Martin Annis wants to be a good neighbor, but for the past two years, doing so has been a difficult charge.In 2005, Harvard University began building a six-story, 90,000-square-foot dormitory right behind Annis’ Banks Street home.
Annis’ two-story house at 65-67 Banks St. is one of only four properties on his side of the street not owned by Harvard. His list of damage his house has incurred since the university first broke ground on the dorm in 2005 is extensive. Since construction ended, his house has settled a half-inch below its original depth, causing cracks in several parts of the house.
In the basement, a window and heating pipe were broken while construction crews were excavating a four-story hole for an underground parking garage. His driveway was flooded with several tons of slurry — a mix of water and bentonite used to temporarily hold back dirt during excavation — last year. In 2006, construction crews accidentally knocked over a tree from an adjoining property. It landed on his car.
“I have no hope that I’m going to get anything out of Harvard,” Annis said. “I just want people to know what they did.”
Posts
