Water leak causing icy conditions on Business Loop

Driving down the Business Loop, you might have noticed slick conditions near College Avenue. The owner of Robinson’s Cleaners said a leak in the ground behind her business is causing the issue.

Kit Price owns Robinson’s Cleaners on the Business Loop near College Avenue. She said the ground behind her building has been leaking for the past 10 years, and with temperatures well below freezing, it’s a potential hazard for drivers.

“That creates a problem for motorists that are driving down the Business Loop. They swerve to miss that, so they don’t have vehicle damage,” said Price.

The city dug up the area to figure out the source of the leak months ago, but it’s still unclear where the water is coming from.

Initially, city officials said it was a leaky boiler at Robinsons. Since then Price has fixed it, but the water continues to trickle out of the ground, making its way to the street.

“It seems like even though we’ve only had a few short days of cold weather, we’re starting to see significant icing already,” said Price.

MoDOT maintains the Business Loop. MoDOT officials said they became aware of the issue in early December.

“I don’t care who owns it. I don’t care if the city takes care of it, I don’t care if MoDOT takes care of it. They just need to take care of the hazardous problem they have,” said Price.

Officials said they can’t stop the leak, but are considering installing a drain on the roadway to keep the water from pooling, which wouldn’t happen until spring.