March 15, 2005

MANY WORKING TO SAVE SINKING HOMES

Angela Carter, New Haven Register Staff

NEW HAVEN — City, state and federal officials are marshaling their resources to help Westville homeowners discover why their homes are sinking and ultimately, try to save the houses.

State Rep. Patricia A. Dillon, D-New Haven, said Monday that legislation she introduced to make property owners eligible for grants and loans was referred favorably by the Select Committee on Housing to the Planning and Development Committee.

Homeowners in the Beverly Hills section of Westville are experiencing cracking in their foundations, basements and garage floors, homes are sinking and porches are separating from some of the houses.

Mayor John DeStefano Jr. said Monday the city is going to hire an engineering consultant to conduct tests and try to find out the cause of the damage to houses in the area. "It’s important to find out why this is happening so it doesn’t continue to happen after they fix their houses," he said.

City officials will hold a neighborhood meeting to explain the nature of the consultant’s work by the end of the month, the mayor said. "We need to see what’s going on under their houses," he said.

Kate Cyrul, spokeswoman for U.S. Rep. Rosa L. DeLauro, D-3, said a staff member would be walking through the neighborhood with residents Saturday. "We are in an information-gathering stage to see what can be done," Cyrul said.

Property owners have sought the assistance of public officials by testifying in support of Dillon’s bill, meeting with DeStefano during Mayor’s Night Out and contacting DeLauro’s office.

"The homeowners have been great. They’ve been persistent. I’ve always believed that in a case like this you need a team: the state, the city, the federal level and even the private sector," Dillon said.

The bill also contains language that would give property owners eligibility for foundation funds set up in the process of bank conversions.

Angela Carter can be reached at 789-5614 or acarter@nhregister.com.

©New Haven Register 2005