Sewer line collapse, dumpster route create costly problem for church and landowner

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Updated: 5:02 PM CDT Aug 28, 2026

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Editorial Standards ⓘ

Matt Flener

KMBC 9 News Investigative Reporter

The pastor of an Excelsior Springs church is calling attention to a costly problem that affected Sunday service earlier this year.

The church had to cancel service on its opening Sunday in March after sewage backed up into the building. The church’s plumber eventually found the sewer pipe collapsed underneath a neighboring parking lot.

Restoration Church lead pastor JP Stafford believes the repeated weight of a garbage truck going to a dumpster twice weekly on the lot is too much weight for the asphalt.

Stafford told KMBC he is concerned the backup might happen again if a garbage truck is not rerouted a different way through or away from the lot.

For months, Stafford said he’s tried to reach a resolution with the garbage company and the neighboring lot owner.

After not finding a solution, he reached out to KMBC.

“We can't have raw sewage in here,” Stafford said. “I've got 300 people that attend. I've got staff members that depend on us for a job. We just want the right thing to be done.”

Stafford said he had assurances from a local Republic Services manager that the manager would submit a damage claim to insurance. The repairs cost the church roughly $7,000, he said.

However, Republic Services told KMBC in an emailed statement the company “did not identify damage attributable to Republic Services operations that would warrant an insurance claim.”

“We remain willing to discuss the matter with those involved and will continue providing service as directed by the property owner,” the statement said.

Friday, after KMBC 9 Investigates started asking questions and getting answers about the problem, Stafford agreed to discuss a solution with the parking lot owner, Raymond Wood, and his daughter Amy, who manages the lot.

Both Raymond and Amy said they would be open to moving their Republic Services dumpster to the back of the church to avoid any more garbage truck traffic over their lot and the church’s sewer line. They said they originally pitched the idea to Stafford, but he rejected it. The two sides have remained in conflict for months.

However, Friday, both sides told KMBC 9 Investigates they would be open to those discussions, with final agreements in writing.

“We'll put the trash can back in there, drive back there and then we don't have trash coming in here,” site manager Amy Wood said.

KMBC will keep watching this situation to see if all sides can come to an agreement.

If you have a news tip you would like KMBC to investigate, email investigates@kmbc.com.