Rock wall disentegrating - who has to pay?

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JustSomeGuy

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City/County/State: Marysville, Snohimish, Washington

We have a situation that needs an answer. We have a community-owned rock wall that is disentegrating, and need to know if we should even bother with legal action against the developer to make them replace it. It is less than 7 years old and should not have ever fallen apart. It was built with soft rock, almost like sandstone. The winter/summer cycles have had their way with the rocks, and we are getting piles of sand. This is a danger to everyone, as it continually drops sand/rock on the sidewalk.

The plat which we live in was developed beginning in the summer of 2003. The rock wall is approximately 150 feet long and maintains a level grade as the road slopes downward to the west. The wall is about 4 feet tall by the time you get to the end of it at the west end. It starts out at about 3 inches tall on the east end.

The rock wall is installed against the southern edge of the plat about 18 inches north of the sidewalk, against a water retention pond, entirely contained within the confines of the corner lot. All of the lots in this plat own an equal share of said corner lot and retention pond. We all share an equal responsibility for maintenance (even though I do all the mowing, edging, and sweeping and nobody else lifts a finger).

The official plat map states the following:

"Tract xxx is hereby granted and conveyed together with all obligations to maintain the tract consistent with county code, lots 1 through x with an equal an undivided interest upon the recording of this plat subject to an emergency maintenance easement granted and conveyed to Snohomish County. Use of said tract is restricted to that specified in the approved final plat. The owners of all lots within the subdivision shall comply with those county regulations and conditions of final subdivision approval specified on the plat. This tract shall remain an appurtenance to and inseparable from each lot. This covenant shall be binding upon and inure the benefit of the owners of all lots within the subdivision and all others having interest in the tract or lots."

Does that make it our responsibility to fix the wall, even though the developer used clearly inferior rocks? Would it be possible or a good idea to go after the developer?

Just as a side note, a rock wall was replaced a few weeks ago right down the street from us due to the same issues. I plan to go investigate with the neighbors and find out who had to pay for it, but have not gotten that far yet.

Thanks!
 
I got some more information on the wall that was replaced down the block. The HOA in that plat went to the city and talked to them, and the city coordinated through the original contractor to fix the wall. The quarry that supplied the rock was supplying bad rock. The contractor paid for the work, and the quarry paid for the rock.

I am in contact with the same person at the city, and he is looking into it for me. Hopefully we will get the same thing to happen, but according to the developer, the contractor that put the wall in has gone out of business. Hopefully their bond is still with the state. That would be nice. At least it will get paid for, and not by us homeowners.
 
So, as it turns out, the only reason there is not an HOA in my plat is that we were unincorporated Snohomish county at the time that the plat was planned and built. We were annexed to the city of Marysville in 2006. The answer I got out of the new guy at the city is that Himalaya Homes said that the contractor that built the wall went bankrupt (same story they gave me), and there was no bond posted with the city because we were not yet incorporated. He said to check with the county.

So we are checking with the county to see if a bond was posted, if it is still there, and if the warranty period is still in effect. Not very likely. :mad:

There is not much hope at this point. We may end up eating a $50K bill between all of the owners. :(

I certainly do not want to be the bad guy, but the wall needs to be fixed. If someone falls down and busts their head open on the sidewalk due to the rocks falling apart, WE are liable... and that could be FAR in excess of the $50K.... :eek:
 
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Well, crud. Turns out that there was nothing that the city or county would do other than point me back to the plat map that says it is our problem. That just plain sucks. It looks like we are going to have to eat the cost of replacing the wall. I am trying to find out what quarry supplied the rock (the true cause of the problem), and I will likely suggest that we go after them so that the cost of the rocks are not a factor.
 
The quarry is out of business. There is a huge class-action lawsuit against them. However, nothing will ever come of it. I've gotten two quotes for replacement and both came in about $20K. Better than expected, but this will be a long, drawn-out battle with the other home owners, I am sure. One of the rockery companies is in over $1M in replacements due to the bad rocks they got supplied. He's replaced something around 62,000 feet of rock walls.
 
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