Houses 'sinking' in Hamden

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Houses 'sinking' in Hamden

Joe McGurk, Register Staff March 19, 2002

HAMDEN - Stanley knows his house is sinking into contaminated soil.

Federal, state and local officials know, too, but said Monday they won't fix

' house, or 41 other sinking houses they identified, until they have

a better idea what damage decades of industrial waste dumping wreaked on the

Newhall neighborhood.

" It was a swamp, it was filled in with unsuitable material. How much testing

are you going to do, how long is it going to take? " asked. " My

house is sinking. "

and about 50 other residents met Monday with representatives from

the federal Environmental Protection Agency, state Department of

Environmental Protection and other local agencies for an update on the

investigation into ground contamination.

In the 16 months since contamination was found and cleaned at the Hamden

Middle School and Rochford Park on Newhall Street, owners of 130 nearby

properties have waited for authorities to outline a plan to clean the

neighborhood.

" Ultimately we will get there. We have to understand the problem before we

can fix it, " said Tom Riscassi, a supervisor in the DEP remediation

division.

The meeting was to explain to residents the work that authorities have done

since they last met in September: Contaminated soil, some 1,345 tons, was

found and removed from some of the 130 properties that were built on top of

a former industrial waste dump. The town did a historical report that found

four parties may be responsible: one-time land owners, the state Department

of Education and Southern Connecticut Regional Water Authority; and current

owners, the town and Olin Corp., which admitted to filling in wetlands with

industrial waste.

Authorities have done structural assessments on houses, and found 40 are

sinking into the shifting soil. Authorities are looking for contamination

deeper in the soil. Reports on all the work are being compiled for

residents.

It's not enough, said Joe Frasier, who huddled outside the meeting with

about 10 people who boycotted the meeting.

" We want a plan. There's no plan, " Frasier said. " We know the testing they

are doing in the community. We want to know what they are going to do to fix

all the problems. "

Fixes, authorities said, start with finding out who is responsible for the

problems.

Mayor Carl Amento said that after a thorough investigation of the

neighborhood, owners of properties that were damaged may be compensated.

Several Legislative Council members said that once properties are identified

as damaged, they should start to be repaired.

" Mr. has a serious problem, said Councilwoman Ann Altman. " Why

can't he be helped now? "

Kay, a town consultant, said, " We have to find the extent of the

damage first. "

©New Haven Register 2002