Ron Fraley said when digging began to install a storm sewer line behind his home and four others on Woodland Avenue in Wheatland, he thought: "It's about time."

But he's not surprised that the work has been halted, calling the delay typical of the way things have gone since residents first said there was a mold problem with the homes.

A contractor began putting in a line and catch basins but had to stop this week because a temporary easement has not been signed by one of the homeowners, Fraley said.

Fraley, of 25 Woodland, said his yard has been dug up and a catch basin has been installed.

Mercer County Housing Authority Director L. DeWitt Boosel said Sunday he was not told that work had stopped.

The authority's non-profit affiliate agency, Community Homebuyers Inc., was the developer of the five homes on Woodland built in late 2000.

While all five homeowners signed permanent easements allowing the borough to maintain the drainage systems, Boosel did not know the status of the temporary easements, which allow construction to be performed on the homeowners' properties.

Frank Schwartz and Son, Hermitage, was hired to install the line, and the work was to take four or five weeks, Boosel said.

Landscaping will take another two weeks or so afterward, he said.

While residents have complained about construction problems in the homes for some time, their priority became fast-growing mold when the Fraley family had their home tested and discovered the mold was potentially dangerous.

CHI agreed in May to have all the homes tested, and then to install the drainage system to try to stem the growth of the mold. Hickory Engineering Inc. of Hermitage designed the system.

A second company, Microbac Laboratories, Erie, has been hired to address the mold problem. Microbac is waiting for completion of the new sewer line before recommending a way to rid the homes of the mold, Boosel said.

Fraley said he got tired of waiting and has begun renovating the mold-damaged interior of his home.

While residents said they have been told of the potential dangers is disturbing mold, Fraley he decided the work "can't make things worse."

In the spring, Fraley said his family has seemed to have worsening health problems possibly due to the mold. Those problems eased during the summer's long dry spell, he said.

You can e-mail Herald Staff Writer Joe Pinchot at

jpinchot@sharonherald.com