North Wixom Road in Wixom closed after sinkhole appears

Aug 28, 2023

Wixom officials are breathing a sigh of relief despite dealing with a sinkhole that appeared on North Wixom Road between Pontiac Trail and Maple Road Monday.

“The good news is, we got away without having any tragedy. It’s just an inconvenience. We had a near miss. It could have been worse,” said Steve Brown, the city manager.

He said two people reported what they thought was a large pothole Monday. The first came from a driver who hit the hole and went to the police station early Monday afternoon. As the driver and a police officer examined the car for damage – there was none – another person called to alert city officials, Brown said. Police and county road commission officials closed the road and police alerted Wixom public works officials.

“It was initially assessed as a hole at least four-by-two feet wide and several feet deep,” Brown said, adding that the timing was good, because classes at nearby Wixom Elementary School were still in session and no buses were on the road. The hole is just south of the school, so parents and buses are using Maple Road for pick-up and drop-offs until further notice. Some residents complained about drivers using neighborhoods as a shortcut but driving faster than the 25 mph speed limit.

Last week’s storms are probably to blame for the hole, Brown said.It appears the amount of water rushing through an underground Oakland County Water Resources storm water pipe was also leaking, destabilizing the soil under the road, he said. The Water Resources Commission is responsible for repairs, according to county road commission spokesman Craig Bryson.

“We typically have maybe a couple of voids under the road in a given year,” Bryson said. “Usually it has to do with a failed water or sewer pipe.”

By midday Tuesday, contractors were digging into the road to expose the stretch of pipe that needs to be replaced. Brown said once the damage assessment is done, they will order a replacement pipe, install it, fill in the hole and repave the street.

“This is not something that will be fixed by the holiday weekend,” Brown said.

In his six years as city manager, Brown said, this is the first sinkhole he’s seen in Wixom.

The city has designated two alternate routes:

• Southbound traffic on N. Wixom Road – turn left (east) on Maple Road to Beck Road right (south).

• Northbound traffic on N. Wixom Road – turn right (east) on Pontiac Trail to Beck Road left (north).

For daily updates, visit the City of Wixom online at www.wixomgov.org or call City Hall (248) 624-0894 during working hours or at 248-624-6114 after hours. Those phone numbers should also be used to report potholes and other road issues, Brown said.

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