SAUGUS – Town officials bent to public opinion Tuesday and agreed, despite potential liability issues, to try and protect Hesper Street residents from a crumbling retaining wall precariously balanced above their homes.
Nearly two-dozen residents turned out to meet with town officials, developer John Mallon and Geotechnical Engineer Kevin Martin regarding a study that calls the wall unsafe.
In July, a 30-foot section of a retaining wall located behind four partially finished homes atop Hitching Hill Road, gave way. The breach sent nearly a ton of debris tumbling down a steep 70-foot slope toward the homes below on Hesper Street.
Hesper Street resident Cara Aloise said now every time it rains she is compelled to leave her house lest the rest of the wall come tumbling down.
The town’s position over the last seven weeks is that it could take no action to help the residents without assuming liability.
While portions of the discussion drifted toward laying blame, participants did try and keep the debate focused on what could be done to safeguard the wall.
Building Inspector Frederick Varone said the structural engineer will end up shouldering most of the blame for the project.
Varone explained that when a project calls for a structural engineer, the developer must hire someone registered by the state, which was done. As the Building Inspector, Varone said he is required to accept the engineer’s reports at face value because he, himself, is not an engineer.
Martin, who produced the study, agreed that the bulk of the liability will fall on the structural engineer.
Hesper Street resident Paul Giansiracusa pointed out that, while helpful, that bit of knowledge doesn’t offer any immediate relief.
“We need to make this safe now,” he said.
George DeCandia questioned how to make the wall temporarily safe until a permanent fix can be rendered, which he fears might be years down the road.
“We don’t want to come out of this meeting with nothing in hand,” DeCandia said. “It’s been seven weeks and we’ve been patient.”
Martin said the most assured way to fix the problem would be to dismantle the wall. That would not only take a lot of money, but it would also include moving the houses as well.
Varone said he expected that any eventual fix would include that package but it was hardly one the town was prepared in any way – especially not financially – to take on.
Martin also suggested diverting the water that Aloise said pours from the wall like a waterfall every time it rains. He said it wouldn’t change the fact that the wall is unstable, but it would slow down the erosion.
While officials once again fell into the debate over liability, Selectman Stephen Castinetti cut them off and called for Town Manager Andrew Bisignani to make a commitment to establish a berm to direct the water away from the hillside into a catch basin.
“Let’s get it done,” he said. “It’s the quickest, easiest solution and it will at least slow down the erosion and will give the mortgage company time to react.”
Bisignani agreed to have the berm installed, but one resident wondered if there would be a Plan B. She asked if the berm diversion wasn’t effective, what would the next step be.
Vasapolli said he believed the next step would be for the mortgage company to step up and take some responsibility.