[{"_1":2,"_98":-5,"_99":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,74,86],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":-5,"_68":69,"_70":-5,"_71":72,"_73":72},"mediaId",6743521,"mediaKeyId","5133643-b09e81324240586807f5432f02d7dcda","parentId",5133643,"title","Connecticut marks 10 years since crumbling-foundation crisis with repairs, testing and new funding commitments","audioSeconds",402,"startMs",21000,"endMs",423000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5133643-b09e81324240586807f5432f02d7dcda&start=21&end=423","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5133643-b09e81324240586807f5432f02d7dcda/thumbnail_21000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6743521/Connecticut-marks-10-years-since-crumbling-foundation-crisis-with-repairs-testing-and-new-funding-commitments","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6743521-1436bea33d7ac6b0f3d37d8339b6839f/orig.mp4?Expires=1770414466&Signature=F8Bndb0N3LTjoH6Q6Dgd3vn~ijzj-qQyYWu6IneTE0t8VTed3hJfOYyCyY8datlvCm6heClGW9d4oXm7IaDm4JvnT3sn47xuVdPCCJ6clzJyTZ~xUCsAMgt-IG58IlNRsCJvZIryPcF2FmDaLeB6IQskzDDBQHg5bP51FJrgl8YNiHq67E7SrmNASlrpsPdxKFgKJHDAAHDZAsFztjsRzmgiM1JwhuG~ZCnxLcnnc6GKbiUQFUdeEhAJ9e70kRlfOEfi4Pgcojr~S14swQPdDUH~Okvp3BEPB~LPu~wZCucWGmODYlnRDXeBg35WV4zkfQVYHI7fy~eaoHtN3lGQ2Q__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Tolland School District","date","2025-07-04T04:35:51.383Z","article","Debbie McCoy convened a 10-year anniversary panel in July 2025 to review Connecticut's response to a decade-long problem of concrete degradation in residential foundations, and panelists described a multi-part government and community effort that has produced testing, research, and funding to repair more than 1,000 homes.

Why it matters: panelists said the crisis has required sustained technical study (UConn and Trinity engineering work), mapping (U.S. Geological Survey involvement), and multiple funding streams to repair homes and support lower-income homeowners. They credited grassroots organizing and bipartisan legislative work with creating the testing program and a set of funding tools that did not exist in 2015.

Panelists summarized the sequence that produced the response. Early town-level complaints and a media expos\u0000e9 in 2015 led to the formation of a CRCOG ad hoc committee and the Connecticut Coalition Against Crumbling Basements. Federal lawmakers and state officials pursued research and program options: HUD Community Development Block Grant funds supported initial testing; UConn's School of Engineering received research funding; and the Government Accountability Office produced a report on economic impacts. Rep. Joe Courtney said the movement 'started as a grassroots effort' that required both technical work and government program design to help homeowners.

Funding and program mechanics: panelists described a mix of revenue and bond commitments that have supported remediation. Speakers said governors authorized multiple bond tranches (speakers described two initial $100 million bond packages and more recent commitments) and pointed to a $12 annual surcharge on homeowners' insurance that feeds the Healthy Homes Fund. One panelist noted the Healthy Homes Fund brings in about $11 million a year and that bonded money allows a higher throughput of repairs (speakers estimated roughly 250 homes a year could be assisted with bonded funding at recent levels). A recent legislative action was described by speakers as authorizing an additional $100 million in bonding in the weeks before the program's 10th anniversary.

Testing and administration: Pauline Yoder, Chief Operating Officer at the Capitol Region Council of Governments (CRCOG), said CRCOG was chosen to manage the governor's testing program because the agency had convened local assessors and building officials and created a regional map of affected towns. Yoder said thousands of homes have been tested since the program began and that the CRCOG-administered assistance is narrowly focused on structural repairs needed to obtain a safe occupancy certificate; it does not cover living or moving costs. Panelists said award amounts vary and are often well under maximum eligibility amounts discussed at various points.

