Drone photo shows close proximity of Southside Road landslides to ponds on hill. August, 2018. Photo by Jake Medina.
Drone photo shows close proximity of Southside Road landslides to ponds on hill. August, 2018. Photo by Jake Medina.

This article was written by BenitoLink intern Joshua Solorio. Lea este artículo en español aquí. 

San Benito County reached an agreement with the Sunnyslope Water District and two homeowners last year, settling a lawsuit regarding a series of landslides on Southside Road.

The settlement was agreed to in May 2024, four years after the county filed the suit in San Benito County Superior Court. The case was later moved to Monterey County where it was resolved.

According to the settlement document obtained by BenitoLink, Sunnyslope agreed to pay the county $675,000 and Lynn and Susan Hilden $262,500 for damages caused by the water district’s Pond 5.  

In addition, Sunnyslope agreed to decommission Pond 5 as part of the settlement.  

Pond 5 was used for storing or percolation of wastewater. 

In addition, the Hildens agreed to pay the county $55,000 as part of the settlement.

The county claims the Hildens created a dirt path in the area that crossed the area of the landslide, resulting in “destabilization of the hillside and changes to drainage patterns.” 

Sunnyslope General Manager Drew Lander said the water district “has always been a very strong partner of the county,” but declined to provide further comments about the settlement.

BenitoLink reached out to the county for a comment but didn’t receive an immediate response.

The county filed the lawsuit against both parties alleging that Sunnyslope was creating a substantial risk of injury to the public. Also, the county claimed that the Hildens were trespassing and acting negligently.

The five landslides took place May 18–21, 2018. 

The county claimed the series of landslides was caused by Pond 5, which is owned and operated by Sunnyslope and is located directly above where the landslides occurred. 

The water district denied those allegations.

The county closed down the road to clean the landslide debris and fix any damage done to the road. The county hired Don Chapin to complete more than $1 million worth of repairs. 

The county did not respond to BenitoLink’s inquiry as to how much it spent in total on repairs.

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