Mountain landslide in Western NC (Haywood County) - The Mountain Region including Asheville - Page 2 - City-Data Forum

LisaHatteras · 01-26-2009, 03:26 PM

Yes this recent land slide was actually caused by the people that lived above the mtn from these people. They build on the very edge (stupid) and some mud slid down and knocked the people below them off the mtn. Talk about a lawsuit coming. There was an issue with the permit to build that held up things but was later approved...its a mess....rule of thumbs....dont build on the edge of a mountain and put your house on stilts...... usually people from out of state wanting that flying feel I guess....

lovesMountains · 01-26-2009, 03:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LisaHatteras

Yes this recent land slide was actually caused by the people that lived above the mtn from these people. They build on the very edge (stupid) and some mud slid down and knocked the people below them off the mtn. Talk about a lawsuit coming. There was an issue with the permit to build that held up things but was later approved...its a mess....rule of thumbs....dont build on the edge of a mountain and put your house on stilts...... usually people from out of state wanting that flying feel I guess....

Sounds like whoever approved that permit should be out of a job and sued.

anifani821 · 01-27-2009, 02:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LisaHatteras

Yes this recent land slide was actually caused by the people that lived above the mtn from these people. They build on the very edge (stupid) and some mud slid down and knocked the people below them off the mtn. Talk about a lawsuit coming. There was an issue with the permit to build that held up things but was later approved...its a mess....rule of thumbs....dont build on the edge of a mountain and put your house on stilts...... usually people from out of state wanting that flying feel I guess....

Soooo true! The oldtimers know better. And we know to build on bedrock, as well. Not good if you need a well . . . but a lot safer for your structure.

LONGSTONE · 02-05-2009, 07:24 PM

Its amazing, people move into the area and first thing they think is (i gotta build on a mountain) then there house slides off that mountain. Smart thinking. Good god! Got what they deserved.

Icantadd · 02-06-2010, 08:23 AM

Compounding the problem(s) are the poorly designed and constructed road systems in these steep developments, especially in the Maggie area. They are often one lane, and built in such a way that a fire truck, or even an ambulance can not access some of these properties. This should NEVER have been even considered, let alone allowed when they were built. Ambulances and firetrucks were no smaller when these developments were built than they are now.

I LOVE NORTH CAROLINA · 02-06-2010, 08:42 PM

Another mud slide in Maggie Valley over the weekend

Maggie Valley residents <br>recall horror of landslide | citizen-times.com | Asheville Citizen-Times

livninctry · 02-07-2010, 05:39 AM

As a developer and builder, who cares about poor development and improper development, I can tell you one of the biggest problems we have. County agencies that inspect and APPROVE all things in regards to developments and home construction can not be held liable for one darn thing. We have all our codes and inspections in place to serve one purpose and one purpose only and that is to protect the general public. Yea right!!!! I can't tell you how many sub-standard subdevelopments and residential homes I have encountered over the years with crumbling road beds and washouts. Homes where foundations and mechanical systems are failing, because they were improperly installed and yet they past inspection. In my opinion the buck stops with the county inspection system and if they can not be held liable then who is. Obviously, the developer or GC should be, but the inspection system is suppose to prevent their shoddy work from ever seeing the light of day.
Will this raise the cost of building in the mountains? You bet it will. Will it help in some degree to protect life and home? You bet it will. Folks, people are going to keep moving to this area.... All you have to do is read this forum and it becomes very obvious. So, lets not only push for stricter guidelines and regulations in regards to steep slope development, but lets put some teeth in these guidelines. Mr. Inspector if you approve of something and it turns out that you did not perform your duties in a professional and thorough manner, meet Mr. Lawyer....That goes for you to Mr. Developer... Mother nature will have her way from time to time and no one can prevent everything, but we sure can do a better job than we are doing now.
For those folks who have built their house on anything more than about 65% slope... I would suggest you hire an engineering firm and a geologist to study the soils and subterranean rock formations around your abode and make sure your on stable ground. If not, find out what you can do to fix it now. If you live in a neighborhood where all your roads and homes are built on very steep terrain, especially 83%, you better hope the developer who built your roads and infrastructure was an upstanding professional who did all the appropriate studies and not some hack who just wanted to cash in on the gold rush of land development.
Folks I'm not saying stop development! I'm just saying force developers and our gov. agencies to do it right and be willing to pay for a quality product.
Brian