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RE: Excavating rock

To: shop-talk@autox.team.net
Subject: RE: Excavating rock
From: "Madurski, Ronald M" <ronald.m.madurski@lmco.com>
Date: Mon, 29 Aug 2005 17:28:42 -0400
> However, on this site, right where you'd want the building to be is a
wall
> of rock probably 30 feet high, that tops out at the top plateau that
then
> goes back for hundreds of feet. So for this spot, instead of the slope
> going up and levelling off at the plateau like the other lots, there
is a
> small cliff at the top.
> 

So if I read this right the face of the cliff is toward the water?


> Because of setback requirements, there isn't room to build in front of
the
> wall of rock without getting a variance. Architecturally I'd love to
pin
> something right in front of and into the wall, but that's pretty
> ambitious.
> 
Variances are generally not hard to get unless it violates some law.  It
would be easy for you to prove that the house location needs to vary
from local code due to the cliff.  If it puts you into the 100 year
flood plain you probably don't want  to do it anyway.

Building with the cliff would be my preference.  You could make a very
nice entrance on top, have a beautiful (subjective, but I'm assuming the
waterfront is not a sludge pond :-)  overlook, and exit below the cliff
through the basement.  Maybe an elevated deck with stairs to the lower
portion.  The possibilities are endless.  This would allow you to leave
the rock relatively undisturbed.

> What would need to be done would be to have a section of rock removed.
> Perhaps 30 feet high, 50 feet wide, and maybe 30 feet back to make a
shelf
> for the structure.  There would be ample place on the lot to dump the
rock
> once removed.
> 

Just my opinion.  Blasting or hammering the rock increases the chances
of making the formation unstable.  I'm assuming the since you can't
easily dig it out that it is either a limestone or sandstone, I guess it
could be igneous or metamorphic too.  Anyway, the limestone will be
subject to cracking from the heavy blows and the sandstone may become
unconsolidated.  Either way you will probably need to do some piering of
your foundation to reduce the effects of the excavation.

Oh yeah, the neighbors might have a problem with blasting in close
proximity to their existing structures.



Ron Madurski
Lockheed Martin Technology Services
Systems Engineering Manager
304 333 5575






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