MONSON, Mass. (WWLP) – Homeowners from western and central Massachusetts went to Boston Tuesday to voice their concerns about the ongoing problem of crumbling concrete foundations.
Members of the group Massachusetts Residents Against Crumbling Foundations met in Monson Tuesday morning, boarding a bus to Boston for a “Legislative Advocacy Day” at the State House. Affected homeowners are pushing state lawmakers to pass legislation that addresses the issue of pyrrhotite; the mineral that causes cracks to form in concrete once exposed to oxygen and water.
This issue has no easy solution and costs homeowners hundreds of thousands of dollars out of pocket to fix. Homeowners are advocating for two pieces of legislation, one that would help pay for foundation repairs, and another that would require quarries in Massachusetts to be tested for pyrrhotite.
State Sen. Anne Gobi (D-Barre) and State Rep. Brian Ashe (D-Longmeadow), both of whom represent communities affected by the problem, hosting Tuesday’s event at the State House. The advocacy day started with residents taking to the microphone to share their misfortune when it comes to crumbling foundations.
Karen Riani spent $280,000 fixing her crumbling foundation, “we are stuck, we cannot move, we’re waiting, we want to downsize, we want to move forward with our lives, I want to retire.”
Senator Anne Gobi is sponsoring two bills, one bill that deals with testing quarries for the mineral and the other bill would help homeowners pay for the replacement of their foundations.
“To look around this room and see the affected homeowners, see people in the real estate industry, see people from the banking, concrete industry, and realizing that this is a community problem, it’s not just an individual problem, and to fix it is going to take the entire state to do that.”
In Connecticut, crumbling foundations is also a significant problem. However, the state has a fund to help homeowners pay for a new foundation.
Senator Gobi said she filed two separate bills, in part, so she could have two separate hearings and hopefully reach more people.