More Thoughts on Land Collapse

I've posted pictures of the backyard, but again reiterate that the pictures cannot possibly depict the pitch of the drop, or, of course, the rapidity with which the land fell.

I'm continually aghast that Consort trots out potential buyers to surrounding lots--sometimes with the construction manager in tow explaining away any issues, as though what potential buyers see and presume (correctly)to be a problem is just a figment of their imagination. I've actually heard the construction manager saying, "oh, don't worry, we'll just fill that ditch in" when referring to adjacent lots. Disgusting.

Let me explain that when *I* bought this lot, the first lot sold on the problematic line of lots, the land had been filled. The lots had been cleverly covered with enough soil to give an impression of even land. I initially found the backyard so boringly flat that I wondered how we might enhance it. Little did I know. I now look at the buckled street and sidewalk several lots down and am incredibly dismayed, again, at the rapidity with which all the underlying land sunk and shifted. When my home was built, the street showed no signs of damage. Now? It's buckled, cracked,and prone to flooding--and, funny enough, following along the same line of drainage that tracks all the way through my lot and contiguous lots.

I'm heartbroken at what has happened to my property. But beyond heartbroken, I am incredibly stressed. Again, a home is an investment--and watching the value decline because of Consort's greed in selling unsuitable lots is a daily burden and strain.

Lost Lot Continued

Additional Photos....

Consort thinks a little extra mud will do the trick here. At one point, their construction manager suggested a tarp at the edge of the lot--uh huh, a tarp. Those tarps do wonders for sinking land.

This property will never be able to compete fairly on the re-sale real estate market. Value is permanently lost.

What a Lost Lot Looks Like

These photos--some from October of 2009 and some more recent--illustrate what is occuring on our lot. Unfortunately, they don't do the problems justice. But, nevertheless, it's worth documenting so that potential buyers understand that when Consort tries to sell them a lot along this line, Consort is, in my opinion, attempting to sell a lot--and an entire stretch of land--that should NEVER be built upon.

Photos show the backyard, as well as the adjacent lots where the same pattern of drainage exists--also visible is a drainage sewer.

The photos with the painted stakes (white in some, white with orange streamers in others) illustrate a shelf created. From the top it drops suddenly about 15 inches straight down, as though pulled from underneath.

Consort Doesn't See This As a Problem

WOW! Look how well plastic tarps keep out water. Seems that lessons in topography, gravity, etc are needed for the good folks at Consort.

Consort Homes ignores the very real issue here...flooding on adjacent lots can't be remedied by plowing over with soil. This is a natural drainage route--and it will continue to be one long after Consort tries to convince people that filling ditches with mud will do the job.

First, Consort can't fill these ditches with mud because the water NEEDS an outlet--and conventiently, there are drainage pipes and sewers located further down the empty lot line. To fill these would compromise the drainage needed. Second, if the lots around our home are built upon, and Consort attempts to artificially raise said lots under development, our lot will become the lowest point, and thus depository for water and further erosion. IF, however, Consort decides not to raise the lots next to us (let's face it, they can't raise them as the manhole and sewers will be covered up), the issue of soil erosion from underneath the surface will continue--until everyone loses property value.

*If you were to follow the path of water in this photo you would see it follow the contour of our lot and adjacent lots. A good rain and we might just have a pond in our lot too.