Edge Hill drainage project continued to April as DBI orders peer review and emergency stabilization

The Board of Appeals continued to April 9 an appeal involving drainage and retaining‑wall work at 181 Edge Hill Way after neighbors raised concerns that unpermitted excavation in a known landslide zone had destabilized the slope. Appellants argued that earlier permits were revoked and that recent digging endangered properties below the site; public commenters described trenches and boulder‑scale material on the slope.

The permit holder and contractor said excavation work was begun to address unfinished drainage and that they promptly engaged soils and structural engineers once concerns arose. DBI inspector Joseph Duffy explained that the department had issued an emergency permit to address immediate slope hazards, allowed limited work to proceed to stabilize the slope (three test pits / pours), and planned to send the project for a Structural Advisory Committee peer review under the Slope Protection Act before full work resumes.

Board members voted 5–0 to continue the matter to April so DBI can complete the peer review and to allow the emergency stabilization work DBI deems necessary to proceed in the interim. Planning staff said legacy conditions (a recorded Notice of Special Restrictions tied to off‑street parking and a canceled 2001 garage permit) require parallel planning enforcement action regardless of the appeal outcome.