Courtney: Trump Could Crumble Timetable for Fed Foundation Relief

WASHINGTON, DC — U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney on Thursday said efforts to secure federal relief for the crumbling home foundation epidemic in eastern Connecticut might be under severe time constraints.

Courtney said he released a statement after reports surfaced that President Donald Trump’s Office of Management and Budget may be proposing substantial cuts for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

According to a Washington post story, the Trump Administration may be proposing to eliminate funding entirely for the CDBG program in 2018.

Last fall, Courtney received a letter from HUD outlining two possible sources of existing annual federal grant funding through HUD that could be used to assist communities impacted by crumbling foundations.

“The news of these potential cuts shows that the opportunities HUD identified last August for remediating crumbling foundations may have a limited shelf life,” Courtney said. “While there are issues the state and others have to work through to determine the best means to utilize HUD programs like the Small Cities grants and the Section 108 credit line program, they still represent the one avenue the federal government has agreed are available to help Connecticut communities address the urgent problem of crumbling home foundations. Now is the time for relevant stakeholders to come together in good will to design the best HUD-based solutions for this problem while there is still time.”

The letter received from HUD in August 2016 explains that funds from the Small Cities Community Development Block Grant Program and Home Investment Partnerships Program, which are administered by the Connecticut Department of Housing, could be used to support housing rehabilitation programs to assist residents with crumbling foundations.

The state Department of Consumer Protection has compiled a map showing just how widespread the problems are. She the map here.

Towns involved in claims are:
A
Andover, Ashford
B
Bolton, Brooklyn
C
Canterbury, Chaplin, Columbia, Coventry
E
Eastford, East Hartford, East Lyme, East Windsor, Ellington, Enfield
F
Franklin
G
Glastonbury
H
Hampton, Hebron
M
Manchester, Mansfield
P
Plainfield, Putnam
S
Scotland, Somers, South Windsor, Stafford, Suffield
T
Thompson, Tolland
U
Union
V
Vernon
W
Willington, Windham

Cracks have been showing up in home foundations in concrete poured in the 1980 and 1990s, according to the DCP.

A report indicated that the mineral pyrrhotite has compromised the concrete. Becker’s Quarry, the main source of concrete aggregate for the distributor — J.J. Mottes company — includes more than trace amounts of pyrrhotite, and is located on a vein of rock that contains significant amounts of pyrrhotite, according to the report.

See the report and U.S. Rep. Joseph Courtney's reaction here.

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, Area legislative contingents at the state and federal levels have been pushing for some type of federal disaster relief for homeowners.

The DCP has a web page dedicated to the problem. See it here.

Patch file photo