'Tree Street' reinspections set'

State selects engineering firm to study potential impact of dynamic compaction project on homes

By JEFF GEARINO - Southwest Wyoming bureau | Posted: Friday, March 26, 2010 1:00 am





Neighbor Becky Kelley examines a gauge as Ron Child looks at his home in Rock Springs late last year. The house is one of several in Rock Springs' 'Tree Street' area damaged by the state's July 2007 dynamic compaction process, according to homeowners. (Dan Cepeda/Star-Tribune)

ROCK SPRINGS -- State officials and "Tree Street" residents have agreed on the selection of a Colorado engineering firm to begin reinspections of the downtown neighborhood homes allegedly damaged during a 2007 mine subsidence project.
Wyoming Abandoned Mine Lands officials hired J.A. Cesare and Associates, a geotechnical engineering consultant located in Centennial, to perform the new inspections, homeowners said Thursday.
The Wyoming Legislature approved a budget amendment this past session that directs $120,000 to hire a "qualified" engineer to reinspect homes and assess damages.
The bill requires the damage assessments to be completed by the engineers within 90 days.
Based on the findings, Wyoming Attorney General Bruce Salzburg would then be required to provide new settlement offers to homeowners, according to the amendment.
Tree Street neighborhood spokeswoman Becky Kelley said homeowners were eager for the new inspections to begin. She said Cesare was one of two engineering firms that attorneys for the homeowners had recommended.
"We are hoping that Cesare is as good as what we've read about them," Kelley said. "It looks like the attorney general is going to follow through with the plan."
More than a dozen residents contend their homes in the Tree Street neighborhood were damaged during the mine subsidence project, which included an unproven-in-Wyoming pilot reclamation technique known as dynamic compaction.
The project aimed to free vacant lands on a tract adjacent to the neighborhood for much-needed housing that could not be developed because of mine subsidence issues.
For three weeks beginning July 17, 2007, AML contractors dropped 25- and 35-ton weights more than 2,300 times over undermined areas to collapse the underground mine voids.
Homeowners' complaints about damage halted the project.
Residents said vibrations from dynamic compaction shook homes, damaged foundations, cracked driveways, split walls and ceilings, and did other major damage.
The state sent in engineers to assess 19 damage claims submitted by residents and followed with settlement offers. All but two homeowners rejected the state's offer, however, contending it was way too low to adequately pay for repairs.
State officials and attorneys representing the homeowners have been engaged in discussions for more than a year trying to finalize the details of a mediated agreement that would lead to the new inspections.
AML spokesman Keith Guille did not return a phone call from the Star-Tribune by late Thursday afternoon.
In a Tuesday e-mail shared by Rep. Joe Barbuto, D-Rock Springs, Salzburg confirmed the hiring of Cesare and said the firm is planning to complete the work within the 90-day time period if at all possible.
"I will consider the report from Cesare and decide whether or not any new offers are appropriate," Salzburg wrote Barbuto.
AML officials also recently hired state-contracted engineers from Colorado-based Tetra Tech Inc. to resume an investigative drilling project this month in the neighborhood.
Their mission is to help determine the exact cause of the underground movement that continues to plague the Tree Street neighborhood and what mitigation measures will be required to stop it.
The new investigative drilling at various locations in the neighborhood is being conducted to supplement data previously collected in the area.
Contact southwest Wyoming bureau reporter Jeff Gearino at (307) 875-5359 or gearino@tribcsp.com

Posted in State-and-regional on Friday, March 26, 2010 1:00 am

comments from the Casper Star Tribune

Independent said on: March 11, 2010, 9:11 am

They should move all the houses from that neighborhood to some stable land then collapse all the voids, level, and stabilize that land before building anything else on it.

john said on: March 11, 2010, 5:38 am

Wouldn't it be cheaper to purchase all the property, raze the houses and build a park?

State resumes search for answers to 'Tree Street' subsidence issues

Drilling for clues in Wyo town
By JEFF GEARINO - Southwest Wyoming bureau | Posted: Thursday, March 11, 2010 12:00 am

ROCK SPRINGS -- There's still a lot of movement in the old underground mine voids beneath the "Tree Street" neighborhood that was beset by damage from an underground mine subsidence project in 2007.

What's causing the movement, however, remains a mystery.

Wyoming Abandoned Mine Lands officials said Wednesday that state-contracted engineers from Colorado-based Tetra Tech Inc. will resume their investigative drilling program in the neighborhood this week. Their mission is to help determine the exact cause of the underground movement and what mitigation measures will be required to stop it.

