Oakwood Drive in Majestic Hills development collapsed
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
A portion of Oakwood Drive in the Majestic Hills plan in North Strabane Township collapsed over the weekend as landslide problems continue there.
A portion of Oakwood Drive in the Majestic Hills plan in North Strabane is gone after the hillside slid over the weekend.
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
A portion of Oakwood Drive in the Majestic Hills plan in North Strabane collapsed as landslide problems continue there.
A portion of Oakwood Drive in the Majestic Hills plan in North Strabane collapsed after the hillside slid away.
A portion of Oakwood Drive in the Majestic Hills plan in North Strabane collapsed, leaving a large hole, after the hillside slid over the weekend.
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
A portion of Oakwood Drive in the Majestic Hills plan in North Strabane is gone after the hillside slid over the weekend.
Oakwood Drive in the landslide-plagued Majestic Hills development in North Strabane Township collapsed over the weekend, leaving an approximate 15-foot drop from the road.
“We were trying to save Oakwood,” township engineer Joseph Sites, of Gateway Engineers, said. “We were looking at the option of a wall and alternative options to stabilize that slope.”
The slope started sliding Oct. 4, causing structural damage to Oakwood Drive, and leaving Forest Lane Drive as the only access road. The township had planned to stabilize the slope and save Oakwood with a stabilizing wall, but last week the road started to collapse, according to township manager Andy Walz.
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Work is expected to begin Monday to stabilize a section of Oakwood Drive in the Majestic Hills plan that collapsed in late October.
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
The ground has given way under a portion of Oakwood Drive in the Majestic Hills plan in North Strabane.
The road caved in over the weekend, leaving a large hole in the road and a 15-foot drop that is closed off with construction fencing. The road has been closed since early October.
The one home that sits on Oakwood Drive is not currently occupied, Walz said. Once the slope is stabilized, he said, a structural engineer will investigate the home to make sure it’s safe for occupancy.
The township has already invested thousands of dollars into repairs of the Majestic Hills slides, which began in June on Forest Lane Drive. The first slide resulted in three homes being demolished. The township hired Stewart Contracting Inc. to clear the debris on Forest Lane, one of two access roads to the development. Oakwood is the other. The second slide happened last month on Bentwood Drive.
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
A portion of Oakwood Drive in the Majestic Hills plan in North Strabane collapsed after the hillside slid over the weekend.
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
the hillside under Oakwood Drive in the Majestic Hills neighborhood as seen from Forest Lane Drive.
Walz said earlier this month that the township had planned to use capital fund reserves to pay for the repair projects, before filing a claim with the developer Joe Denardo, part owner of the development corporation Majestic Hills LLC. The township also planned to use some of the money from a $16 million bond the township recently approved for 2018.
Sites said the stabilization wall that had been discussed for Oakwood Drive would have cost about $2 million, but now that the road collapsed, officials may need to look for other options.
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
A portion of Oakwood Drive in the Majestic Hills plan in North Strabane is gone after the hillside slid Saturday.
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
A portion of Oakwood Drive in the Majestic Hills plan in North Strabane is gone after the hillside slid over the weekend.
“We obviously need to stabilize the slope,” Sites said. “We’re putting together some cost estimates and looking at some more cost-effective options.”
Walz said he hopes to have a plan of action to present to the township supervisors soon.
In a compliance order dated Oct. 11, DeNardo was cited by the state Department of Environmental Protection with multiple violations in the development relating to the “stabilization of the earth disturbance activities,” storm water runoff and “potential for sediment pollution” entering Little Chartiers Creek.
The order gave DeNardo until Thursday to have a geotechnical investigation done on the Forest Lane slope and the Oakwood slope and submit a report to the DEP. He has until Nov. 15 to “restore and stabilize all slopes throughout the development,” the order states.
DeNardo did not immediately return a call for comment Tuesday.