Aug 22, 2018 5 min read

Three Majestic Hills homes in North Strabane Township might soon be condemned after a June landslide made them “uninhabitable.”

The township engineer, Joe Sites of Gateway Engineers, said that following a geotechnical investigation of the land where the homes are located, the houses were deemed “uninhabitable” and “unsafe” in an engineer’s report that was submitted to the township. Sites said he was in agreement with the report.

On June 19, the land behind four Majestic Hills townhomes slid about 30 feet onto Forest Lane Drive following extensive rain. Of the three homes that had to be evacuated, one was damaged.

Township solicitor Gary Sweat suggested the township condemn the properties, “so the homeowners can collect insurance.”

At their meeting Tuesday night, township supervisors gave authorization to begin the condemnation process on the homes, which will afterward be torn down. Sweat said that with the homes being uninhabitable, the township has few options, and the homeowners might need to take legal action.

“There are multiple arrows being shot on what caused this,” he said. “I think we have to follow our ordinance saying it’s unsafe.”

The developer, JND Properties, was recently cited for alleged violations of the Clean Streams Law. In a letter dated July 18, Washington County Conservation District informed the developer of its “failure to maintain erosion and sedimentation control best management practices to effectively minimize accelerated erosion and sedimentation.”

The letter also mentioned a failure to “implement effective post-construction storm water management,” among other alleged violations pertaining to “earthmoving activities.” The WCCD requested the developer conduct a geotechnical investigation and make necessary repairs and “permanently stabilize basin embankments and other slopes where slips have occurred.” The letter requested a response from the developer by Aug. 20, but it wasn’t immediately known if a response was sent.

In a separate but related discussion, the supervisors held a public hearing Tuesday on a new grading ordinance that would restrict the steepness of a slope for development. The supervisors want to change the “maximum permissible slope to 4:1, or 3:1 with a soil stability analysis and geotechnical plan.”

A 4:1 ratio represents a 14-degree slope, while a 3:1 ratio would be an 18-degree slope. The current ratio is 1.5:1 with a geotechnical plan, which is a 33-degree slope.

The new ordinance also would require the removal of utilities and stormwater outfalls from the slopes.

Several developers and attorneys representing land owners and developers attended the public hearing to voice concerns that the ordinance would be too restrictive. David Biddison, of Traditions of America, was one of them. They are in the preliminary stages of submitting plans for what may be a housing development for people 55 and older on Mansfield Road, where a former par-three golf course sat.

“The new ordinance will derail our ability to build a Traditions of America project,” Biddison said during the meeting. “We’d like to continue to pursue our project. We believe there’s a demand out there.”

The property owner, Dena Zaimes, told supervisors the ordinance would make her property “worthless.” She asked them to reconsider for the sake of the Traditions of America project and other property owners in the township.

“We waited all these years to find the perfect fit for our property,” she said. “We just had to feel right about what we were going to be doing with it. I think having it here would do you proud.”

Jim Eichenlaub, executive director of Builders Association of Metropolitan Pittsburgh, argued the ordinance “doesn’t match up” with the goals in the township’s comprehensive plan.

“We’re pricing people out of affordable housing,” he said.

He called the 3:1 slope requirement “extremely excessive.”

“Yes, we have some bad soil in Southwestern Pennsylvania, but if you put the geotechnical study in place and do the oversight that needs to be done, those issues can be prevented,” he said. “The slope ratio is not the problem.”

Jonathan Kamin, an attorney representing property owners “in various stages of development” throughout the township, said the ordinance would have “unintended consequences.”

“It will cause significantly more disturbance because more earth and trees will have to be removed,” he said. “Nobody wants the situation that you’re running into in Majestic Hills.”

Supervisor Harold Close told the crowd the board’s consideration of the grading ordinance “isn’t reactionary” to the landslide in Majestic Hills.

“This discussion has been going on for a while now,” he said. “We’ve had residents reach out and say, ‘I’m glad you’re doing something to protect us.'”

Supervisor Robert Balogh said part of the reason for the updated ordinance is the amount of flooding the township has seen in the last two years. He said because “the whole picture of weather has changed,” the way the township regulates development also needs to change in order “to keep everybody safe.”