[Lincolnparkdc] Need help fixing huge mess DC Water left us with

[Roxanne Walker]

Hi neighbors-

We have an issue dating back to when DC Water was replacing lead pipes in
the area with copper. After telling us they would only be digging a few
inches away from the existing meter, t*hey dug a pit approximately 4x3x4
feet. *This is half of our very small front garden. We lost many
perennial plantings, most of which were 10-15 years old (hostas, lenten
roses, anemones, ground cover, etc.).

The hole was dug and work was completed on the day of the bomb cyclone --
December 23, 2022. When we went to replant the perennials in the spring of
2023 we found (to our horror) that our 2-3 feet of improved soil and the
clay that was below that had been taken away and *the hole was filled to
the top with a concrete slurry mixture and gravel.*

We contacted the contractor who sent a crew back to "fix" the issue. They
scraped about six inches off the surface and filled it with what looked
like concrete dust. One of the guys who came told me they use that material
"so the hole settles evenly". When I pointed out that they had also taken
out all the roots on one side of our 30-35 year old dogwood, and the tree
could not grow into the concrete he said "they wouldn't have done that". We
could not get them to return to excavate the hole and replace it with
actual soil or even respond to further requests for help.

A year and a half later, our poor dogwood appears to be dying and the pit
remains filled with their junk. We have tried digging out the concrete
gravel but realized after we filled one 5-gallon bucket we didn't know how
to dispose of it. We got an estimate of $1,300 to dig out the pit and haul
away the fill. That did not include filling the hole with soil. We can't
afford that.

If you've read this far, thanks, and here are our questions:

   - Does anyone know of a process for DC Water or the city to get this
   mess resolved?
   - Can we get damages for the lost plants, our lost 48 cubic feet of
   soil, the disposal of the fill, and, possibly, our dying dogwood tree? How?
   - How do homeowners get rid of 48 cubic feet of gravel/concrete?

We just want to enjoy our little garden again.

Thanks for any suggestions.
Roxanne, 14th and Mass SE
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lincolnparkdc.info/pipermail/lincolnparkdc_lincolnparkdc.info/attachments/20240429/0fad4104/attachment.htm>