After Rt. 65 Ordeal, Group Wants Slide-Prone Area OversightKilbuck Development Landslide Covered Highway Near PittsburghPOSTED: 3:12 pm EDT June 9,
2008 PITTSBURGH -- A task force in Harrisburg is recommending that state lawmakers seek legislation to prevent developers from building on areas that are prone to landslides.The Joint State Government Commission task force made that recommendation in a report released Monday about the September 2006 landslide on Route 65 in Kilbuck Township.The slide happened at the site of a proposed $28 million Wal-Mart shopping plaza. More than a year and a half later, the project has been scrapped and one lane of Route 65 is still closed, as the hillside continues to slide.The task force says little in its report about what caused the landslide in Kilbuck, but it does propose that commercial developments on land prone to slides be reviewed by the Department of Environmental Protection.The report questions why Kilbuck approved Wal-Mart's plans, despite concerns about the steepness of the slopes; why it amended its grading ordinance to allow the municipal engineer to waive requirements if they were considered impractical; and why the township engineer was allowed to serve in her capacity even though she worked for the firm that did the traffic study for the project.The chairman of the task force will introduce the oversight bill in a few days.Remediation on the hillside is under way, but all lanes of Route 65 aren't expected to reopen until 2009. Related Links: More Allegheny County NewsGet RSS Headlines | Free Desktop Alert Copyright 2008 by ThePittsburghChannel. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report. |
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