempt to pressure-wash the roof had spread the grease.
“They have tried to pressure wash it but made a bigger mess,” Ramey said.
IDA member Doug Shortridge asked whether the condition was new. Ramey said it had worsened over time and pointed to large areas of grease visible in the photographs. He said the roof was not designed to collect grease and that some affected areas appeared to be deteriorating. A bucket had been placed to catch grease, Ramey said, but had not been emptied.
Chairman Chris Shortridge questioned whether a bucket was an adequate way to handle grease from the exhaust system. Mayor and IDA member Chris Mitchell asked whether insurance might help cover repairs and who was responsible for maintaining the restaurant’s equipment. Shortridge said the restaurant should be responsible for its own unit.
Hackney said he liked the restaurant’s crew and had not come to the meeting simply to get them in trouble. He said he wanted to protect the money he had spent on his air conditioning unit and get the leaks addressed.
Hackney also asked the authority to consider security cameras. He described people on the upper walkway late at night and raised concerns about children getting onto the roof. Ramey said he had received calls about children playing on the Town Center roof. Members discussed the ladder and locks used to control access.
Ramey raised the possibility of giving the restaurant 30 days to clean up the roof, but the authority took no formal action on that proposal. Members said the roof and grease problems needed further discussion.
