HomeMy WebLinkAboutKathy Wheeler Public Comment1
Cavanaugh, Kimberly
From:Hoopes, Edwin
Sent:Monday, April 6, 2026 12:10 PM
To:Cavanaugh, Kimberly
Subject:FW: 405 Seaview Ave Osterville
Kim,
Please place in the LF file public meeƟng docs and forward to the commissioners.
Thanks,
Ed
-----Original Message-----
From: Kathy Wheeler <ktgw457@gmail.com>
Sent: Monday, April 6, 2026 10:47 AM
To: Hoopes, Edwin <Edwin.Hoopes@barnstable.gov>
Cc: Kathy Wheeler <ktgw457@gmail.com>
Subject: 405 Seaview Ave Osterville
Dear ConservaƟon Commission,
I am wriƟng to you because I have serious concerns about Beulah I Investment Family LP building a boardwalk to the
beach on their property, 405 Seaview Ave.
I realize that they want to do this so that they and their renters can get to the beach without walking through a mucky
puddle. They are experiencing an issue with water on their property due to a problem with a wetlands area, which we
refer to as "the swamp," located largely on their property. The water is affecƟng more than just 405 Seaview. I live two
properƟes away and the swamp has spread across to my neighbor's property at 439 Seaview over to mine, 457 Seaview
Ave.
The issue stems from a drainage pipe, originally installed in the 1930s. My husband’s family has lived at 457 Seaview Ave
since the 60s and never had a problem unƟl the drain in the swamp broke. The drain has been doing its job since the
1930s. The prior owners understood and maintained the drain, so there was never a problem with water on any of our
properƟes, including at 405 Seaview. In recent years, the drain has fallen into disrepair. I know it was not broken by the
people at 405 Seaview, but it’s part of the property and at Ɵmes will need repairs just like the houses there will need. Do
you just ignore the issues or do you fix them? It’s all a part of basic maintenance required to keep up the house and
property.
Because of the broken drainage pipe, water is no longer able to drain from the swamp area into Nantucket Sound as it
has historically done. As a result, the water is backing up and flooding all of our surrounding properƟes. At 405 Seaview,
they are noƟcing a swampy walk to the beach. At 457 Seaview, the trees on our property are now living in inches of
standing water, causing them to either uproot and fall over, or die off because their roots are always wet. Our
landscaping is being killed! However, I am even more concerned about the potenƟal health consequences created by the
standing water, parƟcularly with mosquitoes and the diseases they carry. The mosquitoes are geƫng worse each year.
Mosquito Control used to come regularly to manage the issue but haven’t been around for a couple of years. I would
think that would be a big concern for all the neighbors in the area, as well as local and state public health officials given
mosquito borne illnesses seem to be on the rise.
For some Ɵme last summer, 405 was running a pump to drain the swamp and that helped greatly. However, they only run
it in the summer. Fixing the drain is a beƩer soluƟon because it works year round, and does not depend on someone
2
turning it on. Also, we are in a drought situaƟon right now, and the water situaƟon conƟnues to get worse. What is going
to happen when we aren’t in a drought?
I feel that if the boardwalk is approved the situaƟon will only get worse because 405 will be able to ignore the underlying
issue. I understand wanƟng the board walk, I’d want it too in this situaƟon but it is just a bandaid for the problem at their
house. The water level will just rise if the swamp doesn’t get drained. This is creaƟng a public health risk for everyone in
the town, and is negaƟvely affecƟng the property values of everyone where the swamp is taking over and damaging our
property. I realize that you can’t make 405 fix the drain, but perhaps they would do something about the drain if they
can’t get the boardwalk they are asking for. Fixing the drain would create a similar outcome as the boardwalk: a dry
pathway to the beach, as it has been for most of the past 60+ years when the drain was funcƟoning.
Kathy Wheeler
457 Seaview Ave
Sent from my iPhone