AML administrator Rick Chancellor said the new investigative drilling at various locations in the neighborhood is being conducted to supplement data previously collected from the area.

Tetra Tech engineers have been working for several years to determine what's going on in the old mine workings, tunnels and voids scattered beneath the neighborhood.

"It's a complicated (picture) underground, and the more information we have, the better we can plan on how to move forward," Chancellor said.

The information gathered from the current investigative drilling will be used to plot the course and method of future mitigation and reclamation efforts in the neighborhood.

"Probably the main thing will be to look at our options and then choose from those options the best way to move forward," Chancellor said. "(Mitigation) may involve a combination of things, but we'll wait for the final (drilling) report and then decide what we can do and where we can do it."

Drilling rigs will be employed along with geophysical evaluations of underground mine workings as part of the new investigative drilling process. Chancellor said the work is expected to continue throughout the summer and fall.

Coal history

Rock Springs was built around coal mines, which were first developed in the 1880s to supply coal to the Union Pacific Railroad.

More than 100 million tons of coal was mined over the next century. One result is that many miles of underground mine tunnels traverse underneath most homes in the city.

More than a dozen homes were damaged by subsidence in the neighborhood during a controversial reclamation project conducted in 2007, which aimed to prepare vacant lands in Rock Springs for much-needed housing development.

The subsidence project involved the use of a pilot technique known as dynamic compaction.

For three weeks beginning in mid-July 2007, cranes pounded the ground with 25- and 35-ton weights in order to collapse the underground mine voids on a tract of land adjacent to the Tree Street neighborhood.

Several weeks into the project, residents complained that the shock waves from the ground pounding shook houses, cracked driveways and foundations, accelerated ongoing subsidence problems and severely damaged many homes.

Wyoming officials have been negotiating with homeowners for more than two years over the state's settlement offers to repair damage from the project.

In the meantime, the AML Division has been conducting subsurface investigative drilling -- which began in the fall of 2007 -- in the neighborhood to determine if any mitigation measures are required

Initial findings

In October, AML officials and engineers reported the initial findings from the first two years of investigative drilling in the neighborhood at a meeting with residents and city officials.

Engineers based their initial findings on samples taken from numerous drill holes, views from downhole cameras, examinations of old mine maps, data from sonar devices, 3-D seismic mapping, visual inspections and old subsidence reports.

The report said the subsidence risk remains high in the neighborhood.

Geological engineers with Tetra Tech told residents they still didn't have an accurate picture of the exact cause of continuing movement in the underground mine voids.

But engineers said they believe there a lot of factors contributing to the neighborhood's subsidence problems, including irregular roof pillars that are prone to collapse, fluctuations in groundwater levels in the abandoned mines, a fault line dissecting underground coal seams, and perhaps even previous mitigation and grouting efforts.

Chancellor said the investigative drilling should be completed by fall, and a final report from Tetra Tech may be available before the end of the year. The information will be the basis for any future mitigation work in the area.

"We're trying to be very careful that we don't jump in there and do something that will cause more problems," Chancellor said. "So we are being very methodical and careful in our investigation to make sure we have good information that will allow us to make a good decision" on what mitigation measures might be required to stabilize the area, he said.

Contact southwest Wyoming bureau reporter Jeff Gearino at (307) 875-5359 or gearino@tribcsp.com

