Sinking Homes Relief $$ Floats Out Of Reach

Nine months after the state promised a $2 million lifeline for their sinking homes, Bridget Gardner and her neighbors find them deteriorating further, as the money is held up in cross-border talks between New Haven and Woodbridge. 

Block watch captain Gardner and her neighbors in the Beverly Hills section of upper Westville have been sounding the alarm for years as they watch their homes slowly sink and shift. Last December, when the state bonding commission approved $2 million to help with repairs, it looked as though their prayers had been answered.

But nine months later, nothing has changed. State officials said this week that the delay is due to ​“a lack of clarity” over how the money is to be spent. An amendment to the bonding approval requires that Woodbridge also receive some of the funds, but it doesn’t say how much. Jim Watson, a spokesman for the state Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD), said the agency is waiting for direction from Woodbridge and New Haven on just how to divvy up the money.

While the DECD awaits clarification, $2 million remains in limbo, and Gardner and her neighbors continue to sink.

“Because of the issues with how the funds are to be allocated, that’s why there’s been a delay,” said Sheila Hummel, a project manager with DECD. Other projects that were approved last December are already in the contract phase, she said.

A technical change is needed in the language approved by the bond commission, Hummel said. The bonding was initially pegged only for repairs to sinking homes. When the Woodbridge amendment was passed, that language didn’t change, even though Woodbridge doesn’t have a problem with sinking homes. What it has is a problem with flooding, but that’s not mentioned in the bonding language, Hummel said. Nor is it spelled out how much money Woodbridge is supposed to get.

“That’s why we’re stuck,” Hummel said.

“Our staff has had contact with all the key stakeholders,” said Watson. ​“Right now it’s honestly a locally driven issue.”

Watson said it’s up to the two towns, as well as their state delegations, to come to an agreement. ​“We’re anxious to hear what they come up with and are ready.”

“Part of the issue is a governance issue between towns, part of it is who in state government can look at this,” said New Haven state Rep. Pat Dillon, who has been the lead advocate for Beverly Hills sinking homeowners. She said she has learned the problems there are much larger than she initially imagined. She said she’s had a number of meetings recently on the matter and is making ​“a lot of progress.”

“The city is working with our legislative delegation and working with the town of Woodbridge to establish legislation for the disbursement of funds,” said city spokesman Adam Joseph.“We’re negotiating right now.”

Joseph and Dillon said they couldn’t predict when homeowners might see money to make repairs.

Gardner said her home has been slanting for eight years, since she bought it. ​“The house is splitting,” she said last week on her front porch. ​“It slants. You can just spill water on the floor and watch it roll.”

Five years ago, she noticed a dip in her neighbor’s lawn, near her property line. That dip has sunk more and more. ​“That hole is getting bigger,” Gardner said. She said it’s making her nervous. ​“It’s coming closer to my property line.”

Street Fixed?

The sinkhole in her neighbor’s lawn lines up with a hole in the middle of the street that the city repaired last week. Gardner and Dillon said they suspect the two holes are related. City spokesman Joseph said they are not.

Gardner said the hole in the street first appeared several months ago. She called the city. ​“It’s 8 feet deep and I don’t see what’s holding the street up,” she recalled telling city workers.

The city came out three times to fill the hole, Gardner said. Each time, the fill just fell through, ​“like putting frosting on top of no cake,” Gardner said. It was clear to her there was a bigger problem. ​“You put water in a glass, it’s full. You can’t put in more water unless there’s a leak.”

“What is underneath this and what is it going to do to my house?” asked Gardner. ​“That’s scary to me.”

Joseph said the problem is an old stormwater pipe that collapsed. He said City Engineer Dick Miller ​“doesn’t believe that it’s contributing to the larger scale problem of sinking homes in the neighborhood.”

“It was just a really old pipe from 1939,” Joseph said. ​“These things happen in an older city.”

“I wouldn’t start out by saying it’s unrelated,” said Dillon, in response. ​“I don’t think we know enough.”

“It certainly looks like that sinkhole on Beverly Road lines up with where some of the worst damage was on people’s homes.”