Court sides with Saugus on Hitchings Hill wall collapse

SAUGUS – The town has a new ally in trying to force the mortgage company to take responsibility for the Hitchings Hill Road wall collapse – the court.
Residents along Hesper Street have been living under a cloud of concern since the wall, which partially collapsed in July and sent tons of rubble tumbling down a steep embankment toward homes below, could give way again.
Large concrete blocks can still be seen strewn down the hillside that sits behind four would-be upscale – but now largely abandoned – homes atop Hitchings Hill Road.
Building Inspector Frederick Varone last month filed a lawsuit against the property owners and the construction company. In the suit, filed on the behalf of the town, Varone asks that the homes and the wall be demolished or, at the very least, the homes be moved and the wall replaced.
Town Manager Andrew Bisignani said the court sided with the town during a brief hearing last week.
“As a result of the court proceedings, the court took an active role in getting the issue resolved,” he said.
Bisignani said the judge directed engineers from the mortgage company to meet with town engineers to come up with a solution that would protect the homes on Hesper Street and deal with the crumbling properties on Hitchings Hill as well.
Bisignani said it’s his understanding that three of the property owners have filed for bankruptcy and the mortgage company is into the deal for roughly $3 million.
“They (engineers) will have to recommend a solution,” he said. “It will be interesting if it even happens.”
The town will be back in court on the issue Dec. 9.
In the meantime Bisignani said work will begin on a crash wall this week.
The wall will be installed behind the homes that run along Hesper Street. Last month the town installed a chain link fence around the four properties. The idea was to keep squatters, partying teens and would-be scavengers out of the properties. However, it gave little relief to homeowners below, who are still worried about the possibility of more debris sliding their way.
To remedy that situation, Bisignani met with engineers who have devised a plan to install a crash fence, which will catch anything that careens down the slope before it hits the Hesper Street homes.
“The contractors are in there and the fence – it should be finished in the better part of a week,” Bisignani said.
Bisignani said the fence would not be a cure-all but it would be a short-term solution until the final remedy plays out in court.