The report's findings were not disclosed by Assistant City Manager Matt Rodriguez, who said that they would be reviewed by Ziegler and the City Council in closed session.
Soils engineers retained by the city and developer William Lyons Homes studied the July 13 slide that forced the evacuation of seven homes in the 1000 block of Santa Lucia Drive on Pittsburg's southwest side near the naval weapons station. No injuries occurred in the slide.
Rodriguez said on Sept. 28 that all but one of the homes had been approved for occupancy again and that some repairs are being performed in the various yards.
"The city, in conjunction with its independent geotechnical consultant, has verified the completeness of a permanent slide repair," City Manager Marc Grisham announced in a press release.
Grisham's release said the slide has been repaired and that a 12-inch high-pressure waterline along the slide area has been stabilized. Officials initially feared that further slippage along the slide area could rupture the pipeline and cause property damage, injury or even death.
Ziegler could not be reached for comment on the report, which normally would be entered into the public record upon its receipt by the city. However, because it is a "draft," the city legally can refuse to release it.
The one home still not cleared for occupancy is owned by Gus Kramer, Contra Costa County Assessor, who said his house continues to move as much as a quarter inch every other day.
"They may have stopped it south of here, but not on mine. I don't know when the tags (ordering all occupants to keep out) will come off my house," Kramer said.
Meanwhile Kramer's tenants have been forced to find new lodging, leaving him with a house he can't rent. "I'm making payments on a house where I have no income."
Grisham's press release said Kramer's house will remain closed until further repairs are made and stabilization work is completed.
"An additional plan and schedule for work is being developed by William Lyon Homes to make permanent backyard repairs to the affected seven properties in preparation of the wet weather season," Grisham said in the release.
Kramer said he is concerned that the grout being used to fill fissures will expand and contract with the adobe soil that his house sits on, causing him to worry if new fissures will occur.
In a previous interview, Kramer alleged that grading operations behind the failed slope cut too deeply into the hillside and caused the slide. He said he warned the city that he thought the grading was too deep but was rebuffed.
Grisham's release said William Lyon Homes will continue to provide relocation assistance to the displaced homeowners through Oct. 8 to give them sufficient time to return to their homes.
An official at William Lyon Homes authorized to talk with reporters was unavailable for comment. Previously the company said it would have no comment on the slide and its cause.
No claims or lawsuits stemming from the slide had been filed against the city by the end of September, Rodriguez said.
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