A Thank You from Becky Kelley

March 6, 2010

I’d like to take this time to Thank, all of the wonderful people that have come to our aide in our time of stress and havoc over our homes, better known as, “The Dynamic Compaction, Tree Street People.”
I want to express our gratitude to our very own Representative, Bernadine Craft!! She gave endless hours to our fight, and never wavered in the last 2 1/2 years. She took on our cause, and fought an endless battle for us. She was cornered more then once by Senators as well as the Governor, but stood her ground! She is our very own Joan of Arch! I Hope you know how much we all love ya!
When she needed assistance from a Senator, she sought out Senator John Hastert (Green River) to help with our fight. Senator Hastert stood behind us and pulled in his Representatives as well. They are Representatives: Bill Thompson, (Rita), and Stan Blake. They gave us many hours, they toured our homes. Bill gave us ideas: as the Face book and the Blog which the Shafe’s posted. They both turned out to be very important to post our information, for all to see. Rep. Joe Barbuto took time to take pictures for other legislators to see. To all of you, my dear friends and now I feel family, Thank you. David Miller and Alan Jaggi, Thank you!
I also want to thank Senator Copper from Kemmerer, who wrote a very frustrating, letter to the Governor on behalf of the Tree Street Folks. He stated that we were: “Unjustly characterized as a bunch of people just looking to make a bundle of money off of the government.” In which he stated: “Nothing could be further from the truth.” To which I want to thank you, for that comment, Senator Cooper. All we wanted was to be made whole!!
As I recall there were 60 Representatives that stood up for our cause! Also 20 or 21 Senators that understood and stepped up to the plate as well! Thank you all, from the bottoms of our hearts!!
Now I want to say a special thank you to my friend and reporter, who has stood and reported our plight from day 1!! Jeff Gearino, from the Casper Star Tribune!!He has reported and come to the Tree Streets every time I have called him. He has been honest and open. Come rain, snow, sleet or hail, that man has done them all!! Also the Casper Star Editor and Opinion have been wonderful and behind us all the way. Thank you!
Mark Media, thank you for making the video. Tony and Jim thank you for believing in us!
There are many Folks that we need to thank, two of the Republican Gubernatorial Nominees: Matt Mead and Ron Micheli who came and toured our homes and saw for themselves the disaster we live in.
Also, the Representatives from Senator Barrasso’s, Lummis and Enzi’s Offices.

We are aware that we are only over the first hurdle, but this is a major step for us, and without the help of all of you wonderful people, we might not of gotten this far.

So to all of you, God Bless you, and Thank You for your support and help! Donna thank you for jumping in and helping me! Charlie Love thank you for all your investigations and supporting talks on our behalf.

Most of all, my love, to my husband and family for letting me take the time I needed, to fight this Disaster!

Becky Kelley

Update of our Bill

an email from Chris Boswell was sent to Becky.

The governor signed the budget bill at nine o'clock this morning.That bill includes the language concerning the dynamic compaction-related evaluations.Take care.ChrisWY.

GOVERNOR SIGNS LAW ADOPTING COWBOY ETHICSCHEYENNE (AP)---The principles of "Cowboy Ethics" are now part of Wyoming law.Gov. Dave Freudentahl signed legislation Wednesday adopting an official state code.The symbolic measure spells out 10 ethics derived from a "Code of the West" outlined in a book by author and retired Wall street investor James Owen.The ethics code doesn't carry any criminal penalties and is not meant to replace any civil codes.The state code admonishes:
1)residents and lawmakers to live courageously
2)take pride in their work
3)finish what they start
4)do what's necessary
5)be tough but fair
6)keep promises
7)ride for the brand
8)talk less and say more
9)remember some things aren't for sale
10)know where to draw the lineWhen we were at Legislation, Representative Lisa Shepperson, brought this up in thehouse to help get our budget amendment passed!!!She stated: "Senate file 51 "Code of the West"Do what you say your gona do!" 2/23/10On 2/25/20 Senator Hastert said: "Code of the West" page 2 line 9 If we make a promise we need to keep it."He was speaking in regards to John Corra saying: "We screwed up and we will fix it!" back on Aug. 14, 2007.

Amendment pleases homeowners

State budget would allow for engineer's inspection of 'Tree Street' homes
By JEFF GEARINO - Southwest Wyoming bureau Posted: Monday, March 1, 2010 12:00 am