Insurance and policy context: multiple speakers said the property-casualty insurance market refused broad coverage for this slow-moving degradation, citing industry guidance that typically limits payouts to sudden, accidental collapse. That standard shifted mitigation and repair costs to homeowners and prompted lawmakers to design non-insurance funding mechanisms. Speakers also discussed formation of a captive vehicle to coordinate payments and administrative arrangements.

What remains: panelists urged continued attention. They reported 2,427 applicants to the main remediation program and said more than 1,000 homes had been repaired by mid-2025, but also highlighted ongoing challenges: insurance market decisions that raise home- and condo-policy premiums, the need to preserve the Healthy Homes Fund for long-term issues (including radon abatement), and the technical task of ensuring quarry and aggregate standards are enforced. Rep. Courtney and state legislators emphasized bipartisan cooperation through a 'concrete caucus' that they said made many of the legislative fixes possible.

The panel closed by noting international collaboration (Canadian and European researchers), pending conferences to share technical findings, and a reminder that the effort remains a long-term, 'long-tail' recovery rather than a single event.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","The Concrete Queen Ep 07","oneSentenceSummary","Debbie McCoy convened a 10-year anniversary panel in July 2025 to review Connecticut's response to concrete degradation in residential foundations, and panelists described testing, research and multiple funding streams that have supported more than 1,000 repairs to date.","taxTitle","taxId",0,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":75,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":76,"_41":77,"_43":78,"_45":79,"_47":80,"_49":81,"_51":82,"_53":83,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":84,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":85,"_67":-5,"_68":69,"_70":-5,"_71":72,"_73":72},6743518,"Condo owners say repairs solved foundations but insurance and coordination remain major hurdles",172,578000,750000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5133643-b09e81324240586807f5432f02d7dcda&start=578&end=750","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5133643-b09e81324240586807f5432f02d7dcda/thumbnail_578000.jpg","/articles/6743518/Condo-owners-say-repairs-solved-foundations-but-insurance-and-coordination-remain-major-hurdles","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6743518-c211fc7affed8f94cdd01f7a8b28843f/orig.mp4?Expires=1770414466&Signature=BEmcdN9iDAeHvZ5Ei1cMlJ50oO46DfROoNj95lznmr1jLRevindJzT9okvkaxpFXtY-V7HdTisB9AUkScOztYWXDmK9iksUVWqNyNPVmj1o7ut9ctI6K67KxLoj4nSWMHHAjJ08FAjrxeAAIOCpu5LGYFiOOGuRuwUf8g0G8wCWp97~qnsX389SbKK3yr6heDIeVDurDucpY88IZPcOL5TDcMtTJUeZuTOUyFzn~xKbPIDD6Z6oo1D4RJESFnpxZSo3L6~wEVYkYD8mRSIpyFwzHPNkZ6ZqIzPufxZGc6qD81TW9QBObpnovK4uE1oda9HFD9SZuyy7L~nG8OL039Q__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Members of condominium associations recounted challenges that differed from single-family homeowners during Connecticut's decade-long response to crumbling foundations. Frank Ferzano (member of the Condo 5 group and president of a condo association) described the operational and financial hurdles trustees and unit owners faced once foundations were found to be affected.

Why it matters: condo communities must secure participation across many owners, arrange temporary housing for multiple families at once, and manage increases to master-policy premiums even after foundations are repaired. Those dynamics can delay remediation and raise the effective cost to owners.

Condominium-specific problems described: Ferzano and other condo panelists said initial program rules treated buildings with more than four units as 'commercial' for some relief programs, which excluded many condo associations. That interpretation prompted advocates to press for legislation to include multi-unit condominiums; speakers said a legislative fix passed in 2019 that extended eligibility to condominium complexes.

On-the-ground logistics: speakers described how inspections required special, qualified inspectors and that visibility is limited because damage can be in crawl spaces or other inaccessible areas. Repair schedules forced occupants to find temporary housing; in one speaker's case he said he lived in his father's basement for four months during work. Master-policy insurance costs rose substantially in some associations; one speaker reported their association's premium 'almost tripled' in a single year.

