Old Chapin Road at Yachting Road is an accident waiting to happen.

That’s the contention of Victoria Catoe, a Yachting Road homeowner.

She says the redesign of the intersection has reduced visibility.

The redesign also created drainage problems.

Cars coming over the crest on Old Chapin Road could create a collision risk.

She said some of her complaints have been addressed. Others have not.

“No outstanding issues were identified,” said Bill Dixon, VP Land Development of Mungo Homes. He met with the project contractor, engineer and SC Department of Transportation personnel.

Mungo Homes has handed off the issue.

“SCDOT will be responding to any outstanding issues the neighbor may have,” Dixon said.

Mungo Homes was required by SCDOT to make the improvements to the intersection. It was part of an encroachment permit for their Sterling Bridge neighborhood.

One end of Yachting Road is state-owned, the other by Lexington County.

“Connecting to a state road is a highly regulated activity,” Dixon said.

SCDOT must guide and approve steps taken by a professional engineer to make improvements.

According to Catoe, the revamp created two main issues.

“Visibility was always limited at Yachting and Old Chapin, and the redesigned intersection is treacherous,” she said.

Drainage was also impeded.

Catoe said weeks of calling SCDOT and Mungo Homes to complain got her nowhere.

She threatened to file a Freedom of Information Act request. She wanted to find out who was responsible for the changes.

Mungo engineers then reviewed the project, she said.

“They told me they had figured out a way to solve the problem and that I was going to ‘love it,’” Catoe said.

Trenches and a silt fence were supposed to improve drainage.

The trenches block access to the rear of her mailbox.

They didn’t solve drainage issues either, Catoe said, because water doesn’t flow uphill. The trenches are now an eyesore. Dirt, grass and trash are building up in them, she added.

The silt fence of “rusty poles with plastic” also reduced access to her property. The fence is in the way of mowing her front yard.

It created an embankment that is too steep to mow anyway, Catoe claims.

It didn’t improve drainage. The water banked at the fence. She said more water accumulated there than in the drainage ditch.

The silt fence has since been removed. Drainage hasn’t been an issue.

Even so, Catoe said the whole ordeal is a “symptom of a deeper problem.” It was a “waste of money.”

She thinks it indicates a misuse of tax dollars.

She said she believes Lexington is catering to developers, not residents.