ROCK SPRINGS -- Lawmakers in both houses approved amendments to the state budget bill late last week that will pave the way for engineering inspections of "Tree Street" homes allegedly damaged in a Wyoming Abandoned Mine Lands mine subsidence project in 2007.
Rep. Bernadine Craft, D-Rock Springs, and Sen. John Hastert, D-Green River, successfully co-sponsored two budget amendments that would direct $120,000 to hire a "qualified engineer" to re-inspect homes to assess damages, the two lawmakers said in a media release.
The final budget bill still needs to pass the House and Senate before heading to Gov. Dave Freudenthal for his signature.
"There have been a lot of broken promises since the fateful project ... three years ago," Craft said.
"These people shouldn't still be dealing with the devastating consequences of having homes that are literally falling apart around them," she said. "It's time to get these people out of the House gallery and back into their homes."
Becky Kelley, the unofficial spokeswoman for Tree Street homeowners, said she and other residents were pleased with the amendments.
Kelley, Donna Maynard and several other homeowners spoke in support of the amendments while lobbying the Legislature the past two weeks.
"The support we have is unreal," Kelley said. "We're not done, by a long shot, but things are looking a lot better."
The legislation is effective immediately and would require assessments be completed by the engineers within 60 days, Craft said.
Based on the engineer's findings, Wyoming Attorney General Bruce Salzburg would then be required to provide new settlement offers to homeowners, according to the amendment.
Hastert said the budget amendment was a good use of AML funds.
"The bottom line is that this situation has arisen because of the actions of the state," he said. "What better way to direct our AML monies than to help people affected by seismic shifts of abandoned mines."
The Senate amendment was introduced by Sens. Hastert; Marty Martin, D-Rock Springs, and Stan Cooper, R-Kemmerer. It passed by a 20-10 vote Thursday morning.
A mirror bill in the House by Reps. Craft and Colin Simpson, R-Cody, passed unanimously that afternoon.
Particularly pleasing
Homeowners say more than a dozen Tree Street homes were damaged during the mine subsidence project that included an unproved-in-Wyoming reclamation technique known as dynamic compaction.
The project was conducted by the Wyoming Abandoned Mine Lands Division on a vacant tract of land adjacent to the Tree Street neighborhood. The project aimed to free vacant lands in the city that could be used to build affordable housing.
The project involved dropping 25- and 35-ton weights -- over undermined areas in the tract to collapse the underground mine voids beneath -- for three weeks beginning July 17, 2007.
Homeowners' complaints about damage halted the project. Residents said vibrations from the dynamic compaction was shaking homes; cracking foundations, driveways, walls and ceilings, and causing gaps in windows and doors among other damage.
The state sent engineers to assess 19 damage claims filed by homeowners and followed with settlement offers.
All but two of the homeowners rejected the state's offer, however, as way too low to adequately pay for the needed repairs.
State officials and attorneys representing the homeowners have been engaged in discussions for more than a year, trying to finalize the details of a mediation agreement that would have led to the new inspections by geotechnical engineers.
Craft noted the No. 1 priority for use of AML funds is to address issues of health and human safety. "We're so lucky that at this point no one has been seriously injured." she said.
Craft said passing the budget amendment was particularly pleasing because a similar amendment by Craft and Hastert that sought funding for new engineering studies failed during the 2009 session.
"Passing the amendments was a definite high point in the session," she said. "We had House members totally united in their support of private citizens."
Contact southwest Wyoming bureau reporter Jeff Gearino at 307-875-5359 or gearino@tribcsp.com

Legislators Seek Justice for Residents of Rock Springs'

Thursday, February 25, 2010
Rep. Craft and Sen. Hastert Sponsor Budget AmendmentsCheyenne, WY - Years after the state attempted a dynamic compaction project in Rock Springs those residents of the so-called "tree streets" will finally get justice for the harm done to their homes and residences. Amendments to the Wyoming budget, introduced by Rep. Bernadine Craft (D-Rock Springs) and Sen. John Hastert (D-Green River) will pay for a structural engineer to determine the extent to which the dynamic compaction project was to blame for the rapid deterioration of the "tree street" homes. Today an amendment brought by Sens. Hastert, Martin (R-Rock Springs), and Cooper (R-Kemmerer) passed the Senate by a vote of 20-10. The same amendment, introduced by Reps. Craft and Simpson (R-Cody), passed unanimously in the House this afternoon. "There have been a lot of broken promises since 2007 and that was three years ago. These people shouldn't still be dealing with the devastating consequences of having homes that are literally falling apart around them," said Rep. Craft, "There were so many opportunities to address this and we need to end it here and now."The proposed amendments will direct $120,000 to hire a structural engineer to assess the damage. Based on the findings of the engineer, the Wyoming Attorney General will then be required to settle with the residents for damages related to dynamic compaction. Senator Hastert added, "The bottom line is that this situation has arisen because of actions of the state. What better way to direct our Abandoned Mine Land (AML) monies than to help people affected by seismic shifts of abandoned mines? I can’t think of one." Becky Kelley and Donna Maynard, both residents of affected Ash Street in Rock Springs, were able to come to Cheyenne to tell their story. After the vote they expressed thanks to all Senators and Representatives, especially those who were committed to their cause from the beginning. This particular piece of legislation has crossed party lines and geographic boundaries. Rep. Lisa Shepperson (R-Casper) discussed the fact that earlier in the day the House supported a state code, which says we always keep our word. "It's time to live up to that code," said Shepperson. After the vote Kelley said, "Thank heavens for the code of the west.""Passing these amendments was a definite high point in the session. We had House members totally united in their support of private citizens," said Rep. Craft.

Photo: Courtesy of the Wyoming Legislative Internship ProgramPicturing (l-r): Donna Maynard, Rep. Craft, Becky Kelley, and Sen. Hastert