Slowed by mud

Eight inches of fluffy snow turned Middlesex Borough into a winter wonderland on a mid-February Saturday. It also became the latest workaround in the effort to save several homes threatened by severe stream erosion.

The staging area for heavy equipment and materials needed to build a cement block wall remained too wet for use due to the snowfall, the second storm within a several-day period. The staging area is across the Green Brook border from the endangered Heather Lane homes, whose backyards continue to wear away.

Last fall, supply issues stalled the wall work. Prior to year-end 2023, officials had aimed to get the work started by late January. Now nearly a month beyond that point, it is still not clear when it will start. 

After a year of virtually no snow, a series of weather events including a heavy rainfall and flooding have combined to continually push back the work.

Weather forecasters are predicting no additional snowfall for the foreseeable future. But rain is anticipated late this week.

When asked on Tuesday, Feb. 20 when the work might start, Borough Administrator Michael LaPlace consulted with the Department of Public Works before answering. The DPW would carry out the cement block project in consultation with the borough engineer.

“Not anytime soon, ground is too saturated, especially with all this snow,” LaPlace wrote in an email.

The cement block work is considered a temporary fix to the severe erosion that affected homeowners and local officials contend was caused by September 2021’s Tropical Storm Ida and nearby Green Brook Flood Risk Management Project work. A pumping station and flood wall have been constructed not far from the endangered homes

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers representatives have claimed the erosion would have occurred even if the flood management project had not taken place.

Since Ida, subsequent heavy storms have continued to erode the backyards of several Heather Lane homes. The concern is that without remediation, the problem could also affect more homes on nearby Holly Court.

The borough has applied for a grant of up to $5 million from the state’s Resilient Communities Program. That would fund a more permanent solution to the erosion. But that grant program is considered competitive and it’s unclear when a determination might be made on the borough’s request.

Meanwhile, Heather Lane homeowner Ken Beck has begun to pursue another course of action. His backyard has continued to erode during the past two-and-a-half years. Beck filed tort claim notices two weeks ago with the state Department of Environmental Protection and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. He said he’s yet to hear back from either agency.

A notice of tort claim is the first step to potentially suing a government entity in a liability matter. 

A neighboring home was deemed uninhabitable in March 2022 due to erosion. Beck fears his home will be next. He realizes that attempting to sell his home under the current circumstances would be virtually impossible.

“How big of a fire sale do you want to have?” Beck asked rhetorically.

Beck said he intends to file for a property tax reduction this year, as he did in 2022, based on his home’s decreased value.

Once the DPW begins the wall project, Beck’s been told it would take 10 to 12 work days to complete, barring any further weather delays during that period.

Reminder

Subscribe to Inside – Middlesex. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. It is absolutely free.