THE PROBLEM -- A Brooklyn soccer pavilion lacked running water.

THE BACKSTORY -- A tipster reported to Watchdog that the William J. Myers Soccer Pavilion in Brooklyn had had no running water for three weeks.

After a call to the Baltimore Department of Recreation and Parks, Watchdog discovered that the facility actually had been without water since Feb. 11.

When she was reached Thursday, Malkia McLeod, a recreation and parks spokeswoman, wasn't sure what had caused the problem. She said that staff from the city's Department of Public Works had come out to investigate Wednesday.

"We're still waiting for results of their visit," she said.

A number of adult and youth leagues practice and play at the soccer there. "Most leagues play for an hour," McLeod said. "They're in and out of the facility."

During that time, the department placed three portable toilets outside the pavilion -- one restricted to women only -- and outfitted with soap dispensers, she said.

A city health inspector visited the building on Thursday and found running water, said Bernie Bochenek, director of the Bureau of Food and Ecology at the city Health Department. Apparently the problem was intermittent, he said. "When we were there, there were no problems with the building," he said.

McLeod reported later that the problem appeared to be related to a faulty valve. "We're working diligently to get this resolved," she said. On Friday, she reported that the problem had been fixed.

WHO CAN FIX THIS -- Ron Brooks, Chief of Water and Wastewater Maintenance for the city's Department of Public Works, 410-396-7870. City residents can also call 311 to report problems.

UPDATE

June Piper offered to bake a cake for the first birthday of a sinkhole next to the path of the BWI Trail.

She reported to Watchdog last week that the original sides have caved in, so it has grown in size. But orange construction fencing keeps out the curious, David Buck, a spokesman for the State Highway Administration, wrote in an e-mail.

He added that the hole has no impact to traffic or pedestrians using the trail and multiple permits are necessary to fix the 150 to 200 feet of pipe that created the hole - an expensive repair. Therefore, it hasn't been a high priority, particularly during the busy winter.

Buck said it would take several months to obtain the necessary permits but that he would keep Watchdog posted.