What panelists want next: condominium advocates urged clearer insurance-market guidance for master policies after remediation, better underwriting information to distinguish buildings that were remediated from those at risk, and continued legislative attention to ensure program eligibility and funding cover condominium-specific needs.","Condominium residents described unique barriers to testing and remediation: units over four were initially excluded from many programs, unanimous owner agreement was required for condo-wide inspections and repairs, and master-policy premiums rose sharply after remediation work began.",{"_33":87,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":88,"_41":89,"_43":90,"_45":91,"_47":92,"_49":93,"_51":94,"_53":95,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":96,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":97,"_67":-5,"_68":69,"_70":-5,"_71":72,"_73":72},6743513,"CRCOG testing program, UConn research and quarry standards credited with narrowing scope of Connecticut's foundation crisis",153,227000,380000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5133643-b09e81324240586807f5432f02d7dcda&start=227&end=380","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5133643-b09e81324240586807f5432f02d7dcda/thumbnail_227000.jpg","/articles/6743513/CRCOG-testing-program-UConn-research-and-quarry-standards-credited-with-narrowing-scope-of-Connecticuts-foundation-crisis","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6743513-7743718255fd7d632e183e18a625d36b/orig.mp4?Expires=1770414466&Signature=YR9rUqdRfHaF-Ok--mVX~DoFUVj0em7r-C0JTtQNZSEu4i8iM99OqfMMPxtyVkoBYKJHAkXw5mBxhX6v1ZlsNHjUHsS8G1HCAZTY5nFgbum6M0sljqrT0s5BDgzBrP9EuosYRDLxO7N-pwXylcACcoDWMQThLN5JNQo4vMep3s6kBZWT24sBRnL2NGfsmFjaguZXIYQjG9Q6OjLEN8Gau1WxrVk5SRKZGrXjzrEIhNQL~xZneP-4dHkziUmI~5xhpsq3xC6If3CqaO59DYEJ1noiz2hZFxEKqUeqPVrJCnZmpuD9GFKuSwVFAdh8bjuygiD7dn8T~5khvLQwD50VmQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Panelists at the 10-year anniversary episode credited local regional government and academic partners with producing the technical evidence needed to design remediation programs and enforcement. Pauline Yoder, Chief Operating Officer at the Capitol Region Council of Governments (CRCOG), described CRCOG's testing program and its coordination with town assessors and building officials; UConn and Trinity provided engineering analysis; the USGS produced initial federal mapping.

Why it matters: panelists said accurate testing and mapping were prerequisites for estimating the magnitude and economic impact required for federal and state decision-making, and that quarry aggregate testing and enforcement closed critical policy gaps.

Testing program design and administration: Yoder said the governor established a testing program that CRCOG was chosen to administer because of the council's regional convening role. Towns used HUD CDBG funds early on to support testing. The CRCOG program prioritized samples and tests needed to determine whether homes contained reactive aggregate. Yoder noted that most awards under the program were focused on structural repairs (to obtain occupancy), not on living or relocation costs.

Research, mapping and quarry oversight: panelists credited UConn's School of Engineering with conducting studies to clarify the chemistry and mechanism of aggregate deterioration; speakers also said Canadian researchers provided early practical guidance. The USGS participated in federal mapping of affected areas, which helped target outreach and testing. Panelists pointed to recent legislation intended to ensure quarries and other aggregate sources are tested and brought into compliance; speakers named recent public act numbers when describing those provisions.

Remaining technical tasks: panelists emphasized ongoing enforcement of quarry and aggregate testing standards and engineering monitoring of repaired structures. They also discussed planning an international conference on the topic (UConn organizing with NIST funding) to share protocols and research across affected countries.","CRCOG's testing program, university engineering research and USGS mapping were central to quantifying the foundation problem; speakers said those technical steps enabled targeted funding and prompted legislation to require quarry and aggregate testing standards.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Connecticut marks 10 years since crumbling-foundation crisis with repairs, testing and new funding commitments

Condo owners say repairs solved foundations but insurance and coordination remain major hurdles

CRCOG testing program, UConn research and quarry standards credited with narrowing scope of Connecticut's foundation crisis