Disaster on 7th Street South - Nichols letters

2024 Meeting Schedule

Normally meetings alternate between
Alice West Fleet Elementary Library
and the
Public Montessori School of Arlington Library.
Meetings start at 7:00 PM.

Please check the newsletter for details.

Three Letters from Joseph Nichols, Construction Manager
Arlington County, Virginia

Arlington County Logo
February 7, 1999
By Hand

Mr. Jay Wind, President
Arlington Heights Civic Association
611 S. Ivy Street
Arlington, Virginia 22204

Dear Mr. Wind:

    This is in response to your conversation of January 20, 1999 with Dennis Johnson, in which you discussed the activities of the E-Spire Communications Company who is installing fiber optic conduit through your subdivision. This company has committed several errors, namely, the severance of a gas line, which caused the evacuations of several homes in the area, as well as the placing of excavated soil on the adjacent properties without the permission of the owner. This has caused a considerable amount of concern and discontent among the neighbors who were effected. Mr. Johnson asked that we forward to you a copy of the permittee's plan for the area, as well as inform you of the latest steps we have taken to bring the permittee into compliance. As you may know we stopped the permittee from working and called him to a meeting this morning. In the meeting several remedial steps were required of the contractor if he was to continue the permit. These are listed in the attached letter to the permittee along with several other items of discussion, which may be of interest to you and the area's residents.

    Please note that we have required the permittee to take prompt action to restore the properties infringed on. We have also required that the permittee take extra care to avoid damage to utilities as they work. One element of concern was the possibility of damage to utilities that may not be discovered for some time, because this operation is underground. The permittee has answered this by stating that the responsibility for repair will continue with the ownership of the fiber optic. The E-Spire Company will be bound to make any repairs discovered to have been caused by their operations. I am the construction manager performing inspections on this permit. If you or the residents need anymore information, please call me at 228-3587.

Sincerely,
/s/
Joseph F. Nichols, Construction Manager.

CC:
R.S. Kem
Dennis Johnson



Arlington County Logo
February 7, 1999

E-Spire Communications
12701 Fairlakes Circle Drive
Fairfax, Va. 22033

Attn: Mike Knouse

    This is to confirm my Stop Work Order of January 20, 1999, given verbally to Mr. Gorman of Fishel Company at approximately 12:40 P.M.,and delivered to him by me approximately one hour later. The reason for this stop work is that the contractor has conducted his work in such a way as to cause considerable inconvenience to the public, which is contrary to the conditions of the permit. The most recent events in which the contractor caused this inconvenience are as follows:

    These incidences indicate a flagrant disregard for the rights of property in the first instance and a flagrant disregard for the safety of the area residents for the sake of what little effort due caution would have cost. As such we are compelled to admonish you to vigorously eliminate any future possibilities of a reoccurrence of these and similar events. This letter constitutes a final warning that a reoccurrence will bring into question our future continuation of this permit. These matters will be discussed in tomorrow's meeting at 9:00 A.M. in room 717 of our office at 2100 Clarendon Blvd., Arlington Va.

Sincerely,
/s/
Joseph Nichols, Construction Manager

CC:
R.S. Kem
Dennis Johnson



Arlington County Logo
February 7, 1999

E-Spire Communications
12701 Fairlakes Circle Drive
Fairfax, Va. 22033

Attn: Mike Knouse

    This is to chronicle our meeting of January 21, 1999 with representatives of your company and its contractors, representatives of the Washington Gas Light Company, and Arlington County representatives (Attendance attached) . The purpose of the meeting was to discuss under what conditions the County would rescind its Stop Work Order of the previous day and allow your company to continue with your fiber optic installation under permit 45551. The following were the major points made, and the necessary actions which will need to ensue:

    Our letter of January 20, 1999, attached, states the events which led up to the Stop Work Order . These events were mentioned as key indicators of the need for modification of your company's method of operation. We appreciate your ready agreement and your willingness to offer solutions to avoid these mistakes in the future.

    We appreciate the positive attitude demonstrated by your company in this very productive meeting. Our Stop Work Order of January 20, 1999 is lifted. With your remedial action and continued resolve to avoid the errors of the recent past, we are confident that we will not have to act on the final warning stated in my letter yesterday. If you have any corrections or additions to the above, please fax them to me at 228-3606.

Sincerely,
/s/
Joseph Nichols, Construction Manager

CC:
R.S. Kem
Dennis Johnson
William Boyce